Echoes of Hollow

Like a powerful, invisible river, strong and aggressive winds circled the area. However, as if blocked by a barrier, not a single breeze could reach the one sitting calmly on the clouds.

"Hmm hm uhmm..."

With the staff resting on his legs, Lior positioned his elbows above his knees. His feet swung constantly near what seemed to be a huge piece of cotton floating aimlessly in the air. He rested his chin on his hands while attentively observing a small deserted area below.

"Ooh, it's starting! It's starting!"

His smile grew along with the constant movement of his feet. In the deserted area, his eyes followed the one whose hair formed an exuberant crown of curls, as if alive, each strand curling and intertwining to frame her face naturally.

"Hmm... Yesterday it was a full kimono, today it's a rashguard..."

His legs moved, tossing the weapon up. In a swift motion, Lior spun, lying on the cloud mass while returning to rest his chin on his hands. As his feet resumed swinging and the smile remained on his lips and even in his eyes, the staff returned to his legs.

"It's a shame I can't take a photo... she looks amazing! So beautiful! So perfect...!"

Throwing his arm to the side, the air was cut by the staff in his hand. The pressure created pushed the surrounding dust away and shook the trees and their branches.

"But really, leggings are the best! They detail every part of her body so well, especially..."

Pulling part of the cloud with his hands and covering his face, Lior shook his head in denial, rejecting the thought that came to mind.

With the lowering of his hands, a prolonged sigh followed.

"Damn... I guess Alyia is right... maybe it’s better if I end this soon. But..."

Dancing with the staff, Addiah rose slowly towards the skies with great grace. Her movements, precise and beautiful, despite the relative normal speed, seemed to create even traces of her image.

The dust rose with her, surrounding her like a dark cloud that differed from the clouds above her head. At some point, as the intensity and beauty of her movements rapidly increased, not just one but two Addiahs appeared in the air... then three, quickly increasing to four. As her speed progressed, the number of "Addiahs" in the air continued to grow rapidly, and when it reached twenty four, with a simultaneous motion, all of them raised their staffs and pointed to the skies.

Dispersing everything around her, the dust cloud dissipated, and the skies cleared, creating a clean and bright environment around her.

"And if she says no...? What should I do...?"

Sighing, Addiah looked up for a moment. After the complete dissipation of the clouds, all that remained above her head was a blue sky and a gigantic yellow ball.

"The staff Lior gave me certainly made a difference; with improved mana control, I can now reach twenty four. But... why is this so difficult? They made it seem so easy... Even without using mana, he and Teodoro surpassed a hundred easily..."

Touching the ground beneath her feet, Addiah walked towards the tree while naturally spinning the staff in her hand.

"Maybe the problem isn't the weapon... I think I'll ask them to help me next time..."

***************

Moments later in Shanghai.

"Argh... Damn those two bastards, next time I see them..."

Sighing, Yang Kai walked out of a huge portal stretching beyond buildings, its emitted glow a black light capable of sending shivers even to those tens of meters away from its source.

Reaching his hand to the back of his neck, he moved his head, causing crackling sounds to echo.

"That was the last one, right? The twenty-fifth? That should be enough, right?"

"Yes, sir."

Carrying a tablet, a man approached as the portal next to them began to close. The black glow flickered, making the cloud oscillate in size, shrinking gradually.

"That was the last of those scheduled for dungeon breaks in the next two days. Tomorrow, according to the list, there will be 73 dungeons, twenty in China and fifty-three in the rest of Asia."

"73? That means we won't have any annoying meetings with those bastards, right? I'm not in the mood to deal with those idiots."

"Well, yes, but... to be honest, Mr. Lior was here just moments ago."

"What?!"

After reducing to the size of an average man, some small knocks resonated from the portal, like a heart beating in desperation. On the seventh knock, a muffled scream escaped along with the appearance of a reddish eye in the small orb that remained hovering in the air.

"Damn, and what did he break this time?"

"As far as I know, nothing. However, he left something before he left."

"Huh?"

The man stepped aside, allowing Yang Kai to see his men struggling to lift what appeared to be a staff from the ground. Ten S-rank hunters, but even together, the staff’s shaft didn’t even quiver on the asphalt.

"You’re getting worse every day, aren’t you?"

"Ah, sir, let’s make a bet, even you wouldn’t be able to lift it completely."

"Alright, if I can, you’ll have to go alone to the dungeons for the rest of the year."

"Until next year...?"

The hunters exchanged glances, giving a small smile before agreeing to the bet.

"But, if you can’t, we’ll be on vacation until next year."

His hands reached for the silver staff, making the blade’s tip tremble briefly. With a smile on his face, he lifted the entire weight, or at least almost, but it was far from being easy.

"Ha! That bastard... I’ve already told you how much I like him, haven’t I?"

"Certainly..."

Adjusting his glasses, the man sighed.

"Oh, yes, and he said something before leaving. He mentioned that the proper way to use this weapon is by imbuing mana to enhance the training."

"Training...?"

Looking around, those confident eyes were somehow making him a bit uneasy. Returning his gaze to the staff and tracing the point of the pointed blade and the crescent-shaped blade, mana began to be transferred hesitantly from his fingers to the staff in his hands.

"This is...!"

The weapon stuck back to the ground along with his hands and knees. No matter how much force he exerted or how he tried, that damned staff didn’t move an inch from where it was. With a smile on his face, Yang Kai glanced at the small hole caused by the object’s fall against the ground.

"That bastard is truly a monster...!"

Hearing the whispers and laughter nearby, he turned, glaring at those around him.

"You know you’ll have to complete the dungeons alone from now on, right?"

"What?! No, you didn’t lift it! We won the bet."

"No, the bet was whether I could lift it, not hold it up for long. Chen?"

"You lost, sir."

"What?! You were supposed to be on my side!"

"But the pointed blade never lifted from the ground at any moment, so..."

Clicking his tongue, Yang Kai rolled his eyes.

"A month..."

"Three."

"One month."

"Two...?"

"Do you want to have nothing?"

"It’s been a pleasure doing business with you, sir. A month is perfect, wonderful, set the ideal time."