The commotion didn’t stop, and Eros kept answering nonstop. This time, there were a few remaining problems to be solved, so everyone’s excitement grew tenfold.

Also, on the center of the Hall of Knowledge, the same man who let Eros in seemed to be filled with rage. He stood up and stopped what he was doing, and headed to the room where Eros’ was in to check what was occurring.

The man was the type to be easily annoyed by simple noise. So he was ready to chide whoever started the disturbance on the place. There he saw the room, crowded with audience, and surrounded by that crowd was Eros, focused on answering the problems as if he was on his own space, not even glancing around or listening to the various praise.

He saw how fast Eros answered the problems and that he was about to clear the first floor with questions. His eyes sparkled, and his rage quickly dispersed.

He was the keeper of Hall of Knowledge, and seeing someone display such wisdom, deserves respect from him and everyone.

“How is able to do that at such a young age.” The man said in amazement.

When those watching saw the man, all the noise were masked with silence, seemingly triggered by the man’s presence.

“It’s Sir Etfeus!” One student murmured in a level not even audible, obviously fearful that Etfeus might inculpate him to be a cause of noise. So those who were near Etfeus, slowly edged away not even making a sound with their shoes.

Eros’ continued answering problems, until everything was gone! In total, he approximately solved thirty thousand problems, clearing the first floor.

However, no one cheered, since Etfeus was there making everyone scared. Etfeus on the other hand, smiled and clapped his hands seemingly pleased with Eros’ performance.

“Stunning.” He said, as he walked towards Eros. While those who were on his path made way without pause. “I can’t believe someone will actually be able to clear all of the questions on the first floor.”

However before Etfeus could reach Eros, Eros’ left eye was already pitch black and Orcu’s symbol has long since appeared therein. Also in no time, Eros’ body swayed, and fell on the ground, quickly losing consciousness, alerting the crowd.

“What happened?” Many reacted.

Even Eris beside him panicked; it was as if Eros who was at his peak of health, suddenly turned ill at the brink of death.

“Eros! Eros what happened.” Eris shook Eros body attempting to awaken him.

…

In Eros’ room, Eros lay on his bed, and sitting near him was Eris, who was worried while looking at his deathly pale face.

“What happened to you?” Eris murmured, unsure what to do.

Lensa came to check on Eros’ condition, and Firo also tagged along in hopes that Eros would wake up soon.

Meira also paid a visit to see if could be of some help. She took this chance to have Eros owe her a debt, in which she plans to use in order to lure Eros in being her disciple. Unfortunately, she could not tell what happened to Eros; he had no abnormality on his body and was only on slumber, which one could not wake up easily.

Eris stayed by his side all the time, and took care of him without rest. She did not even leave once ever since Eros lost consciousness. Five days went by and Eros still remained asleep. On the fifth day, his face twitched a bit.

Inside Eros’ dreams he floated aimlessly for a long time, until he saw a light which led to a space where he saw a man, but his face was barely discernable. From the looks of it, he was glaring at the heavens, eyes filled with hatred and madness. The man was obviously shouting something, as if mocking the heavens. Yet Eros could not hear any word, for the whole place was blanketed with silence.

Around the man was destruction of unimaginable degree. Houses burned, structures collapsed, lands shattered, and unending pile of copses lay everywhere, creating rivers of blood that seemed to be impossible to be washed out by the rain.

Eros trembled at the sight of this, for he was but a child. Even though he experienced the life of the Hill of Despair, the scene in front of him was far worse to compare.

The man did not weep, but stood on his feet and flew in the skies. His rage swept out the clouds clearing everything in his path. When he reached an unbelievable height, he waved his hands towards the heavens. The heavens cracked, and howls of equal rage made the lands tremble and the remaining surviving species to explode into gruesome gore.

When this happened, Eros was also shaken. The images blurred and his consciousness returned to him, waking him up from his unexplainable slumber.

“Eros!” Eris rushed to Eros when she saw his eyes slowly opening. Worry flashed on her face as she assisted Eros to sit up, while Eros’ forehead was filled with beads of sweats that fell on the ground.

“What happened?” She asked.

“I do not know. Maybe I just got tired.” Eros replied while still breathing heavily, but after some time, he started to calm down.

Eros did not mention what he saw on his dream, but he was sure it was somewhat connected to the curse in him, or maybe it might even be Orcus’ memory.

