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n

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"You must be Akarui, Faust's friend,

" Eldrian said, crouching down to appear less intimidating. The little girl nodded, her short brown hair bobbing as she did.

"Has he ever told you about his elven friend?

" Eldrian asked as a voice also appeared in his head.

n'Haru!' Cephaphyr shouted telepathically in joy and rushed into his arms. Eldrian taking the hit, nearly being sent flying.

n'Ouch, hope you at least controlled your strength when playing with her.' Eldrian replied to the little Alicorn while stroking his mane.

nSeeing her friend being friendly with the stranger, Akarui finally gathered her courage.

"Whe-where did you come from... Mister?

"

n

"Oh, far away. I rode day and night for four whole days.

" Eldrian said, smiling and asking while also receiving Cephaphyrs reply.

"Should we go to the glade, I am sure the others might be wondering where you are.

" He paused for a moment.

n'Of course, I do! I was just so excited to see you. Since you left, everyone else also left. Until Faust and Akarui!' Cephaphyr replied, full of energy.

nAnd added,

"Why are you playing in the middle of the night?

"

n

"Not tired!

" Akarui replied with vigor, not willing to go back just yet. Certain that lady Zamia would force her to go to sleep if she caught her playing... Again.

nKeeping track of the two simultaneous conversations took a bit of Eldrian's focus, but it was nothing compared to all the magic training he had been doing.

n'That's good, let's go back though. I don't want to appear like an intruder again.' Eldrian said mentally to Cephaphyr and verbally to Akarui,

"Then, let's just tell her you something moving in the trees and became scared.

"

nBoth nodded and agreed to go back, as soon as Eldrian stepped into the glade he was greeted by Zamia in her elven form. The first time for him to ever see her in it, the sight was quite one to behold.

n

"Who are you?

" Eldrian asked, pushing Akarui behind him as he didn't recognize the elf before him. Naturally, he wouldn't.

nThe lady smiled,

"Right, you never saw me in this form. I'm Zamia,

"

nEldrian however wasn't going to just accept that, so he used mana sense to be sure. And Zamia let the invasive sense glean something, realizing that Eldrian must have gone through quite a number to be so careful and direct. To directly ignore proper etiquette and manners.

nMana sense confirmed that it was indeed Zamia, a Tier 10 Alicorn. Leaving Eldrian a little confused, but not for long.

"Why did you never transform when I was here last time?

" He asked, letting go of Akarui who quickly rushed past to her bed. Hoping that Zamia would just forget she was there.

nHer bed was a bed of plants, which might sound uncomfortable. But how could something made by Zamia for a child be anything but the best?

n

"I am certain I mentioned it before. It is uncomfortable.

" Zamia replied.

nEldrian raised his eye in questioning, only for both of them to have Cephaphyr burst into their heads. 'No fair, I can't understand what you are saying!'

n'Ceph, dear... Go to sleep. I need to talk with Haru, alone.'

nDespondent, the little Alicorn hang his head as he walked away. Seeing it Eldrian wanted to comfort him, but he realized that something more was going on.

n

"What do we need to talk about?

" He asked, failing to recall that she had mentioned the discomfort. But he failed to recall many things so he just moved on.

n

"You,

" Zamia said, the ground suddenly transforming, two chairs and a table appeared in mere seconds.

"Sit, it is going to take a while.

"

nEldrian did as instructed and Zamia also served some tea. The aroma immediately calming Eldrian, relaxing his mind and body.

"What type of tea is this?

"

n

"Silver-leaf tea. It is an excellent tea to go with a conversation.

" She said, handing him a cup which Eldrian immediately sipped.

n'Delicious... Amazingly so.' It had a soft texture, a slight sweetness, and upon entering his mouth it felt like he had cast Anthise on himself. Clearing his mind of all distractions.

nEldrian took another sip and waited for Zamia to start the conversation, the tea helping him relax and keeping his mind from wandering as it all too often did.

nAfter nearly a minute, Zamia finally spoke.

"You became a candidate.

" It was not a question, it was a statement.

n

"Yes, how did you know? Did the gods tell you?

"

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"No, no we aren't connected to the gods like you all. An old friend came to visit and informed us of it.

"

n

"Oh, and who is this friend?

" Eldrian asked, suspecting that it must have been one of the abyssal guards. Though, he didn't know why they would be friends with the alicorns. Naturally, there was nothing wrong with it. He just didn't understand where they would have gotten the opportunity to meet them.

n

"The legend of smithing,

" Zamia answered without reservation. Unlike Amnur, she did not think that sharing things would stop Eldrian from achieving his potential. In fact, she believed it would be the opposite, helping him reach it sooner.

n'Legend of smithing?' Eldrian mumbled the words a few times, realizing that it couldn't be just a moniker. It must be a title, and she certainly wouldn't call just anyone such.

n

"Do you know how you became a candidate, and what type of candidate you are?

" Zamia asked after giving him time to mull over her choice of words.

n

"No, I have no clue. I just know it brought a great deal of trouble.

"

n

"Oh, how so?

" She asked, taking a sip as she did. The tea naturally had far less of an effect on her, but it was still a delicious tea. Even if the magical properties didn't work.

n

"A devil prince tried to kill me. Nearly succeeded each time too, I mostly survived due to luck.

"

nZamia's eyebrows raised in surprise as she quickly thought of a specific devil prince who might have been ordered to do something like that to redeem for his failure. One who clearly specialized in stealth and mobility. If it was him, then indeed, it was impressive that he had managed to survive. Even with the abyssal guards guarding him.

n

"Is that why you didn't take my word for being who I am, and instead used... What was that, it is almost like our elemental search.

"

n

"Yes, that is why. And it is a unique ability I acquired, mana sense.

"

n

"I see, but you should know it isn't infallible. I could have blocked it, and if I really wanted I could have even tricked your mana sense.

"

n

"True, but I was also looking at your mana flow and the flow of mana in the air.

" Eldrian replied, not surprising Zamia at all. She already knew this too.

n

"I know, and I could also have tricked you by keeping them as is or changing them to appear different. Let me show you,

"

nNodding, Eldrian used mana sense and suddenly he received a completely different result. Results telling him that Zamia wasn't Zamia. That she was Luna, a Moon Elf and only Tier 3. Yet, her mana and the surrounding mana showed nothing out of the ordinary.

nSighing, Eldrian said,

"I know it isn't perfect, but it is the best method I have.

"

n{AN: A big thanks to everyone who continues to support this novel on WN. Truly a wonderful thing to have it be constantly in the top 100-150's.}

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