Echoes of Hollow

"Sorry about that..." said Lior, smiling awkwardly and holding back as he stood near Hye.

"Huh? Sorry...? What should I forgive you for? You haven't done anything to me."

"Well..." His gaze wandered briefly, glancing at those standing a bit farther away, keeping their distance from each other. "No, it's nothing."

Standing up, Lior raised one hand. His smile widened as he said, "We may not be as stunning as her, but you'll have to settle for us. Alyia sent us to help with your training today, so cheer up—many would kill for this opportunity."

"I see, but... what exactly does that mean?"

"Ah, that? It's a test. First, I need to figure out your current level."

"I'm at..."

"No, that won't work." Lior shook his head. "Even if the interfaces are similar, the systems are fundamentally different. This is due to the fact that, in the end, the lineages of each person diverge, even if just slightly."

"Lineages...? Are you talking about Adam?"

‘That too,’ Samael interjected. ‘But not just that. He's right. Over time, the lineages of all of them intermingled—Adam, Eve, and especially the other six.’

"Exactly. That’s why each person’s body carries certain peculiarities—whether it's naturally enhanced strength, superior speed, reaction time, reasoning, intelligence, mana compatibility, and so on. The eight originals had all of this and more, but after so many millennia, their descendants have regressed with each generation, losing most of those abilities."

‘You two really are brothers, even act the same way.’

"Thank you," Lior said with a smile. "I'll take that as a compliment."

‘Of course you would...’

Standing tall, Hye clenched his fist, focusing intently on the center of Lior’s palm.

"Hmm, should I use mana as well?"

"Of course—use everything you've got."

The wind came to a halt, drawing everyone's gaze toward him. As the grass shifted near his feet, a sensation of void filled the air. Neither warmth nor cold remained, just a fleeting chill accompanied by the glow in his eyes.

"Hey... no, wait a second..." Lior attempted to intervene, but Hye, with such intense focus, could no longer hear him.

Like a cannonball, his fist struck the center of Lior’s palm with precision. At first, nothing seemed to happen, the water nearby even stilled. But moments later, the tree beside them bent almost to the ground, the waterfall's stream was hurled sideways, and the others, caught in the shockwave, found their hair blown back as they struggled to withstand the force.

Straightening his posture, Hye sighed, glancing ahead at the four who remained silent, still processing what they had just witnessed.

"But didn’t he undergo the initiation process just a few days ago?" murmured Yang Kai to himself.

"Days ago?!" Addiah exclaimed, incredulous. "No way. That’s impossible."

"Hmm, no, this won’t do..."

"What’s wrong? Was it too weak?" Hye looked at his fist for a moment. "If I concentrate a bit more, maybe—"

"No, that’s not it." Observing Hye’s body, Lior sighed. *‘There really is nothing...’* he thought.

"The issue isn’t your strength, it’s your body—or rather, your mana. Tell me, Alyia hasn’t noticed this yet, has she?"

"No. I figured out how to use it last night after trying something similar to what she mentioned about another case like mine."

"Like yours...? Where else would someone have a similar—"

"He figured it out while testing abilities," Teodoro interjected, approaching. "He sensed mana after using a skill, and then it was all tests—more tests, body strengthening, skill enhancement, and the rest."

"Huh...? Oh, I see! Sorry, I shouldn’t have asked—that’s none of my business."

"Funny to say that after clearly reading his mind..." Yang Kai commented with a sarcastic smile.

‘As expected, mind reading?’ Samael pondered, narrowing his gaze at Lior and Teodoro through Hye's eyes. ‘Did one of them have that ability? Or could they use it from such a distance, without direct contact or close proximity? ...Perhaps Eve...?’

"What do you think, little bird?"

‘Little bird? ...Do you really think you're someone worthy of calling me that?’

"No," Lior smiled. "But you don’t mind, do you? You’re not going to attack me, are you?"

‘Hmph! Arrogant.’

"Seriously? You’re not going to answer? Come on, help us out—just a guess."

"Who is he talking to...?" Addiah murmured to Yang Kai.

"And how would I know? It’s not Teodoro. It’s not me or you, so who?"

"But he’s not saying anything either..."

"Let me finish my reasoning first! Maybe it’s not him exactly, but something inside."

"Inside...?"

"Yeah, can’t you tell? That pure, cold mana—it doesn’t belong to him. His body is constantly rejecting it."

"Ugh..." Lior sighed. "What a stingy guy!"

"Why not try the stone test?" Yang Kai suggested, stepping closer.

"No, that won’t work. The mana surrounding his body would interfere..." Lior glanced again at Hye, recalling how he manipulated mana earlier, enveloping everything, including Samael’s mana. "Can you do that again? That glove? It doesn’t have to be dense, just—"

"Like this?"

"Yes! That’s it! Now, a mana stone... Huh?"

Before Lior could finish condensing ambient mana into a stone, one materialized in midair, dropping into Hye’s hand and touching the dark mana surrounding his palm. There was no reaction.

"Nothing? Seriously?"