He then propped himself on the wall as he stood up wobbly, and frail. “Eris, how much did I earn?”

“Uh. You answered around thirty thousand problems, and as compensation for that, you will get around sixty thousand magic stones.”

“That’s not enough to climb the False Tree of Life..But I should not overuse that ability again or else Ocus might really possess me sooner than expected.”

…

Another day went by, and Eros quickly became healthy and spry. The next morning, along with Eris, he proceeded back to the Hall of Knowledge. This time, Eros was eyed by everyone; even Etfeus doesn’t seem annoyed that another student came by.

“Oh Eros, it’s good to see that you have recovered.” Etfeus said with a smile, “Are you here perhaps to test your knowledge on the second floor?”

“I’m just here today to answer a few questions.” Eros said, as he glanced up at the second floor.

“Alright, don’t overdo yourself.” Etfeus then handed over another card to Eros, which gives him access to the second floor of the Hall of Knowledge.”You only need to answer ten thousand questions to proceed to the third floor.”

Without further talk, Eros along with Eris advanced to the second floor. There he saw some students answering problems just like in the first floor.

“So, it looks the same.” Eros commented as he approached the wall filled with problems. “I wonder if the problems here are significantly harder.”

He took one question, and tried to answer it on his own. This time he knew that the burst in knowledge he always gets came from his curse, and not the memory of the Hill of Despair, so with his awareness, he suppressed the curse from acting up as he answered questions with care and confidence.

He realized how hard the questions were and took time to answer a single problem, he did not commit any mistake, but in the end, there was nothing spectacular on the way he answered it, making his previous feat at the first floor seem like a fluke.

Days passed, and he holed himself in the second floor. Eris helped him a lot in order for him to learn more. This time, even Eros was convinced that the speed he was learning was beyond ordinary and was somewhat amazing.

“Am I really a genius even at this?” Eros said as he flipped some pages, while holding his chin as if he was some enlightened mage.

“It really is abnormal how you’re learning so fast.” Eris said, adding to Eros’ boosted ego.

“Indeed.” Eros nodded his head in agreement, while thinking “Maybe if I study more, I won’t even need Orcus’ knowledge to clear the questions in these floors.” Then with his new found confidence, he began studying again as if his life depends on it.

A month passed and Eros did not even progress much in the second floor. In fact he hasn’t even answered half of the questions required to reach the next floor.

What he got used to was the weird books he kept reading. Some books even contained a curse which one needs to deactivate first before being able to see its content. He even encountered a book that have a ghost sealed in it, and many book which are very dangerous that no one could touch without getting hurt.

But this did not stop Eros from pursuing his desire for more knowledge, or to be exact, his desire to learn about elements. And fully understand the second curse placed on him by Orcus without his consent.

“Eros, I think you can now proceed to the next floor.” Eris said, lowering the book that covers her face.

“I need to read everything here before I go up to the next floor. I think it would be a waste not to learn as much as I can.” Eros said without even glancing at Eris, extremely occupied by the book on his hands. “And besides, the knowledge I am gaining here is giving me a clue on how I could proceed at the False Tree of Life further.”

Eris simply nodded and continued reading.

….

On a separate location, a girl sat on a bench below a tree, her beauty is extraordinary, and her movement was filled with elegance which would be adored by many.

“Miss Keya, I have been observing that boy named Eros for a month now and he seemed to be doing nothing but studying in the second floor.” A boy said, not even daring to look Keya in the eye.”I think he was able to clear the first floor, because he dedicated too much time on studying and preparing for it. I can’t see anything special about him. In fact, he only answered around five thousand questions at the second floor, and could not proceed further and began studying more. I am confident to say that he might just be a bit above average, and could not measure up to someone like you.”

Keya did not even look at the boy and said, “You can leave now.”

Then she looked at the direction of the Hall of Knowledge and thought, “Seems like you cannot replicate the stunt you did in the first floor. I watched you back then and was a bit taken aback on what you can do, but now, I am sure that you are nothing special compared to someone like me from the Para family! I do not know how you pulled that trick on my stupid younger cousin Eldrin, but you could not do the same on me.”

….

Back on the Hall of Knowledge, Eros suddenly felt that someone is thinking about him, but he ignored it and continued studying.

One week, two weeks, three weeks, time flew by fast, and he did not even bother going out to check for what happened in the days that passed.

