The sun had just crested the horizon when a train of carriages left through the eastern gate of Kanion. This was one of the regular caravans ferrying goods and passengers between the capital and the border.
In one of the middle wagons, two brown-haired youngsters sat in silence, intently watching the new scenery. Those two were, of course, Zeke and Leo. They had managed to get a spot on the earliest ride, despite their late arrival. It hadn't been all that hard for Zeke to convince the chief. He even managed to haggle down the price by promising to help out if they came across any danger.
The chief had been pleased to get the assistance of two Mages for the measly cost of a price reduction. Wouldn't he have been stupid to refuse such an offer? Instead of paying them for their service, those two even paid to work as additional guards.
Little did he know that Leo would have fought either way, even for free. So, Zeke was also quite happy with the arrangement. Furthermore, it was very unlikely they would have to do much. The caravan stayed far away from any of the truly dangerous areas, and bandits weren't common either. On top of that, the chief already employed three Grand Mages and over 20 True Mages as guards.
Such a force should be able to handle most things, and even if they couldn't, the addition of two True Mages wouldn't make a difference. Zeke had already decided that if they ran into a problem they truly couldn't solve, he and Leo would save themselves instead of honoring the deal. The small price reduction the chief had granted them wasn't reason enough to risk their lives unnecessarily.
Of course, Zeke wasn't opposed to helping out in any other circumstance. Their journey would take them two weeks and it would be too boring to just sit around all day without anything to do — at least for Leo. With them now being officially part of the guard crew, they had a lot more freedom to move independently. This was the main reason he had agreed to such an arrangement.
After less than an hour, his prediction came true already as Leo got bored of looking outside. Now that they weren't alone anymore, his brother couldn't continue his Magic fusion practice, so there was little to distract himself with. Similarly, the terrain was getting increasingly monotonous. The further east they went the less there was to see. The verdant green woods and grassy fields had long since been replaced by dry soil.
The capital of Korrovan was in the desert, so he was confident this trend would continue. And unlike Leo, he had no problem sitting still. He had enough things to ponder to keep him busy. Even if he were to get bored, he'd be able to chat with Akasha or the Dragon.
Alas, Leo wasn't like him. Zeke could already see his brother starting to fidget. "It's not even been an hour, Leo. Why are you already getting restless?"
Leo turned to look at him. "What am I supposed to do then?"
Zeke pointed at the other passengers. "Read a book?"
Leo merely snorted, as if the proposal was ridiculous. Zeke couldn't stop a wry smile from appearing on his face at his brother's reaction. "We are not gonna reach the first Danger Zone until late afternoon, so there won't be any fights for a while."
Leo's eyes lit up at the mention of the Danger Zone. "What level is it?"
During their stay in the city, they visited the local Adventurer's Guild. They were very surprised by the sparse number of quests. The clerk hadn't lied, there really were no Extermination missions on offer. Apparently, the Guild was forbidden from interfering in such matters in Korrovan. Still, their visit hadn't been in vain as they had managed to access an up-to-date map of the country.
Of course, Zeke knew the geography already, as he had several maps in his Mind's Library. However, what made the map in the Guild special was the fact that it depicted the known Danger Zones and even rated them according to the threat they posed. The danger could come from anything, be it monsters, bandits, or even treacherous terrain.
Zeke consulted his mental copy before answering. "Silver."
Leo immediately smiled upon hearing that. The ratings designated by the Guild were tailored to the ranks of adventurers. A copper-ranked Danger Zone should only be entered by a full team of copper-ranked adventurers. In the same vein, a silver-ranked zone required silver-ranked adventurers.
This meant that the zone could pose somewhat of a challenge to Leo, exciting him further. This was especially true considering that Zeke had forbidden him from using his Fire Magic. This was, of course, to keep their identities hidden. An Earth Mage would garner no attention, but a Mage with an Earth and Fire affinity would stand out a lot more. Therefore, he had forbidden Leo from using his Fire Magic unless it was a life-or-death situation.
Zeke, on the other hand, was even more restricted. His bread-and-butter spell [Blood Whip] was not something he could use. After all, the spell was his own creation, and could easily be linked to him. His tendency to always show off had finally come back to bite him.
Over the last weeks, Zeke had been working on a solution to this problem. His thinking had been simple. If he couldn't use his signature spell, couldn't he just invent a new one?
The spell he had been trying to create was based on the Magic the Invocatians used to summon their contracted spirits. His plan had been to kill two birds with one stone. He was trying to create a spell that would let him disguise himself as a summoner while also helping him with his promise to the Dragon.
In its finished form, the spell was supposed to create a temporary body made from Magic that the Dragon could control. This could be considered as a prototype for the eventual solution he wanted to use to fulfill his deal with the Dragon. At the very least, it would show his willingness to work on it.
