In the dark expanse of the pitch-black void with the watery-like floor, a super small tanned female child, with super pointy ears and slightly translucent skin, floated through the void as her ridiculously long, around ten feet long, super pale glowing cyan hair trailed behind her. Her luminescent eyes, with super large pupils, pale teal iris' and the white part of her eyes glowing ever so slightly less than the other parts, scanned across the seemingly endless horizon of the void until she spotted Nola sleeping on a hammock made from the blue shapes that floated out from the watery looking floor. The girl floated over to Nola and tapped her shoulder. Nola opened her eyes and sat up. Nola yawned as she quickly stretched all of her limbs.

"Oh hey, cinnamon roll, what's up? " Nola asked nonchalantly as she lay back down in the hammock.

"The one known as Kusana finds this place dulling to the senses," Kusana said in a high-pitched echoey voice, with an unchanging emotionless expression. Nola crossed her arms as she thought about it.

"I get what you mean, but I'm still mad at Zalroth for not liking my outfit," Nola murmured as Kusana circled above her.

"Spite will only lead to another fight, mother of Kusana.". Nola let out a defeated huff and sat up again.

"Fine, we'll leave Zalroth's Azuregate, but only on one condition.". Kusana floated down and hovered a few inches away from Nola's face.

"You've gotta stop calling me the mother of Kusana, please.". Kusana's eyebrows curved ever so slightly at Nola's request.

"Ok... mother," Kusana said sombrely. Nola lifted her hand out whats but quickly lowered it again.

"But before we go, you definitely need to put some clothes on first.". This comment made Kusana properly frown and even cross her arms.

"Kusana curses the impracticality of clothes.".

Meanwhile, Zalroth watched over Lola, Scarlet and Snow as they were trying to make their Null Gems float. Scarlett's face started to turn a bright red as she was holding her breath. Scarlett managed to hold her breath for a few more seconds but eventually couldn't hold her breath anymore and gasped for air.

"This is a bust nothing's happening at all." Scarlett poutingly complained. Scarlett glanced over at Lola and Snow who both managed to make their Null Gems float; although only managing to make them float less than an inch above their hands and the gems being the colour of their mana, Lola's being a Shiny Silver and Snow's is a mix of silver and green. Scarlett disappointedly sighed before staring intently at the Null Gem in her hands with a slightly annoyed glare. Zalroth noticed that Scarlett was eyeing the Null Gem, with one eye really close to the gem.

"Are you having trouble, Scarlett?". Scarlett jolted her head up and, although reluctantly, said she was with an embarrassed expression. Zalroth put his hand on his chin and let out a calculated hum as he thought.

"I suppose that means you won't have an easy time learning ranged magic..." Zalroth explained. Scarlett looked devastated and slumped her head while trying not to cry. Zalroth took the gem from Scarlett's open palms, making Scarlett swing her head up with a confused expression and made a huh noise.

"Let's try something else," Zalroth said as he channelled his mana into the Null Gem making it glow cyan and starting to morph into a small short sword. Zalroth handed the Null Gem sword to Scarlett as its glow faded, and it now being white instead.

"Eep," Scarlett yelled, spooking Lola and Snow, before instantly dropping the gem sword when she felt her mana getting pulled out of her body.

"What was that?" Scarlett confusedly asked while repeated poking the Null Gem sword.

"I just reversed the Null Gems affect, and thought you would be more interested in training with a sword than a catalyst.".

"Oh," Scarlett replied while nodding her head and picking up the gem sword.

"So now, I'm basically doing what Sophia was doing earlier," Scarlett remarked while the group looked over at the heavily panting Sophia. Zalroth itched the side of his chin with his index finger while nervously chuckling, as he could feel Akari giving him a quick death glare when she walked the group.

"I... suppose but the sword's mana drain is a tiny fraction compared to the bracelets, so you're not going end up like that unless you mess with the sword," Zalroth explained. Scarlett nodded her head confidently as she stood up. Scarlett took a few steps away from the group before playfully swinging the sword around. Zalroth rubbed his eyes and yawned before looking over at Lola and Snow, who were intently looking at him.