While Yang Kai and Addiah trained nearby, Lior and Teodoro continued trying to decipher the strange energy. Physical and skill enhancements posed no issues—Hye used them with precision and extraordinary skill. It seemed impossible that he had only started using mana the night before.

"What about a fireball? Can you create one?" Lior asked, now lying on the grass, sighing occasionally.

"Create a fireball...? How do you do that? Can you show me an example?"

"An example?"

Raising a hand, Lior pointed his index finger at the sky, slowly concentrating heat at the tip. The mana transformed, altering its properties into pure heat, eventually forming a small fireball.

"I see. So, it’s about property change—turning something neutral into heat, cold, and so on."

**Chapter 84, Part 2**

A reddish glow flared, illuminating Hye’s eyes, prompting yet another sigh from Lior. The flame had been created so swiftly, the mana concentration must have been immense. But why couldn’t he sense a single trace of it? Why, even when the flame was outside Hye's body, surrounding him, could he only perceive it with his eyes?

'It’s as if, from the very start, it doesn’t even exist. No… I can see it, so that can’t really be the case, can it?'

Standing up, Lior clapped his hands together.

"Alright," he said. "Trying to make sense of this is a waste of time, so let’s just teach you the essentials, okay? And what better way to learn than through practice? Who’s up for a dungeon run?"

Yang Kai and Addiah exchanged confused glances but eventually nodded. The four of them ascended quickly, flying toward the palace. But as they rose, Lior finally noticed Hye was still on the ground, staring up at them as they drifted away.

About to descend back to the ground, Lior suddenly stopped—Hye was already floating after them, rising steadily into the air.

“You… How did you do that? Flying is far more complicated than conjuring a simple flame.”

“Complicated? Isn’t it just another property change?”

“Well, yes. Or, actually, no. It’s not that simple…”

Faced with Hye’s calm, impassive expression, Lior sighed. It was painfully clear Hye hadn’t struggled at all to replicate something that should have been exceptionally complex, even after only observing it once.

“This is why I hate geniuses…” Lior muttered under his breath.

“Huh?”

“It’s not just about changing properties; it’s also about negation. While you’re altering mana to lift yourself into the air, you must also negate any existing laws that would prevent it. For example, gravity here adjusts to the amount of mana leaking from your body.”

“Oh, so that’s why my body felt so heavy?”

“Heavy? But you didn’t—oh, I see now. The expelled mana…”

“Well, it wasn’t difficult. I simply observed your mana flow and how you used it, considering yours seems to be the most controlled among the four of you.”

“The flow? Are you saying you can see the flow of mana inside my body?”

“I can now. Ever since I first sensed mana, these strange auras have surrounded everyone’s bodies, each with a different intensity. If I focus a bit, seeing their inner movements is easy. If I may say so, yours and those kids’ auras are the strangest I’ve seen so far.”

“Strangest? Why do you say that?”

“They have peculiar colors, different from the blues and purples I usually see. There are others, like that boy’s—it was whitish. But yours is golden, and it seems it should be just that. Yet, there’s something black, almost alive, slowly wrapping around it. A similar situation is happening with the kids.”

“Oh, interesting. You can see that too…”

Smiling faintly, Lior turned back and resumed heading toward the exit.

“How do you create something like that?” Hye asked, looking at the constellations etched into the wall.

“Hmm, you can’t do it with just technique. It also requires a large amount of mana, which… I’m not sure you have. Why not ask Alyia about it later? She might be better at it than I am. And, hey, think of it this way—it might end up being a date, no?”

Their journey continued, descending the mountain steps before finally stopping a short distance from its base.

“So?” Yang spoke up. “Which dungeon are we going to? A Rank A one? Or maybe a Rank B, since he’s coming with us?”

“I don’t know,” Lior replied, smiling as he raised one hand. “Why don’t we let luck decide?”

“What? Is that why you said we should leave the barriers?” Addiah questioned. “The barriers adjust based on the mana levels of the hunters present. This is madness—it’d be like signing his death certificate!”

“Hmm, so what do you say?” Lior turned to Hye. “Want to stay behind?”

Hye’s chest tightened, his blood boiling. What was this feeling? Excitement or fear? He couldn’t tell. Shaking his head, he declined the offer.

“But I need to be back in three hours,” he said. “So…”

“Three hours?” Lior snapped his fingers, flashing a confident grin. “What’s the plan? You want to clear every dungeon in the world?”

Above them, the sky darkened, lightning tearing through the air and leaving cracks in its wake.

“Stay close to me or Teodoro,” Lior warned. “If you get hurt, Alyia won’t let us off the hook anytime soon.”

“This is insane,” Yang Kai growled, clicking his tongue.

“Maybe. But it’ll be fun.”

As they were pulled toward the storm of lightning above, everyone lifted their gaze. Like claws ripping through the sky, they watched as red flames emerged, unleashed in a breath by one of the many heads of the fearsome creature awaiting them. The lightning mingled with the flames, surging toward the five.

Lior raised a hand, snapping his fingers to disperse the creature’s attack. Pointing a single finger upward, the beast plummeted as if struck by something invisible.

“We haven’t even stepped inside yet. What’s the rush?”