Soon, out of nowhere, a girl, so beautiful and fine, sat in front of Eros as she tousled her hair. Many of those busy studying could not help but glance at their direction, and stare at the girl filled with awe and admiration.

“Isn’t that Lady Keya who entered Ronsorth a year before Lady Lensa.” One boy whispered to his friend.

“Indeed, that’s her.” The other boy answered, while stealing a glance at her. “What is someone who ranks thirtieth on the Hall of Knowledge doing at the second floor?”

“Sir Eros, May I borrow a bit of your time?” Keya said her voice soft and alluring as if it could melt any cold feeling just like the soft breeze of the season of spring.

Many more talks could be heard, which caught Eros’ attention as he slowly lifted his head. “Uhh.. What could I help you with.. Lady..”

“Oh, It’s Keya.. Just call me Keya.” The girl said, expressing a charming smile and she continued with her words. “Since you seem busy, I will say it right away. I would like to request for you to join a mission given to me by our school, Ronsorth. With your knowledge and talent, I think you are the best candidate.”

Eros blinked several times, dumbfounded and clueless as to what the girl was talking about. “Mission? What mission?” He thought

While Eros was seemingly confused, those who heard the offer could not help but feel jealous. “Is this real?? Did Lady Keya just offer her to be on a mission with her?”

“The perfect and beautiful Lady Keya who has never asked any man to be with her on a mission is now asking this Eros to actually come with her?”

“I can’t believe this!”

“This is news!” One boy said gritting his teeth forcing himself not to make much noise. “This Eros is truly someone shocking.”

“Everyone have already accepted that he is friends with Lady Lensa who is another beauty, but this time he’s actually getting in good terms with Lady Keya!?”

Even though their voices were as silent as buzz of bugs from far away, Eros could clearly hear what they say. “So she’s someone popular. Ranking thirty in the Hall of Knowledge is no easy task. She should not approach me just because I cleared the first floor.” Eros thought deeply with a weird grin on his face. “Maybe I’m actually attractive for elves; even Lensa approached us back then without much good reason.”

Keya noticed Eros to be pondering deeply, maybe about her offer, so she tried to push stronger. “This mission is an important task where we need to decipher a complex spell formation created by an enemy wizard. The older students of Ronsorth are now chasing the wizard, so Ronsorth have no choice but to send us lower level students to deal with the spell he left behind. If the spell activates, it will create a strong vibration in the ground which can destroy hundreds of village within the range of the spell formation. The reward is also hefty, and the act of completing such a task would bring great honor to your name.”

Eros’ face twitched when he heard the long explanation. He has not said a word yet, but it seems like the girl in front of her is resolute on getting him as companion. “Am I really that attractive to elves?” Eros thought deeply.

With Eros’ brows now furrowed, Keya thought that Eros was harder to deal with than what she expected. “So you’re really something. But I know that you accept bets and deals when the price is right.” She thought. So with more passion than ever, she began expounding the rewards of the mission. “The reward will be fifty thousand magic stones per student, and a rare wizard memory gem. Even though you might already have your own idea on how to ascend and become a wizard, a wizard memory gem would still be very useful in order to give you an insight on how the owner of that wizard memory gem was able to become a wizard. This will make your attempt on being a wizard easier than others.”

When Eros heard the rewards, his eyes glittered. He does not want to use Orcus’ memory anymore, so getting magic stones became harder than before. Getting fifty thousand magic stones and a rare wizard memory gem is something even Eros would accept without much thought.

“So she’s really into me. She even emphasized the rewards just to get me to agree.” Eros said as his face slowly loosened up. Then he cleared his throat and said. “So it is only about deciphering a spell formation. I think I can be of some help. Before I agree, may I know why you chose me?”

Keya smiled and answered calmly. “Truthfully, we have only small information about the spell formation, and we are not sure if we can actually break it, so as much as possible we need someone with amazing potential such as yourself. The way you cleared the first floor and set a record at the entrance exam is enough to prove your worth.”

Eros nodded in agreement. Keya seemed to be actually sincere and Eros could not feel anything off, or any form of scheme. So without further inquiry, he asked. “So when will be the mission and where do we need to go?”

“We will depart two days from now, and we will head to the mountain of Tulk.” Keya said with extremely innocent eyes, as she leaned forward and asked. “So do you accept?”

Eros simply replied as cool as he can be. “Yes, I accept.”

