Chapter 75: Exploration Class. (1)
Another body dragged out of the arena.
"Elena Farseer."
A girl with dark hair and fixed gaze descended without saying anything. Her hands moved with precision. She formed figures in the air, translucent structures that floated around her.
She didn’t attack first.
She waited.
The chimera advanced.
The structures reacted on their own. They interposed in the trajectory, deflecting the impact, absorbing part of the force. Elena moved between them, repositioning them, guiding the combat.
The rhythm changed.
The creature began to fail.
An opening.
Elena took advantage.
One of the structures compressed and pierced through the chimera’s side with a clean impact. It wasn’t enough to bring it down, but it was enough to stop it.
Morgana raised her hand.
"Enough."
Elena lowered her hands.
She breathed faster, but remained standing.
"Acceptable."
The combat ended there.
The flow continued.
Names.
Attempts.
Errors.
Blows.
Some lasted longer.
Others barely a few seconds.
The arena accumulated new marks with each turn.
Until Morgana spoke again.
"Enough for today."
Silence fell suddenly.
Some students tensed, others released held breath.
Gerald raised his head.
"Huh? Already?"
Aku showed no visible reaction.
But his gaze relaxed slightly.
His turn hadn’t come.
Morgana turned without adding anything more.
"Withdraw."
The class had ended.
The group left the arena without too many words.
The route continued through the same underground hallways. The lighting remained dim, with bluish lines marking the path on the walls. The air maintained that constant cold that didn’t quite become uncomfortable, but didn’t disappear either.
The sound of footsteps was the only thing accompanying the advance.
Bīng Xuě appeared from one of the sides, walking with hands in pockets. He had removed some dust from his uniform, but still carried marks from combat.
"Hey," he said approaching. "How was the rest?"
He looked first at Aku.
Aku kept walking.
"Boring."
The answer was dry.
Bīng Xuě raised an eyebrow.
"Really?" he let out a short laugh. "I left just when the good part was starting."
Gerald intervened from behind, still touching his neck as if remembering the training’s pressure.
"You didn’t miss that much... well, yes, a bit," he admitted. "There was blood... quite a bit of blood."
Bīng Xuě nodded, as if that confirmed something.
"Then it was worth it."
The group turned in another hallway.
The environment changed little by little.
The metal walls disappeared. In their place appeared walls of dark brick, placed irregularly. The lighting became warmer, with torches embedded in iron holders.
The sound also changed.
More hollow.
More closed.
The hallway led to a wide room.
The ceiling was high, supported by stone arches. The floor, firm, with wear marks in several areas. The structure resembled an old castle room, though integrated within the academy.
At the front, a man waited.
Leaning slightly on a short staff, though he didn’t seem to need it.
He was around sixty. Gray hair, with no clear order, with strands falling to the sides. The beard grew unevenly, longer on the chin, shorter on the cheeks.
He wore a monocle on his right eye.
On top, a worn cowboy hat, with the brim slightly bent on one side.
The clothes completed the ensemble: explorer jacket, wide pockets, resistant fabric, reinforced pants, and boots marked by use.
Seeing them enter, he raised his hand.
"Well, well..." he murmured, observing the group. "You arrive intact. That’s something."
He moved a bit from the center.
"Tadeo Jhons," he said, pointing at himself with his thumb. "And this... is the best class you’re going to have here."
He adjusted the monocle with two fingers.
"Exploration."
He walked a few steps, slightly dragging the sole against the floor.
"Nothing about fighting like savages... nothing about throwing things just because... " he moved his hand in the air. "Here it’s about thinking, observing, not getting into a hole without knowing what’s inside."
He turned toward them.
"Worlds don’t traverse themselves. Ruins don’t open with shouts. And those who survive... aren’t the strongest."
He made a pause.
"They’re the ones who return."
He snapped his fingers.
The wall behind him vibrated.
A vertical line appeared in the stone. Then another. The block divided into three sections that displaced to the sides. Behind, three circular openings became visible.
Each one contained a portal.
The first emitted a deep blue tone, with slow movement, like contained water. The second was green, more unstable. The third, red, with irregular flashes.
"Labyrinth," Tadeo said, indicating with his chin. "You enter... and exit."
He shrugged.
"Whoever takes less time, better."
He turned toward the group.
"In alphabetical order."
He took out a small notebook from his pocket and opened it.
"Antony..."
Silence.
Someone from the back raised their hand.
"Uh..." hesitated a second. "He lost an arm in the previous class."
Tadeo slowly raised his gaze.
"What?"
He closed the notebook with a dry slam.
"That woman..." he growled, running his hand through his beard. "Morgana is a brute. They shouldn’t let her teach."
He shook his head.
"Then I have to fix these things..."
He opened the notebook again.
"Next."
He ran his finger down the list.
"Aku."
He raised his gaze.
"You."
He pointed at the blue portal.
"Inside."
Aku advanced without responding.
He crossed the room with constant steps. The air near the portal was colder. The surface undulated slowly, without emitting sound.
He stopped an instant before it.
Then he entered.
The change was immediate.
The ground under his feet remained firm, but the environment disappeared completely for a fraction of a second. The sensation of passage was clean, without resistance.
On the other side, the space closed.
Stone hallways.
High walls, narrow. The ceiling wasn’t entirely visible, but the light was sufficient to see without difficulty. There were no torches. The illumination seemed to come from the walls themselves, in a faint tonality.
Aku advanced one step.
He stopped.
He tried to mobilize his energy.
The azoth responded... and then dissipated.
It didn’t disappear.
It was absorbed.
The flow left his body and was lost in the environment without leaving a trace.
He repeated the attempt.
The result was the same.
His eyes swept the walls.
The surface showed no visible marks, but the sensation was clear. That place drained energy. It didn’t block. It consumed.
Aku stopped trying.
It wasn’t worth insisting.