Snapping out of an awakened realm was something getting used to. Leaving another world, though, was on a whole new level. Reality knew no mercy as it returned Dallion to the ocean. In a single moment, the pressure squeezed him, before physics and the natural reaction of the body pushed back. His instinct was to gasp for air, but he had the foresight to know what doing that would only make things worse.

Remain calm, Dallion told himself. I can last half an hour easily without air. What I need now is to focus and figure out what’s going on.

Just swim, old man, Onda said. It had been so long since Dallion had had a connection to his realm that he had forgotten that there was a whole group of entities always with him. Better than what I can do.

Gleam, fetch Onda, Dallion thought as he looked around. There was no trace of the cloud citadel. As Katka had said, all of it must have been used up when they had opened a way for Jiroh to reach her world.

Slightly fearful, Dallion split into three instances. There was a moment of doubt whether he would be able to use that ability. Thankfully, it seemed as if all his awakened powers had returned. Relieved, he then quickly split into two dozen instances and looked about. There was no sign of Jiroh or Eury. However, there was what seemed like a figure a short distance away—a figure wrapped in cloud matter.

You’ve got to be kidding me, Dallion thought as he swam in the figure’s direction.

The moment he approached, the cloud matter extended, moving towards him for comfort.

“It’s fine,” Dallion managed to say. Talking underwater was difficult and far from pleasant, but he could feel the strong fear and discomfort from the creature. More than most animals, cloud creatures didn’t like getting wet.

The mage was still inside. Being weaker physically, the change of world had rendered her completely unconscious. Pretty much the only thing that saved her from drowning was the creature around her. At the end of the day, cloud matter had more air than water.

“Go straight up and take her with you.” Dallion patted the being. That was all it took for it to jet up like a torpedo in a war movie.

Dallion waited for the water to calm down, then swam up as well.

Can anyone see Eury? He asked.

That would be tough, the armadil shield replied. She still has her blocker on. She’s fine, though. A girl like that can swim just fine.

Normally such a comment would get a response from Dallion, but right now wasn’t the time. While he was relieved that he had managed to go back to the awakened world, he was still in the state of processing the realization that Jiroh had gone. What was more, he still had no idea where Eury was. According to everyone, she had to be okay, but that didn’t get rid of the tight sensation he was feeling. It seemed that worlds came with their own set of fears, and now that he was back all the fears had re-emerged.

The first thing Dallion did when he reached the surface was to call out for the boat. With the last cloud citadel gone, the small vessel was the only thing that still remained. To his relief, the boat was still there and in perfect condition. To his greater relief, Eury was already in it.

“Eury!” Dallion shouted, as he swam towards her.

The faintest of smiles was visible on the gorgon’s face as she turned to face him. There was no way she could know the adventure he had been through, but thanks to her perception level, she could easily spot a few differences. Chief among them was the cloud creature flying above him, carrying a mage in it.

Cold! Cold! Cold! Skye kept repeating. Why’d you have to come to a freezing place like this? And so wet! This really isn’t a proper place to be! Absolutely terrible!

Cat, Dallion thought again. Definitely a cat. And a diva at that.

“Is that all that’s left of the citadel?” Eury asked, as a cluster of her snakes turned in its direction.

Unable to understand the gorgon’s language, the cloud creature relied on what it usually did back home—reading other’s emotions. In this case, Eury confused it even more.

Why’s she sad? Skye asked. Isn’t she someone you know?

She’s Jiroh’s friend, Dallion explained. Her closest friend in this world, and she’s sad she’s gone.

The explanation sufficed. A brief wave of sadness emanated from the creature. It too had lost Jiroh as well as its entire world.

“It’s Jiroh’s pet.” Dallion replied, as he was pulled onto the boat. “From her world.”

“So, she made it there, after all…”

“She did. And she thanks you.”

There was no immediate reaction. After half a minute Jiroh nodded, then went back to removing her sea iron elements. With the cloud fortress gone, there was no longer any need for them. Also, she didn’t seem to like to have the reminder just now. Dallion also decided to remain quiet for a while.

All his guardian items were slowly returned, courtesy of Gleam mostly. Katka was also dropped aboard. This time Dallion made special care to tie up all her fingers so that she couldn’t perform a spell. If he had received a substantial boost to his skills for returning to this world, she must have as well.

Once all that was done, and Dallion and Eury had changed into a set of dry clothes, there was nothing left than wait for the rest of the hunter party to emerge.

“How long do you think they’ll take?” Dallion asked after a few hours.

“Knowing Largo probably till evening. Nymph cities tend to be large, and he won’t be pleased until he’s searched as much as possible.”

“Does he even have that much air?”