Keya then giggled and quickly turned to leave, her hair fluttered and she glanced at Eros once more before stepping out of the room.

After some time, Eris along with Lensa came in to check on Eros who was supposed to be busy studying. But along the way, they heard rumors of Keya visiting Eros. So Lensa quickly asked Eros. “Did you accept her offer?”

Eros was a bit shaken, since it was his first time seeing Lensa’s tone raise since he met her. “Uhh.. Yes, the reward is good.”

Lensa sighed and regained her composure as she explained. “She’s from the Para family, she might have a good background in this school, but the only reason she specifically picked you is because you disgraced someone from the Para family. So I suggest that you back out of that mission.”

Eros eyes widened, but in no time he calmed down and thought. “So I’m not popular with elves after all. I can’t believe I fell for that girl’s scheme.”

He then glanced at Lensa and asked. “But is the reward of fifty thousand magic stones and a rare wizard memory gem real?”

“I think it’s real, since I have also heard of that mission.”

Eros eyes gleamed, “If she wants to do something to me, then so be it. This will also be a good experience.”

Lensa could only sigh. She knows that Eros was someone persistent and would do anything he wants. Just like how he agreed with several bets and climbed the False Tree of Life without stop for several months.

Eris also stood there silently, and did not say a word, since she knew that she could not stop Eros’ once he have decided.

….

The agreed date came quick, and Eros walked towards Ronsorth’s gate. There, he saw Keya and another girl. She was also comely, but seemed aloof and austere, so Eros took the initiative to himself and learned of the girls’ name. Her name is Sheera, an elf that seemed to be an aid of Keya.

“So if you’re all prepared, let’s go.” Keya said as charming as always. Then she looked up and shouted. “Evi come!”

Just after she shouted, a beasts came whistling in the air towards them at great speed, It’s wings span more than ten meters, its feathers white as the clouds, and it closely resemble a bird as it got nearer.

The gigantic bird then landed in front of them creating a gust of wind that swept around in all direction, battering Eros, forcing him to lift his arm to cover his face. When the wind subsided, he asked. “What is that?”

“This is a Goleon. A type of giant bird which are tamed by the elves of the Kingdom of Sheles, and her name is Evi.” Keya explained, after which she quickly hopped in the back of the bird, and reached out her hands towards Eros and said, “Come. We will use her to go to the mountain of Tulk

Eros smiled and also hopped into the bird, as excitement colored his face. “If you can act, I can do too.” He thought while sitting comfortably at the back of the bird. Sheera quickly leaped just after Eros. She landed beside Keya and also sat without a word.

“You all seem to be ready! If so, then let’s go!”

The Goleon flapped its wings, wind frenzied below, as it slowly lifted itself up. Then in an instant, it shot up, like an arrow released from its bow.

Woosh!

In an instant, Eros’ group was now hundreds of meters above the ground. It wasn’t his first time experiencing flight, but it was still an amazing sight. The houses and trees below became so small. The mages and wizards were like ants walking around from a distance.

The bird then continued its flight. Winds battered them, but it simply split apart. They were mages with adequate control over air, so with a thought, they could clear it out of their way.

Eros got an aerial view of the Kingdom, and he was still amazed on how big it was. It took them some time just to exit its borders. Then they proceeded on with the fastest speed of the Goleon with Keya’s orders.

“How long would it take for us to reach the mountain of Tulk?” Eros asked.

Keya answered as endearing as always. “Uh.. It will only take us an hour. It is actually just on the borders of the Kingdom.”

Eros nodded, and looked down. He suddenly remembered Fryr and Hagu and thought. “I wonder what those two are doing right now. They haven’t left the kingdom right? Fryr said he’ll stay here for years after all.”

Along the travel, Keya conversed with Eros about magic. They were both knowledgeable, so the conversation did not end until they reached the mountain of Tulk.

A mountain normal in size and with villages erected at its sides. That was what Eros saw after an hour of travel. The Goleon landed at the peak of the mountain, and then they all proceeded on foot towards a dense forest.

After several minutes of travel on foot, they saw two mage sitting crossed legged in front of a glowing symbol carved in the ground. It was big, around fifty meters in width.

“So that’s the spell formation.” Keya said as he approached the two mages.

The two stood up and said anxious. “Lady Keya, we tried to suppress the spell, but unfortunately we could not do it. It only progressed more, and based on its current activity, it might fully activate in five days.

