"Well? How was it" Aaric asked Draco in the evening after his training session with the Elder was complete.
"Hm" Draco responded, rolling his shoulders to ease his fatigue. "The sheer richness of their history and knowledge, I honestly question whether Hogwarts is the best school of magic anymore."
"Right?" Aaric added, shaking his head. "And with teachers like Snape in the school, I wonder how many students who had an interest in Potions have just given up."
"Neville's Boggart was Snape, was it not" Draco asked, and Aaric nodded.
The boys fell into their own thoughts after that, walking toward Frostroot Hollow to have dinner with Shenlian as they had promised.
"How about another race I get to fling mud at you if I win" Draco challenged Aaric on the path.
"Only if I get to throw you in a river if I win" Aaric countered.
Draco contemplated the deal but quickly found himself at a disadvantage. "Let us just enjoy the scenery" Draco muttered.
Aaric shrugged and whistled for the horses they had ridden to the sect earlier.
"How are you able to call to them and have them obey you" Draco asked as he mounted his horse.
"It is not about them obeying me. I just ask them for a ride, and it is up to them if they agree" Aaric answered with a shrug, gently rubbing his horse's neck to signal it to start moving.
"Welcome, my Lord. Dinner is prepared. And you too, child, I hope you enjoy it" Shenlian welcomed the boys with a happy smile.
"Thank you, Miss Shenlian" Aaric and Draco nodded to the guardian, then went to wash their hands before sitting down for dinner.
Lingniao, Shenlian's magical companion, a beast combining the properties of a phoenix and a spirit was perched beside Shenlian at the dinner table as the boys ate.
"The food is very tasty" Aaric complimented as they ate with happy smiles.
"Thank you, my Lord" Shenlian said in a gentle voice, clearly enjoying Aaric's company.
Draco, having trained for hours, was more focused on his food and remained silent.
"Was your visit fruitful?" Shenlian asked with a tilt of her head.
"Yes, very. Blondie here got an Ashwinder flame for himself" Aaric answered, gesturing to Draco.
Draco simply nodded at Aaric's words, too busy eating to offer an insult in return.
After dinner, Aaric, Draco, and Shenlian spent time chatting about various topics. It was mostly the boys who did the talking, telling her about their school life.
"And Aaric is dating Daphne and Luna both" Draco mentioned in a gossiping tone, having grown comfortable with Shenlian.
"That is good. They both are sweet and polite girls. Why do you not bring them here again when you have time" Shenlian said with a smile, giving Aaric a light caress on the head.
"Yes, of course. They loved their visit here last time" Aaric answered with a nod, giving Draco a smirk.
Draco shrugged and began asking Shenlian questions about ancient magic and runes, as she seemed knowledgeable about every subject he raised.
Aaric turned his attention to Lingniao, giving the spiritual beast attention and gentle caresses while Shenlian taught Draco about ancient runes he had mentioned reading about in his family's library.
"Visit again, my Lord. And you as well, child" Shenlian said, giving the boys their departing hugs as Aaric called Nibbin to take them to Draco's room at Hogwarts.
"Of course, thank you for your teachings" Draco gave Shenlian a respectful bow while Aaric waved goodbye. They vanished with a pop.
Nibbin was actually using his previous abilities because he was transporting Draco and wanted to appear as a normal house elf.
Nibbin had gain a superior teleportation with lightning effect after all.
"Leave, Hawthorn. I have much to do" Draco waved his hand toward Aaric, urging him to leave the moment they materialized in his room.
"Yes, yes, Malfoy. People nowadays are so ungrateful. You can wank in peace now" Aaric muttered loudly before he too was gone with a pop.
Aaric missed the pillow Draco threw at him for the comment.
"What is wank" Nibbin asked Aaric when they appeared back at their mansion.
"Well" Aaric scratched his head with tightened lips, struggling to formulate an answer. "It is a bad habit Draco has. Let us not meddle too much" Aaric said hurriedly, forming a portal behind him and falling through it before Nibbin could ask more.
Aaric appeared on Nightshade Island and sighed in relief with a hand on his heart.
"Now that I am here" Aaric muttered and moved toward the cave where he had placed the Dragonsteel and the dragon egg to continue bathing in the gold dragon's aura.
Aaric entered the cave and inspected the metal, noting it had gained a more golden sheen and was now a much better conductor of magic.
"It reminds me of Custodes armor from Warhammer. If I had a real Custodes army, that would be the coolest thing in the world" Aaric muttered to himself before moving toward the egg.
The egg was slightly bigger than he remembered and resembled a massive precious stone with streaks of brilliant gold running through its surface.
'Analyse the egg and check the changes made to the dragon inside' Aaric asked mentally, receiving an immediate response.
{The dragon is now more gold dragon than a native dragon from this world. However, the growth of the dragon will be accelerated compared to a standard gold dragon.}
"That is good. That will make him stronger faster, and as a demigod, he must be immortal" Aaric thought to himself with a hand on his chin.
{Affirmative. The subject cannot die of old age.} Aaric's skill confirmed.
Aaric's skill was not a system, it was his own power, filtered through an interface similar to an artificial intelligence to bypass all the mental calculations required for instantaneous information processing.
He did not actually need to ask his skill any questions and could gain any information he wanted in the waking realms with a mere thought.
However, he chose not to, preferring to leave some element of surprise in life. His parents, Daphne, and Luna had the same abilities and chose the same option.
Elder Huo had chosen not to use an interface and filtered information using his own mind, but his skill was on a much lower level, lacking divine energy, and was focused primarily on alchemy.
"How long until the egg hatches" Aaric asked.
{The egg will hatch in the next month} was the immediate reply.
A/n: Give me your thought on the chapter and reviews on the fic.
And.. you got any power stones? Well, hand em over then.