"From your words, I assume you didn't get here yourself but received some sort of help. Eh, while it's a bit of a disappointment, at least I will be able to save you some time."

Maybe Draconis was too lazy, or maybe it didn't matter at all for him, but rather than scanning Fen's memory with just a single touch of his, this overwhelming being limited itself to figuring out the situation from Fen's words alone.

"Wait a second…"

As surprised as the young man was with the lacklustre attitude of this god-like figure, there was one thing in its words that rather than puzzling him, put him on the highest alert.

"Get here yourself? From what the girl that helped me get to this place told me, it's not something that only I'm privy for! Does that mean that every single arcanist gets to visit this place?!"

So far, the young man considered this strange place to be his safe haven, somewhere where he was completely and utterly safe, as no physical trains were present in it. And how he learned that it wasn't the case? If literally any arcanist could enter this place, then how was Fen special for doing so?

"Well, the question you asked is flawed in the first place. It's not like this place is special or anything. Everyone who aims to create an arcana core will leave his or her mark on it. Look."

With just a swipe of his hand, Draconis suddenly revealed that what looked like a calm sea of fires, was actually littered with something that looked like small, red gems! Every single red crystal had its own sphere of influence, that separated an impossibly small part of the sea for itself, but for some reason, it looked as, despite those boundaries, the fire itself continued to flow freely from one place to another!

"I assume that the people that are teaching you are all from my clan, so I can already tell what your problem is. But in order to help you out with it, I need to explain something else. You see, all of those crystals, with their own respective parts of the flames, are the manifestation of their owner's authority."

This time, Draconis didn't even bother to produce any gesture to catch Fen's presence and move it just a few inches away from one of the private seas of some random arcanist.

"You see, everyone who relies on my bloodline to grow the mastery of arcana can only grow his authority within my own. That's why they are all focused on creating a separate pool of fire for themselves because that's what I did in the first place."

Moving his head around for a moment, Draconis scanned the vast expanses of the sea of flames before moving the two of them once again, right in front of another pool of fire.

"This man whose authority you can now see is currently using it."

Directing his attention to the small red crystal and its private sea that surrounded it, Fen realised that contrary to the other cores, it was now completely separated from the rest of the greater sea.

���That's the true form of the core that all my descendants strive for. While their authority is separate from mine, it's still lodged within the authority of my own. But take a look at how your authority looks."

Another swipe of Draconis hand moved them all the way back to the place where Fen's consciousness appeared in the first place. But no matter how much Fen strained his uncorporeal eyes, he was unable to find any pool that would differ even slightly from all the others that filled the entire area.

"Look here."

Pointing his hand at what looked like a completely broken pool, Draconis finally allowed Fen to observe what the state of his own core was.

"You see, every descendant of my bloodline needs to create a core first in order to properly control their own talent. After all, without the manifestation of their authority, they wouldn't have the access to the ocean of my own authority. But your case is completely different."

Moving a little bit, Draconis changed his position to put Fen's failure of a core perfectly in between them.

"My descendants can create borders that will separate their authority from my own. But Phoenixian authority is completely different, as Phoenix is the embodiment of the fire itself, rather than an ancient guardian like me."

Shaking his head, Draconis appeared as if he was struggling really hard to not burst out in laughter.

"Imagine yourself being in the middle of an ocean. You hold a big paddle in your hand, and you are tasked with controlling the water in the ocean with it. Tell me, would you be capable of creating a pool of your own just by paddling the excess water away?"

Only once this god-like figure pointed out the correct way of looking at the problem, did Fen realise what was causing so much anxiety in him. With all his attempts to establish a proper core on his own, he was simply going against his nature!

"But if I were to extend this comparison a bit further, without a defined authority of my own, how am I supposed to grow my strength? It's not like I can stop the water from pouring into my pool even if I were to paddle away with all my strength and endurance!"

'Wait a moment…'

Even before Draconis could answer, Fen realised that the secret behind the question didn't lie in the last words that this god-like figure spoke, but it what it said before that. If he were to interpret his words in a specific way, wouldn't that mean that Draconis was an intruding force that forcefully made part of the sea of fires its own, while Phoenix was the governor of its natural flow?

If that was the case, the rather than paddling the excessive water away, wouldn't it be better to just paddle the water in one direction as much as he could, making use of its momentum rather than its volume?

"It seems that you realised the truth behind my words. That means the limit of how much I can help you, for now, is now exhausted. Remember, you can visit me again once you learn how to enter this place yourself."

Sending the young man off with a wide, proud smile, Draconis waved his hand once, instantly turning Fen's vision off. But this lapse of his sense was only momentary, as in the very next moment, the young man realised that his vision has already returned!

But the sea of fire that he was already getting familiar to, was now replaced by the intrusive sight of the room lighted with the enormous number of candles! And to be completely fair, if not for the sight that instantly invaded Fen's mind the moment he opened his eyes, he would most likely freak out in one instant!

A quick scan of the position and angle at which he could see the candles betrayed that rather than still sitting in that strange chair, he was now lying down on the ground, with something extremely soft serving him for a pillow. But it was the two mounds right above his head that attracted most of his attention!

"Just what the heck…"

From beyond the delicious-looking breasts of hers, Kaisha's face was partially visible, revealing her fully concentrated expression. In just a few more seconds, Fen could finally confirm that he was lying right on her lap, with the top of his head tightly pressed against her soft stomach. Both of her hands were placed on top of his cheeks, constantly feeding fire to Fen's skin, at the same time as they were locking his face in one single position, where he had no other option but to stare at his classmate's full and completely exposed bosom!

"Ah…"

From how the girl flinched when Fen uttered his words, the young man had no other choice but to observe the process of her perfect concentration collapsing down on its own. In one moment, her utterly blank face recovered its blush, with her cheeks exploding the moment she opened her eyes and noticed just where Fen's stare was latched on!

"Y-you…"

Following her blush, the fires that were covering her hands suddenly erupted. As if her mind followed the actions of her arcana, her sight turned hazy. Prompted by this strange situation, Kaisha's head continued to lean lower and lower while ignoring how her breasts inevitably started rubbing against Fen's upper face.

Peck.

At first, her lips only touched Fen's mouth. But this act only served as the ignition for the moment. With her hands once again locking Fen's head in place, Kaisha fully immersed herself in the kiss, pressing her soft lips against the young man's mouth.

On the other hand, the young arcanist couldn't resist the pressure any longer. Realising that there was no force that held him in place, his hands instantly shoot towards the precious mounds of the girl, squeezing them the same moment when his tongue invaded Kaisha's jaws.

But as quick as the moment started, Fen suddenly pushed Kaisha away from his face before rolling on his stomach, standing up and quickly retreating a few steps.

"I think we should stop it right here and now."