Chương 99: VOL 2 Chapter 44: Liberation.
Orbiting the planet was a gigantic space station that looked like a floating palace, with towers, domes, and bulwarks extending into outer space. Its entire surface was covered with beautifully carved runes emitting a soft light, making it seem like a jewelry box beautifully decorated with stars.
Soon, Sigrún's cruiser docked at the space station, and shortly after, Erik disembarked, closely accompanied by Eleonora, Sigrún, and Seraphina. A little behind them followed Liliana, who was the last to leave the ship, wearing a complicated expression on her face as she watched the group of masters, disciple, and maid ahead of her.
The reason behind Liliana's expression was very simple: these days on the ship had been too revealing for her, to the point where they had her doubting reality itself. Not only was Erik different from how she had imagined him, but it also became obvious to her that the relationship between her master and the star-haired boy was very different from what she thought.
Since Erik had intruded into her life-almost twenty years ago now-Liliana could easily count the times she had interacted with him. The longest of those interactions did not exceed a couple of hours, something that had never bothered her and even pleased her. After all, the mere presence of the star-haired boy irritated her; besides, she believed she knew who he was and what he thought of her and Desmond, so she never showed any further interest. He was just an arrogant thief who had come to steal her master's attention.
But during the journey, that perception was forcibly changed. It all started with how evident it became to her that her master, the great Empress of Lightning, Eleonora Silverwood, always dignified and elegant, seemed like a different person when she was with Erik—always smiling, talkative, and even playful—something inconceivable. After all, the entire galaxy knew that Master Silverwood was practically synonymous with elegance and poise.
Furthermore, there was the way she treated the annoying Erik; she treated him with too much care, paid him too much attention, and it almost seemed like she wanted to be by his side all day, which at first greatly angered her. But she only needed to pay a little more attention to realize that the way her respected master looked at the star-haired boy was not the gaze of a master to her disciple.
That gaze went beyond; in it, there was love, attraction, and devotion—basically the way her mother looked at her father, a realization that almost blew her mind. After all, it was too irrational, too absurd; no one could even begin to imagine that one of the most powerful and prestigious Master-level individuals in the entire galaxy would take notice of a mere Ascended-level. No matter how handsome or talented he was, since they were almost like two different species.
Although that realization was extremely shocking, at the same time it was incredibly liberating; she was not fighting with the monstrous and unattainable star-haired boy for her master's love and attention. He was something different, on a different track in her master's heart, which meant she didn't have to keep killing herself day and night looking for ways to improve just to at least match someone so monstrous.
That feeling of liberation allowed her, for the first time in who knows how long, to sleep peacefully, without waking up in the middle of the night covered in sweat from a nightmare where her master abandoned her.
Without staying up late into the night training her spells over and over, terrified that that star-haired idiot would master a new spell with the irritating ease with which he always did, and that her master would be disappointed in her.
Finally, a peaceful night's sleep without the constant anxiety of losing her place, the woman who was like her second mother and everything she had worked so hard to gain.
That simple night's sleep was incredibly restorative, and the change was evident to Liliana from the moment she woke up; after all, she no longer had dark circles or puffiness under her eyes—they were clear and bright. So for the first time in almost twenty years, she didn't have to apply the creams and potions she had to use every day to hide the traces of her tears, which had become her nightly companion.
The world also seemed brighter, more colorful, and much more peaceful, which allowed her to see much more clearly the dynamics between the reason for her suffering and mental torture and her beloved and respected master. This could not help but make her smile with bitterness and some regret, since if she had paid a little more attention before, she would not have had to suffer so much.
Her master treated him practically like her husband and behaved like a lovestruck teenager around him; she cared for him, pampered him, and respected him perhaps even more than her own mother did with her father. This allowed her to realize that her master was happier than ever and that perhaps the talkative and playful Eleonora was the real Eleonora Silverwood, while her typical elegance and poise were just a facade.
Similarly, she also noticed the strangeness of Erik; he was strange, somehow he seemed to have a unique charm that made not only her master but also Master Eldurdóttir, the terrifying maid, the wolves, and even everyone's contracted spirits orbit around him—all cheerful, all calm, and without a doubt, all happy.
That strangeness inevitably intrigued Liliana, who, curious, began to interact a bit more with Erik—not too much, just casual and sporadic—but those small interactions made her realize that he was a bit different from what she imagined. Rather than arrogant and disdainful, he was quiet and calm, focused on his own things, and for some reason, obsessed with cookies. To the point where she could swear the boy could eat cookies as his only food for the rest of his life and never tire of them.
Moreover, somehow, that tranquility and calm of Erik seemed to infect others; maybe it was his way of speaking or his way of doing things, but being around him caused a certain feeling of quite pleasant peace and tranquility. This seemed to greatly please her master and Master Eldurdóttir, although that tranquility wasn't really her thing; she preferred excitement and adrenaline.
