Chapter 300: True Date
They spent over an hour on the underside, walking the full length of the suspended pathway. The deeper they went, the more surreal it became.
At one section, the walkway passed through a hollow in the island’s base where crystals grew in clusters, humming at a frequency that Aegon could feel in his chest.
Elara pressed her palm against one. "It’s warm," she said, a little surprised.
"The guidebook said these crystals store ambient mana from the atmosphere. Decades of accumulation, and then it takes different forms depending on some Affinities and stuff."
She raised an eyebrow. "I thought you weren’t theorizing today."
He threw his hands in the air. "That wasn’t a theory. It’s a fact. There’s a difference, a big one."
"Sure there is."
They emerged back on the topside around midday, squinting against the sudden brightness. The sun was directly overhead now, and the settlement had grown busier. More tourists had arrived, and the market stalls were packed.
A few heads turned as they walked through. Aegon noticed the gazes easily but didn’t react. He was way too used to them by now.
The golden eyes of House Valeria weren’t exactly subtle, and Elara’s features marked her clearly as elven royalty. Together, they drew attention the way a bonfire drew moths.
One merchant recognized his eyes and nearly dropped his wares. A mother pulled her child closer, not out of fear but reverence. The dragons were godlike for many people, especially the Sky People, so how would they perceive the people who could control those godlike beings?
The answer was very simple.
’So much for a quiet date,’ he sighed internally.
Elara seemed less bothered. Or rather, she was bothered but handled it differently. She kept her chin up, her posture straight, and her expression pleasant but distant. The princess mask, as Aegon called it privately, she wore it like armour as always.
He reached over and took her hand. She glanced at him.
"Let them stare," he said quietly. "We’re on a date. Their opinions don’t mean shit."
The mask cracked slightly as she smiled, a real one, and squeezed his hand tightly. "You’re extra sweet today, handsome."
"Finally, you recognise my handsome and sharp mind?"
She giggled softly.
They had a quick lunch at a stall selling grilled skewers and spiced rice, sitting on a bench overlooking the island’s edge.
The view stretched endlessly in every direction. Other floating islands hung in the distance like scattered pieces of a broken continent, each connected by the massive metal chains.
Aegon checked the position of the sun. ’Past noon, probably around two.’
[2:12 PM]
’Thanks.’
"We should move," he said, standing up. "The next island I picked closes its main attraction at sunset, and we need at least three hours there."
"Which island?"
"Mirrorveil." He offered his hand to help her up. "The entire island is covered in a lake so still that it perfectly reflects the sky. People say walking on it feels like walking through the clouds."
Elara took his hand and stood. "You really did plan everything, didn’t you?"
"I told you. Brilliant planner."
"I still prefer delusional."
"And yet you’re still holding my hand." He smiled.
She looked down at their intertwined fingers. Then back at him. "Shut up and lead the way."
He grinned, and they walked toward the chain bridge that connected the Inverted World to the next cluster of islands. Mirrorveil was two islands over, roughly a thirty-minute walk across the chains.
The wind picked up as they stepped onto the first chain, and the world opened up beneath them once more. Bottomless sky below, endless blue above.
Elara’s hair caught the wind, streaming behind her like pale gold threads.
’I should really figure out that camera soon,’ Aegon thought, watching her from the corner of his eye.
Some moments deserved to be captured.
It didn’t take long to reach the Mirror Lake island, especially when both didn’t realise the passage of time with each other. Coming to the Chainbound Sky was just an excuse for them to spend more time with each other.
Elara didn’t have much time to spend in the human domain, Aegon was aware of that. The only reason the Elf Council agreed to let her stay was because of Amon.
Even the Elves wouldn’t dare to disrespect a 9-Star Mage like Amon, and they also wanted Elara to learn from the best. But his training had ended, which meant Elara needed to go back to Sylvanna.
If she stayed here any longer, the Elves might suspect things, and the budding relationship between Elves and Humans might get endangered.
All of this rested upon her existence. These were her responsibilities, and she intended to uphold them. That was the Elara he knew, so she would soon leave.
That was why he designed this date where he could show the human domain to her while also spending more time with her. Especially since he was also very busy, so busy he hadn’t worked on progressing for so long.
He was still the same Mage, Knight, and Soul Cultivator as that of Supreme Games. And he wanted to reach higher stages so he could uncover more mysteries.
He wanted to know what truly happened on the day he was born.
As if that wasn’t enough, he also needed to oversee the production of Mana Batteries and make things in which the Mana Batteries would be used.
He was already very thankful to Micheal and Xiu for handling everything. Without them, he would have been overwhelmed.
Because of all of this, neither would really have time for each other. Both knew it very well, so they treasured the little time they had and enjoyed it to its fullest.
It didn’t matter where they were, what kind of people surrounded them, what the two of them did. Nothing mattered except the fact that they enjoyed each other’s company.
The Mirror Lake was one such experience. They walked around on it for almost an hour, chatting amidst the clouds where the sky reflected on the ground.
It truly gave the feeling of walking freely in the boundless sky, free of any burden and responsibilities that bound them. They were like two birds, laughing and treasuring their freedom.
For they knew, they would be bound soon.