“Don’t worry, with the five of us here. I think we can break that spell in four days.” Keya answered with confidence.

On the other hand, Eros’ eyes were fixed on the spell formation. His brows twitched as if he noticed an odd pulsation in the spell formation.

“What is that.” Eros though, worried. He looked around to see if any of those four noticed, but none of them seemed to have.

Eros also thought of the possibility that the group is keeping it a secret, in order to put him into great danger or possibly death.

“So that’s your trap for me?” Eros thought while he followed along, “Too bad I noticed it too early.”

“Alright. Each one of us needs to go to the five corners of the spell formation. I am already familiar on how to deal with this spell so just follow my lead.” Keya said.

Everyone then went to five separate locations around the spell formation. Each one of them was knowledgeable and have gained high ranking in the Hall of Knowledge, but Keya acted as their lead. Her ranking was in the thirtieth which is in a completely different league.

Eros sat crossed legged on his assigned spot. He followed Keya’s direction to suppress the spell formation. It was rather easy, actually easier than expected, but the odd pulsation Eros felt got stronger at a rapid speed.

“This is bad.” Eros thought. “Maybe she’s aiming for my life using this so that she could close the incident as an accident. But, is she really confident that she could suppress this even after it goes out of control?”

He then glanced at Keya who was focused on suppressing the spell, but her face showed calmness and confidence beyond her age. “I think I’ll observe for now.”

Easily a day passed, and everyone never moved from their spot. They were all silent, and only the buzzing of the spell formation could be heard. And from time to time, Keya would send out an instruction which everyone followed without question.

On the next day, Eros felt more cautious about the odd pulsation, since he have been studying it sine he saw the spell formation. “It’s getting more active. Maybe tomorrow I’ll fully understand what it is.”

The moon set and the sun rose, and they still sat, filled with unwavering focus. Eros could not hold on anymore to his intense feeling of danger, so even though he will expose the plan of Keya to kill him, he decided to tell them a hint of the problem.

“Lady Keya, I think there is something wrong with the spell formation. There’s something odd about it.” Eros said trying to conceal that he is aware of the danger that he’s in.

“What do you mean?” Keyaa asked. Her brows furrowed for the first time, as her face turned serious, filled with vigilance.

“I don’t know, butI can feel some odd pulsation from the spell formation. Maybe it’s dangerous.”

Keya turned more serious. “Don’t worry about it. Tomorrow we will be able to destroy this spell formation.”

Eros didn’t have a change in expression, but beyond his calmness, hatred was brewing in silence. “So you’re really persistent on killing me to the point that you’re overestimating yourself. Don’t tell me I didn’t warn you. If worst comes to worst, I’ll abandon all of you.”

The third day came to a close, and after some time, the sun rose. Everyone was breathing ruggedly; their energy was spent on suppressing the spell formation, and signs of cracking could be seen near Keya’s position.

“It’s starting to break!” The two mages who first arrived said with excitement.

Time passed by and the crack slowly spread out. The two mages were sure that they will succeed within three hours. All of the instructions Keya gave lead to such results. So their admiration to her grew by leaps and bounds.

However, in contrast, Eros expression was extremely calm. But what others could not tell is that he has been preparing his own spell! “I will not die here!”

The cracking grew more, and the pulsation started to become visible. When they thought that the spell formation will break, the pulsation intensely grew by a hundredfold!

“What is happening?” The two mage said with fear.

Also, the pulsation was most potent on Eros location. It was obvious that Keya set him up to be the one to first receive damage from the pulsations which is now a great vibration.

The lands shook and the trees started to uproot. But they could not leave their position since it will break the suppression, and eventually lead to more destruction. “Stay on your position everyone! The wizards who set this up used some form of trap that will kill whoever breaks the spell by force. But don’t worry, before it activates we will be able to completely destroy this spell.” Keya said with murderous intent flashing in her eyes.

“I have prepared properly for this. I am not like Eldrin who does things without preparation. I know that your knowledge is meager, and there is no way you can survive this one.” Keya thought decisively.

The vibration grew another hundredfold, and this time, the lands they sat one started to become aslant. The worst vibration came from Eros location. It was obvious that he was the one in most danger in their current situation.

Boom!

The gourd near Eros started to Erupt and debris of rocks scattered without stop. “Keya then looked at Eros direction, and her smile became obvious and she murmured. “Goodbye Eros.”