But besides that calm, there was one more thing about Erik that was very intriguing: everything he said and did, for some reason, felt "real", as if there was no falseness in him, and he was incapable of lying—something very pleasant, since being in a position like hers, being a disciple of one of the most prestigious Masters in the galaxy, sincere conversations without ulterior motives were very rare; whenever she met or talked to someone, she had to be on guard and totally focused to detect any trap or slip-up she might commit.
For the same reason, direct disciples like her only interacted with other masters' disciples. Since being in a similar situation, they could understand each other and not be so cautious with one another, but even so, caution could never be lost; after all, there are always conflicting interests, and they would always be competitors for opportunities, so there was always a certain wariness.
That's why it was so relaxing to talk to Erik; the guy never beat around the bush, he never asked for anything and much less expected anything, he didn't desperately try to get her attention like others or look at her with lust or desire; moreover, she hadn't seen him in a bad mood even once. In the time they were on the ship, the darkest feeling she saw from him was a tired sigh or the constant back-and-forth with his masters because he didn't want money or something like that.
But if she had to point out what impacted her most from her few interactions with Erik, it's that she realized he was very aware that she disliked him and even intuited the image she had of him, but he didn't even hold a grudge for it. In his own words, wanting everyone to like you is foolishness—Not even money pleases everyone, much less a person—something he told her with a smile while handing her a cookie, an image that inevitably remained etched in her memory.
...
With Liliana lost in her thoughts, the group walked through the port of the space station until they reached a large lobby with high ceilings supported by columns carved with all kinds of runes. The floor, made of what seemed to be marble, reflected the constellations, creating the illusion of walking among stars and highlighting a large floating crystal obelisk in the center, which emitted a soft light, serving as a guide to newcomers.
"They really never skimp on decoration..." Looking at the impressive place, Erik whispered to himself, which caused small smiles on the faces of Sigrún and Eleonora.
"Hehehe, yes, in the Arcane Order we are known for our aesthetics." Sigrún commented softly as they all walked through the station, which was designed in concentric levels, ascending in a spiral.
The lower levels housed common areas like training rooms or libraries, and as they ascended, the areas became more exclusive with more spacious suites on the middle levels, which had balconies offering panoramic views of the cosmos.
They all continued walking calmly through the beautifully decorated corridors, while talking about random things among themselves. Although, in reality, only Erik, Sigrún, and Eleonora were talking among themselves; Liliana just kept walking silently in an almost robotic manner with a thoughtful expression on her face, and Seraphina followed behind Erik with a professional smile.
Not long after, the group of five arrived at a beautiful common room that looked like a fantasy park, filled with lush grass and trees of all kinds, with beautifully sculpted fountains bubbling with liquids of different colors. At that moment, Eleonora turned to look at Liliana and commented with a smile.
"Liliana, from here we're going to a meeting with the other Master-levels; if you want, you can go rest or maybe take a walk. Thalia's and Ryoma's disciples are already around here."
"Of course, thank you very much, Master." Her master's voice pulled Liliana out of her thoughts, and she quickly responded elegantly, then bowed respectfully and took her leave.
"Then I'll be going."
"Have fun."
Eleonora commented with a smile, to which Liliana responded with a similar smile, then separated from the group, going in another direction while a beautiful crystal card appeared over her hand. She quickly manipulated it to make a call and put it near her ear, avoiding the hologram from appearing.
"Well, then I'll go look around this place; it looks interesting."
Seeing Liliana leave, Erik commented softly, trying to hide the excitement he felt about discovering how this place worked. It not only had gravity identical to that of the university planet but also had tons of interesting things everywhere, but his eyes that shone like flashlights due to his enthusiasm didn't help him at all.
Without waiting for a response, Erik took Seraphina's hand and ran out of the place, hoping to find someone to bother to tell him where to find the information he wanted about the space station. This couldn't help but put a cheerful smile on the perfect maid's face.
Meanwhile, Sigrún and Eleonora watched Erik, who was running, with small happy smiles on their faces, then turned and continued walking until they reached a beautiful and imposing dark wooden door full of intricate runes carved all over its surface.
Upon entering the meeting room, several people who were gathered and exuded an unfathomable pressure, like massive stars full of colossal power, turned their heads to look at the pair of women who had arrived.
"Well, now we can start this meeting; remember that only topics regarding the imminent tournament will be addressed. Anything else, unless it's of vital importance, should be set aside."
As Eleonora and Sigrún took their seats, Adrian spoke with a powerful voice to all the Master-level individuals present, who nodded their heads, initiating the meeting. In which the rules and challenges that the tournament participants will have to overcome were reported if they want to secure a spot in the exploration of the ruin.
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