“They’re hunters, they’ll be fine.” The gorgon replied—a reminder that Dallion still had a lot to learn. “You were curious about the statues,” she said after a while.

“Huh?” Dallion blinked.

“The statues in front of my workshop. You thought I had made them.”

The thought had crossed Dallion’s mind. Seeing perfect stone statues of people and creatures in front of a gorgon’s workshop was certain to make people come to specific conclusions. The first few times he’d gone there, Dallion had been more than slightly concerned on the matter, but had trusted Jiroh enough to believe he’d be fine.

“Ji made them,” Euro went on. “That was her little joke. She’d use her powers to make perfect copies and place them in front of the workshop at night. It used to freak out the city guards a lot at first. Even now, some of the newbies call me in for questioning about it. The veterans find it hilarious.”

“That’s…” Kind of sweet, Dalliom thought. Pranks between lifelong friends—the best kind of pranks. “And what did you do?”

“I endured.” The gorgon leaned back against the boat’s railing. “It didn’t bother me to the point that I had to prank back. That only made her continue until it became a sort of tradition. I never knew when something new would appear, or something old would change. I just continued with stuff, rearranging them when needed. I kept telling her she could make a living selling them. She could have made a living as a hunter as well, but she lived working at Hannah. I guess in a way, the old witch was the mother Ji never had.”

That was true, but also wasn’t. Jiroh had a family, and while they were rough round the edges—in a very fury-like way—they were what she wanted. There was no telling how things would turn up now that she had been instrumental in letting two otherwolders escape. Dallion could hope that she’d be able to handle it.

“Do you even think about going back?” Dallion asked.

“No.” The response was immediate. “Do you?”

That was a somewhat more difficult question. Seeing Jiroh return had made Dallion think of his own friend and family. So much time had passed since then that most of the memories had faded. From their perspective, he likely would have been away for a few months at most. As far as he was concerned, counting the time he had spent in the realms, centuries had passed. Dallion wasn’t even the same person. Even if he lost all his awakened skills and abilities, he never would be. Going back would be like meeting strangers.

“My place is here,” Dallion said. “I have promises to keep. And there’s also the Star. And now the Academy.” He looked at the unconscious mage. “She wasn’t here for us. She was skill gem farming. Killing magic creatures drops skill gems. The Academy needs them for some reason, or at least a group within the Academy. She’s very picky about it.”

“The Academy is always up to something. A mage hasn’t stepped foot in Nerosal since the incident, and yet one came for the festival. Coincidentally, that was the one time the Star tried to take the city down, killing a member of the imperial family.”

“You think it was on purpose?” From what Dallion had seen, he wouldn’t put it beyond them. However, he couldn’t imagine anyone going against the Emperor himself. The man was arguably the single strongest awakened there was, and one who didn’t like being challenged, destroying entire countries when provoked. “Why?”

“I’ve no idea, but you’ve seen first-hand how strong a mage is. It took the three of us and an entire could citadel to take her down. Do you think they’d lose to a few chainling pups? They weren’t even fully developed and not even focusing on him. The overseer was the target, and still…” she didn’t finish the sentence.

That was a good point, raising a number of questions. Mostly, what was the right way to respond? Up to now, the Academy hadn’t been involved directly. Dallion had been given a warning, but there had been no action since. Katka didn’t seem to mind attacking him, but even she had never set off with the intention of hunting him down. Should they do something more rash, things could change.

The more Dallion thought about it, the more he came to the conclusion that the only option was to let her go. The mage had already made a vow not to interfere with him. Given that she had two Moons upset with her, she was likely going to stick to that promise. That was going to give Dallion some breathing space, but till when.

Any thoughts on the matter, Nil? Dallion asked.

Untypically, the old echo didn’t respond.

You never explained how you managed to get us back here. If Katka was to be believed only Moons and magic are capable of that. So, unless you’re a Moon—

Gloating doesn’t suit you, dear boy, Nil said with a sigh. You’ve set food on the big stage, but there’s still a lot you don’t know about this world. For the moment, it’s best to take the win and leave it at that. The less you have to do with the Academy, the better. Moons know you already have a lot on your plate.

I see. That wasn’t the response Dallion was hoping for. Any chance I’d learn more at some point?

That depends entirely on you. Maybe your destiny will move in that direction. If not, it’s best to keep things as they are. Either way, things haven’t changed. You still have a lot of potential, dear boy. And I’ll be here to guide you when needed.

But not answer my question?

In this world, there are many things you’re not allowed to know until you reach a certain awakening level. That’s not the only limiting factor. One’s past is one’s secret, and even empathy won’t let them reveal it to you unless they’re ready. You’re a pleasure to watch, but at this point you still haven’t reached that level. It’s best to leave things at that.