The Hidden Realm

Chapter 30 – VANIRE

ELEAND gasped when they finally reached the temple. The transportation magic used by Rade brought them inside his room, and his eyes broadened when he noticed Enkille sitting on his bed. She appeared to be impatiently waiting.

“Where the hell have you been?” Enkille’s voice sounded dangerous. She got up and carefully examined the three of them.

Eleand averted his gaze to avoid confrontation.

“You’re drunk! You reeked of alcohol.” Her eyes narrowed, and she looked at Eleand, “You’ve been to Argia? What a fool! Aren’t you aware that Erganiv is in chaos because the parts of the key to the portals hidden in different domains, gone missing!”

“I’m sorry,” he murmured—still eyes on the floor.

Enkille looked at Rade and Althy. “Leave us alone. I’ll deal with you later.”

The cousins nodded and immediately vanished.

“What comes in your mind, and you tag along with them?” Enkille asked, irritated this time. She seemed uneasy, walking back and forth. If only she knew the trouble he caused in Argia.

“I take full responsibility for what happened. I really want to see Argia,” he tilted his head high. He didn’t regret his decision because he knew the consequences would come to this.

“Are you crazy? You know that the glamor bestowed on you is only temporary. What if it wears off while you’re in Argia? You’re dead by now. Think about it!” she breathed out heavily in frustration.

“Relax, I’m safe. I’m back in one piece.” He unfastened his cloak, thinking he would never mention the trouble they went through before going home. Or else, Enkille would be more enraged.

“And you’re waiting until terrible things will happen?” she gave him a warning look.

He chuckled. “I can protect myself this time. I hope you know that I can finally wield the fire. Vatranum suits me.”

Enkille exhaled deeply, trying to get a grip on herself. And a moment later, Enkille was calm when she talked.

“Fariyah is extremely busy these days. Even me has a lot of tasks. Practice your newly acquired skill while you’re here.”

“I will do that. But how true that I’ll be training on the other regions of Noyuh for other magic?”

Enkille nodded. “That’s right.”

“I don’t get it. Why I trained Vatranum here? If I’m not mistaken, I should be trained in the Golden Palace since most of the faeries there are fire welders. You should send me back there.”

Enkille hardly shook her head. “No one is capable enough to teach you the basics of fire magic in the Golden Palace. The master of the Vatranum died centuries ago. He is Fariyah’s father. And the high priestess is the only fae who knew everything about fire magic,” she lightly sighed before she continued, “Although there are others who can teach you, but not as good as the master. Besides, Fariyah passed the knowledge to Althy and Rade because they’re the strongest here. The only irony, they can’t wield fire. But Fariyah can. She is the master of fire and ice.”

“Okay, I get it.” Now he perfectly understands how his training works. His discovery of possessing faerie blood changed everything.

“Now that I’m here, I’ll teach you the Vanire. You need to study double time. All the things you need to learn can be found in the books I gave you.”

“I will, again. I’m sorry for disobeying you,” he arched his head. He really meant it.

She rolled her eyes. “Take a shower. You smell awful.”

Eleand jokingly smelled his armpit but didn’t smell anything bad. He just wanted her to laugh, but she disappeared already.

A FEW days had passed. Eleand seriously practiced the manipulation of fire until he could summon it with ease. Well, except the black fire that kept on haunting him in his sleep.

Sometimes, he would wake up in the middle of the night and see himself submerged in a black mist. Then he would go to the bathtub to relax. But he was dumbfounded when the water suddenly boiled.

Enkille was on the rescue. She would heal his burns until he was fine. That accident never happened again because he trained every day until his body was exhausted. The black fire was perfectly contained.

Meanwhile, Enkille taught him the transportation magic as promised. He studied the basics for two weeks, according to the books.

“Chant the spell in your mind. Let’s see if you can do it this time.” Enkille ordered him while he was training one afternoon. They were inside his room.

He placed the book on his bed. And this time, he finally memorized everything.

Eleand closed his eyes to maintain his concentration. He thought of the place he wanted to be—into the peak of the waterfall where he almost died while sparring with Fariyah.

He heard Enkille cackled hysterically. When he opened his eyes, he was still inside his room.

“Is that it?” she teased.

“What happened? What went wrong?” he was frustrated, maybe because only royalties could make this kind of magic.

“Actually, you did it. Look at where you stand.” She pointed to his location.

His eyes widened when he realized he was standing near the dining table. Earlier, he was near his bed.

“Whoa! At least, there’s an improvement.” Eleand smiled in satisfaction. If he could disappear in a short distance, he could perfectly make. He only needed time and constant practice.

“You can practice the Vanire with Althy and Rade. Once you master it, we will immediately try shapeshifting. So that we can see your faerie form or any secondary appearance.”

“All right!” He was energetic. He succeeded even it was a very minimal improvement. He would keep moving forward to surpass his limits.

ONE month had quickly passed. Eleand took that long to wield the fire magic and the Vanire with ease. When Enkille was not around, Eleand would train along with Althy and Rade. He was feeling close to them, just like his brothers. Sometimes they would sneak out to visit Argia to drink, but they should be back immediately. The difference this time, they would never let them be caught in trouble again.

On his first attempt using the transportation magic in a long-distance, his body shivered in pain. He felt nauseated, and he vomited several times because of extreme dizziness. The motion sickness was unbearable to handle. His body weakened.

 Enkille advised him to lessen the distance to let his body adapt until he could improve his Vanire without endangering his health.

Eleand noticed that Fariyah was not around most of the time. He was aware of the brewing war, and the high priestess was busy securing her domain. She even canceled their match and let the cousins train him more.

The chaos in Erganiv was growing, and Eleand honed his skills to toughen himself. He should not be complacent just because he gained friends, and they would be his reinforcement if he needed them. He had to learn to fight alone, not depending on anybody.

Meanwhile, Enkille ordered the cousins to teach him the basics of shapeshifting. And she made it sure that this must remain a secret among them.

The cousins did not mind keeping a secret, although they put him in trouble sometimes because they were naturally playful.