"You should wait until you can confidently make the gem float before thinking of changing their shapes.". Zalroth said before he picked up his soda and continued to drink it. Lola and Snow looked at each other before both nodding and focusing even harder. Zalroth was almost finished drinking his soda when a multi-coloured portal formed behind him. Zalroth glanced his eyes to his right before Nola came barrelling out of the portal while giggling. Zalroth sighed and one of his tails appeared. The tail moved in front of Nola's trajectory and she collided into it with her legs sticking out. Zalroth repositioned his tail as Nola's legs disappeared into the tail before she popped her head out.

"Do you have to do this every time?" Zalroth asked with an unamused tone. Zalroth grabbed Nola by her scarf and pulled her out of his tail. Nola chuckled as Zalroth let go of her and she floated in place.

"You hardly ever have your tails out anymore, and it's not my fault they're so soft and fluffy." Nola sulked, in a stern tone, making Zalroth roll his eyes. As Zalroth tried to retract his tail but heard something land on his tail, he looked down spotting Lola and Scarlett laying face down on his tail.

"Yay, the fluff has returned." Lola joyfully yelled, with her face buried in the tail, while Scarlett was giddily giggling. Nola leaned her arm on Zalroth's shoulder with a smug look on her face.

"It seems those two share the same sentiment, so why don't you try relaxing." Nola pleaded. An annoyed Zalroth closed his eyes making Nola poke his cheek. She repeatedly poked Zalroth all over his face, with a guilty grin on her face, until Zalroth let out a reluctant sigh.

"Fine...". Zalroth huffed before a cluster of nine other tails emerged and towered over Zalroth, casting a large shadow over the group. Lola and Scarlett excitedly climbed up the sides of Zalroth's tails before nuzzling their cheeks into its fur. Nola tapped Zalroth's head and two kitsune ears, with the same colour gradient as his tails, popped out. Nola proudly crossed her arms while congratulating herself.

"Nnnnn~" Kusana murmured as she slowly floated out of the portal, wearing a white middle-school-themed short dress and silver thigh-high socks, with her hair trailing behind her into the portal. She gained a shocked/concerned expression, signified by her having her mouth in a small o shape, and quickly flew over to Zalroth. She quickly circled around Zalroth and inspected all the bandages on his body.

"Kusana inquires to the current condition of the father of...". Kusana paused and looked around the area before looking back at Zalroth, making his ears twitch.

"What's up?" Zalroth asked as he went to finish his soda.

"Kusana inquires as to the location of Miss Minia.". For a split second Zalroth didn't register what Kusana has said but the moment it did his eyes instantly widened. Zalroth slowly placed his soda on the picnic blanket and stood up. Zalroth grabbed Lola and Scarlett before placing them on the ground. The two pouted at him with displeased expressions, which made Zalroth playfully roll his eyes.

"How about we make a deal.".

"A deal?" the two confusedly and simultaneously asked.

"If you can finish the training I gave you, by the end of the day, I'll keep my tails out twenty-four-seven, how does...". Zalroth didn't even finish before the two raced back to their respective Null Gems and started to train as intensely as they could.

"Kusana..." Kusana managed to say before Zalroth sighed.

"They're doing beginner-level magic training.".

"Oh...". Kusana murmured before she started to pull her hair out of the portal, followed by it closing. Zalroth asked Nola if she could keep an eye on the three while he was gone, and Nola said it'll be a piece of cake.

"Right..." Zalroth remarked before launching himself high into the air with his magnetism magic. A barrier formed and turned red as Zalroth landed on it. The barrier rotated to a slanted angle before both Zalroth and the barrier glowed bright blue, and in an instant launched Zalroth so fast that the air rippled around him as he soared over the forest in the direction of Kalthorm.

"He's such an airhead sometimes," Nola remarked. She created a small portal under the soda Zalroth was drinking and above her hand, allowing the can to fall through the portal and into her hand. She looked in the direction Zalroth went and sombrely sighed before drinking the last of the soda.

Meanwhile, Xero was watching the clouds and took particular interest in the cloud vaguely shaped like a butterfly. Xero went to take a picture of the butterfly cloud when Zalroth zoom past his vision, causing there to be a blur over the butterfly cloud. Xero didn't respond and took another picture.