Umbra didn't say much during the flight, but Caedus didn't mind. He wasn't sure if it was because the wind was so loud that Umbra didn't see a point in speaking or if he just didn't want to talk.
The rush of wind roared in Caedus' ears, tearing at his clothes and hair, but after the initial panic of flying had faded away, he found himself clinging tightly and simply… watching
'It may be boring and flat, but the view is quite peaceful.' Caedus thought, looking at the stretch of endless green he was walking on before Umbra came along. The horizon curved gently, giving him a bit of vertigo.
"Peaceful," he murmured to himself. His body loosened at the thought. He felt like he had been through hell the past few days, and he looked like it, too. He looked down at his clothes and saw all the dirt, blood, ash, and sweat stains that covered him. He was sure he smelled terrible, but the wind simply carried it away.
He suddenly felt tired. The wind felt relaxing, and with how sore he was, he soon fell asleep and went limp in Umbra's grip.
'Poor human, I didn't want to bring it up, but he seemed like he had it tough recently. I could smell the blood of several humans lingering on his body.' Umbra thought to himself as he felt Caedus relax.
Time passed quickly while Caedus slept. He didn't wake until the sun dipped beneath the horizon of the Endless Plains, roused by a booming voice.
"Smelly human, we are approaching Steelcrest City! You might want to wake up and prepare yourself!" Umbra said over the roaring wind. Caedus rubbed his eyes before glancing up at Umbra and nodding slightly.
'Damn, I guess I was more tired than I originally thought.'
He looked around at the Endless Plains, and there in the distance was a ginormous lone mountain. One so tall that the peak of it disappeared behind the clouds, it pierced through. Upon its slopes sprawled countless lights and buildings, so vast and numerous that Caedus couldn't even begin to imagine how many people lived there. And the lights stretched up around the mountain and wrapped it without leaving a singular piece of land visible on its face.
While Caedus stared at it in astonishment, Umbra quickly descended towards the ground and landed gently. When he put down Caedus and saw that Caedus was still staring up at the incredible sight, he laughed out loud.
"You must have been a country bumpkin, huh, little human? Haven't you ever seen a city before?" Umbra teased.
Caedus didn't respond and just shook his head. While Caedus stared in amazement, he heard a whooshing and fluttering noise behind him from where his back was turned towards Umbra.
Surprised, he snapped out of his stupor and turned towards where the giant crow was, only to freeze.
The massive crow was gone.
In its place stood a young man, lean and sharp, with black hair and eyes so dark they seemed to devour the light around them.
"Who are you?" Caedus asked curiously. He was cautious since he had no idea where Umbra went and who this young man was.
"I am Umbra," the man said with his eyebrow raised.
"Wait, what? You're human?" Caedus was in shock again. "Is this your power? You can turn into a giant crow?"
"Ugh. So stupid." Umbra clicked his tongue in frustration before speaking again. "I can give you the basics while we walk to the city gates. We still have about a kilometer left before we get there."
He brushed past Caedus and beckoned him to follow.
"I am not human, but most magical creatures can polymorph into a human once they reach the 4th Realm."
"So you are just a crow that got strong enough to polymorph? What is the 4th Realm?"
"'Just a crow'? I am a Nightmare Crow. We are not 'just crows'. You'd better be careful what you say to people because someone will definitely take offense." He warned, emphasizing with a glance how serious he was in telling Caedus to be careful.
Caedus nodded lightly. "I'm sorry. I didn't know."
Umbra nodded and warned again. "Naivety will get you killed in Iridia. Be careful who you speak to and who you offend. Countless people die every day because they are weak. Once you are strong enough to protect yourself, though, you can be as reckless as you want, but still don't think you are immune to death."
'Weakness is a sin. Got it.' Another sentence tempered his will to be stronger. He felt a bit excited, mixed with seriousness. He was excited to begin his new journey, and he was curious about his soul powers, but he knew it might be dangerous at times. Similar to a hero's journey in the stories he was told years ago.
"Now the levels are also something I will explain quickly, so pay attention," Umbra said, snapping him out of his own thoughts.
"There are nine levels of powers that are currently known in Iridia. Each level increase you have adds an exponential amount of soul power your body can use and control, thus increasing your life span and general body strength."
Umbra put up one finger with his right hand without looking back. Caedus just listened as this was important for him to know.
