Julian warily approached the bonfire and sat down a few meters away. If the man decided to attack him, he could react in time to at least dodge an attack.
Even so, if the man really was friendly, Julian owed him an apology.
"Sorry about earlier. You looked plenty strong to handle them, and as you can see, I don't even have a weapon."
The man just stared, not answering.
"Not much of a talker, are you? Still, thanks for helping out. If not for you, I'd be dead."
His words hung in the air for a few short moments until the man pointed at the fire.
Although Julian was very skeptical, he turned his gaze toward the fire, and before he could react, his vision darkened.
Silence, darkness, and complete lack of sensation.
He was isolated somewhere with only his thoughts, but amidst the darkness, a golden light appeared above him, almost like a sun. Its rays were focused on him, acknowledging his presence.
It was bright but cold. Distant, but also very close...
It felt like a dream. Was he dreaming?
Though the sun shone brightly... too brightly. The longer he stared at it, the more entranced he became.
Even though he didn't have a body, he began to feel warmer. The warmth increased by the second until it eventually became unbearable.
When he snapped out of it, he tried to take his gaze away from the sun, but he wasn't able to. His gaze simply wouldn't budge.
But as his consciousness started to fade, his vision suddenly darkened. Once again, he regained control of himself, and before long...
Julian gasped, finding himself staring at the bonfire once again. It crackled softly, flames curling around the bones of fallen evil spirits.
There was no vision of whatever that strange place was, only the sensation, as well as the sizzling of his skin to remind him of what had just happened.
Julian felt fear welling up in his chest, his heart rate quickening. Still, he did his best to compose himself.
"..."
He turned to the armored man who, out of nowhere, began cooking a piece of rabbit. Julian drooled slightly but soon picked himself together.
"What was that? Did you do that?"
The man glanced at Julian, and without saying a word, he took off his helmet, revealing his surprisingly handsome face. He looked like one of those idols, except his expression was more battle-worn.
Still, once he took the helmet off, the rabbit finished cooking just in time, so he held it out in front of Julian.
"Are you going to eat?"
Julian raised a brow.
"Here I thought you were a mute."
The man shrugged, dangling the rabbit on the stick.
Julian's stomach growled, and despite his wariness, his hunger pangs took over as he snatched the rabbit and dug in. It didn't taste great, but it was better than nothing.
For the next few minutes, only the sound of Julian eating could be heard. When he was done, he stuck the stick into the ground and turned back to the armored man.
"Thanks again. But you won't leave me on ice like this, right? What was that vision?"
A faint smile appeared on the man's face.
"It's called the Sun's Grace. To light a fire in the Second Heaven, you need to get the permission of a god. If the god approves, then you've gotten the Sun's Grace and can light a fire freely."
Julian hummed, tilting his head.
"That's straightforward enough, but I didn't light the fire. So why did it happen to me?"
The man leaned against his sword.
"You got too close and looked directly into it, so it acknowledged you. I only tested you to make sure you're not some evil spirit trying to swindle me. Never hurts to be cautious, does it?"
He paused, letting out a hum.
"Evil spirits can't light a fire. They get incinerated instantly, and only humans can get the Sun's Grace. It's just a little boon the Reverie Realm gives to us humans. At least that's what I think is happening."
After that, he introduced himself.
"My name's Adam. And you are...?"
"Julian."
Although Julian replied calmly, he was a bit on edge. The sun had started to burn him, and if not for some interference, he would've been killed then and there... But he was sure he wasn't an evil spirit. He was a human.
'I'll have to not look directly at fires for now.'
But keeping that to himself, Julian moved on.
"How long have you been in here?"
Adam rubbed his chin, then raised one finger.
"One year?" Julian exhaled a relieved breath. "Here I thought you—"
"A decade," Adam interrupted. "I've been in here for a decade now, I think. Hard to tell when life's the same day in and day out. Not like I have a clock either."
"Hold on..." Julian stopped him. "You've been in here for a decade? But you look my age?"
Julian soon realized what that meant.
An empty smile appeared on Adam's face as he turned his gaze away from Julian.
"When I was nine, my parents sold me off to some men in fancy robes. They did all sorts of experiments on me. Rituals, physical tempering... mental tempering. When I finally turned ten, they tossed me through the portal to the Reverie Realm, and I ended up here."
Julian could tell that there was plenty Adam was hiding, especially the 'experimentation.' Men in fancy robes... that was exactly the first thought he had when he first saw the priests of the exorcist factions.
Aside from that, Adam was very powerful, and for someone who was still at the Dormant rank, that shouldn't be possible. But Julian wasn't one to pry into others' personal lives. If he didn't want to tell him, then so be it.
"I see... Your parents suck, huh?" Julian went with the no-pity approach. "But why didn't you leave this place? You must've explored nearly everything in a decade, isn't that right?"
Strangely enough, Adam shook his head.
"I have a clue where the exit might be, but it's impossible to get there. Don't even try."
With those words, he rose from the ground and carefully picked up his longsword, sheathing it. After that, he turned around and began to leave, startling Julian for a moment.
"Hey!" Julian called out, a determined look on his face.
"I know I might not be of much help now, but why don't we team up? Four hands are better than two, after all..."