However, he had been too ambitious. Not only did he need to solve the problem of creating a Dragon's body, but he also needed to find a way to work with a spirit that wasn't even contracted with him.
Needless to say, he hadn't made much progress so far. The main problem was that Zeke didn't know how he was supposed to go about creating a body at all. After all, in the normal case, the Mage didn't even have to bother with any of that. They merely provided the mana, while the contracted spirit automatically shaped the Mana into its desired form.
Unfortunately, it wasn't as easy in Zeke's case, as he had no contract with the Dragon. He theorized that the Spirit Summoning Ritual usually solved this issue. Therefore, he and Akasha studied the Ritual for any clues on how to solve that problem.
It was fortunate that Aurelia had allowed him to experience the Ritual for himself. Otherwise, he would not have been able to learn of its design. Her protective measures had been strong, but with Zeke directly on top of the device, nothing could keep him from learning its secrets.
However, despite everything, his progress was slow. The Runes and Glyphs used in its construction weren't something he had ever come across. On top of that, the level of complexity of this Grand Ritual was incomparable to any regular spell or enchantment.
Even the Dragon, who occasionally tried to offer some insights, wasn't of much help in this case. Even though it had always valued knowledge, the Dragon had not bothered to get overly familiar with a Magic system so far removed from its own. Therefore, it could only offer bits and pieces.
Still, this didn't mean they made no headway at all. Zeke's conjectures combined with Akasha's frightening computational abilities saw them make steady progress at deciphering the Ritual. His gains during this time weren't small, as Zeke started to understand how the ancient Rituals worked on a fundamental level. His understanding of Ritual Magic improved by leaps and bounds.
Whereas he once assumed that a Magic Ritual was nothing more than a large enchantment, he now saw how narrow his views had been. His previous way of looking at Rituals might not have been completely wrong, but it was such an oversimplification that it bordered on insulting. The Spirit Summoning Ritual alone contained dozens, if not hundreds, of enchantments working in tandem.
What was even more interesting were the conditions and regulations built in. It had taken him a long time to make sense of even the most rudimentary ones. For example, the Ritual used a completely different procedure if the recipient already had an engraved core compared to one that had not yet advanced.
It was exactly those regulations that allowed the Ritual to be used so liberally. Zeke had wondered since back then how he and Celine could both use it, even though she had wished to have her summons engraved on her core while he only wished for a regular contract. Those built-in regulations made it possible for the Ritual to operate differently based on the circumstances of the user, making it seem almost intelligent.
It was no wonder nobody could even come close to creating something like this anymore. The complexity of the construct was something Zeke could hardly grasp. Any minute change to the overall design could lead to monumental changes down the line. It was almost like the Ritual was a living, breathing organism with an interconnected, self-regulating system akin to the organs in a human body.
The title of 'Grand Ritual' was well deserved.
If he was completely honest with himself, he knew that he would have no chance of deciphering the Ritual without the help of Akasha. He was in complete awe of the being who had designed this masterpiece and he relished the chance to study it and deepen his knowledge.
Zeke took a book from his bag and laid it on his lap. This was, of course, just a cover. He had not read a physical book in months, nor would he likely do so ever again. After all, reading in his Mind's Library was several times faster. However, he didn't want the other passengers to notice him staring out into nothingness for hours on end. Therefore, he had prepared this method to allow him to continue his research without attracting too much attention.
After his preparations were complete, Zeke no longer hesitated and dove into his Mind's Library. Even though this had started out as a way for him to learn about creating his new spell, by now he was more interested in the intricacies of Ritual Magic. It was truly the pinnacle of magical engineering.
Hours passed, with Zeke and Akasha working in his Mind's Library.
In the outside world, it looked like he was engrossed in memorizing the mystical symbols in his open book. He never even turned the page once, even after all this time. Many who took notice spoke words of praise. After all, one didn't often come across a young man who could do such a monotonous task for hours with utmost concentration.
However, Zeke didn't even hear their words. He was completely unaware of anything happening outside. At least, until he was rudely shaken awake. As his eyes regained clarity, he was looking at an excited Leo. His face filled his entire vision, entirely too close for Zeke's liking.
"What is it?" Zeke asked without being able to completely keep the annoyance out of his tone, as he pushed his brother away.
Leo wasn't bothered by either his tone or actions, as his excitement remained undiminished. "We are almost there!"
Looking out the window, Zeke noticed their new surroundings. Even though they hadn't entered the desert yet, the terrain already looked like a desolate wasteland. It was an endless prairie consisting of nothing but yellows and browns.
"And where is that?" he asked.
Leo pointed toward the front of their caravan, where Zeke could faintly make out faint specks of green. "The Danger Zone."
It was then that he remembered. The first Danger Zone on their journey was an oasis. They would have to pass through it to reach their first camp before nightfall. Clearing his muddled head, Zeke took Leo's proffered hand and stood.
It was time to get some exercise.