"First stage is when you awaken your soul. It is the Condensation Realm. It's where every cultivator begins. You gather and refine the basic energy of your soul. Without this, you can't move forward. It's the foundation of all cultivation. So the stronger your foundation, the easier it is to take the next steps to getting strength."
Umbra put up a second finger.
"Once you've reached that, you move to the Foundation realm. Here, you solidify your soul and prepare to reach your true potential. This stage can take years of practice to overcome, but with the right talent, someone can fly through this stage in less than a year. It's necessary to push past your physical limits and start forming the core of your power when trying to reach this realm."
A third finger raised.
"Then comes Core Formation," Eldon continued. "This is where you form a core inside yourself. It's a powerful and critical moment for any cultivator. The core becomes the central hub of your strength, storing immense energy that you can draw on for your techniques. It is also so you can control your unique ability without much focus."
Then Umbra put his hands down and casually kept walking without saying anything else.
'What the hell?' Caedus looked at Umbra's back and wondered if he was playing a prank on him.
'Why did he suddenly stop?'
"Mister Umbra, why did you stop explaining?" Caedus asked.
"I can't tell you about the higher levels," Umbra said without much emotion.
"What, why?" Caedus exclaimed in surprise.
"Everyone has different paths. Different requirements to advance are different for every single person. Only you can answer how you can advance. I can tell you the names of levels 4-6, but I won't be able to tell you anything more than that as I am not even aware of what realms 7-9 are called. "
"The 4th Realm is called the Dawning Realm."
"5th is the Fusion Realm."
"6th is the Void Realm."
"Dawning, Fusion, and Void." Even murmuring the names of the stages brought a sense of unfathomable power upon Caedus.
"Each realm has 4 additional stages in it. It goes through the Initial, Middle, Upper, and Peak Stages. So I am sure that is self-explanatory."
Caedus nodded. 'This was very informative.'
"Thank you, Mister Umbra," Caedus said seriously. He really did appreciate all that Umbra was doing for him. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to say the Umbra saved his life.
"May I ask, though? Why did we land so far from the city?" Caedus really didn't mind the walk, but he was curious about it.
"I would be considered of average strength in the city. Even I can't casually break their laws. I would probably be shot down and killed before I could apologize. Even more so since this is the capital of the Ironwood Kingdom."
"I see…" Caedus was shocked for the millionth time.
The giant and imposing crow said he would only be considered average. Then, what would Caedus be considered? Bottom of the barrel?
Umbra stopped his walk before turning around and looking at Caedus seriously into his purple eyes. Umbra sensed that Caedus had a change in emotion at finding out that Umbra was average in terms of strength.
"Don't worry about being weak. In fact, how old are you?"
"I am 18."
"That is perfect. Most kingdoms and empires have laws in place where you cannot awaken your soul power until you are 18 anyway." Umbra comforted
"Why is that?" Caedus asked.
"Simply put, the soul of each being doesn't become whole until you reach adulthood. When you are young, you are susceptible to change, and that can be dangerous. Young kids aren't mature enough to control their powers, and it can be very dangerous since the strength of their souls can break their bodies down. Causing them to literally explode or lose control and hurt others."
"Fuck, did you say explode?" Caedus cursed. Despite being surprised, Caedus did feel a lot better about that information. He wouldn't be the only one at the starting line.
Umbra ignored his response before asking another question.
"I forgot to ask, but what is your name, human?"
"Oh uh, it is Caedus. I am sorry, I forgot to introduce myself because of everything going on."
"It is fine, I didn't ask at first anyway, so you aren't entirely at fault. What is your family name then, Caedus? You humans typically have those, correct?" Umbra stepped a bit closer, examining Caedus seriously for the first time.
Suddenly, Caedus blanked on that. He never had one, really, and his grandfather insisted on it being lost to time.
"Violetshade, I guess," Caedus said without putting much thought into it.
'Wait, why did I say Violetshade? I think I'm forgetting something.'
"Caedus Violetshade, huh? Again, I am Umbra of the Nightmare Crow clan. Nice to meet you." Umbra turned around and beckoned once again for Caedus to follow him.
It was silent for a few minutes before Umbra spoke up.
"So, Caedus Violetshade. Why are you covered in blood?"
Caedus sighed loudly and began to recount his story for Umbra. From his parents' deaths, what Earth was like now, and to his last night on Earth. He spoke for a long time while they approached the enormous wall of the city.