Four weeks later...

——

As someone who now had a bit of money and lots of interesting connections, Cedric could finally engage in rich people activities.

...Thank goodness!

This world had plenty of elite pastimes, ranging from sitting in enchanted projection halls to watch serialized, tear-jerking romance plays — which had become Aika’s favorite pastime by the way — to other leisurely stuff like eating out on cable cars that offered private, moving dinners high above the city streets.

There were also other many familiar games that perfectly parallel Earth, like golf, ice skating and even bowling.

The only thing missing to make this world perfect was the internet!

After spending the past four weeks indulging in different numerous distractions and letting himself rest, Cedric felt much better both physically and mentally.

Currently, he had just finished a grueling workout session in his private training room. After a long shower, he stepped out into the steam, drying his hair with a towel, but just as he passed by the large mirror in the dressing area, he caught a sudden reflection of light.

Raising a hand to block the glare, he squinted at his reflection. "Gosh, that’s blinding. What’s that? Oh wait, it’s just me."

He smiled and brought down his hand, then he posed, admiring his muscles from a few different angles. He also glanced down, running a thumb at the new tattoo of the heart with thorns he had gotten on his chest two weeks ago.

After admiring his progress for a bit longer, he walked over to the wardrobe. Then he put on a loose-fitting, comfortable black shirt and a pair of dark trousers, keeping things simple since he was just staying indoors.

When he was finished, he stepped out into the large, clean bedchamber and saw Aika walk into the room. She looked exhausted despite doing absolutely nothing all morning, and she kept scratching her messy, unbrushed hair as she trudged over to the bed.

After collapsing face down, she muffled into the pillow, "Your butler says Alicia is here to see you."

"Alicia?" Cedric arched a brow, turning his gaze toward the door. For a brief second, he wondered what could have brought her all the way out here for an unannounced visit. Turning back to Aika, he began, "By the way, you alright? You look like you just—"

He paused when he saw that she was already fast asleep. After staring at her quiet form for a few seconds, he let out a silent chuckle, turned, and walked out of the room. Then he made his way downstairs to the drawing room where Alicia was waiting for him.

Upon entering, he saw the sharp, blue-eyed woman sitting with her legs elegantly crossed. She wore a tailored midnight-blue riding coat and had just taken a sip of coffee that young Nina, the maid, had freshly brewed for her.

She smiled and straightened in her seat when she saw Cedric walk in, giving him a small, familiar nod. "Hey, Cedric."

"Hey," Cedric smiled back, nodding in greeting before taking a seat opposite her.

"How’s the new place?" She leaned back, crossing her arms as she took in the surroundings.

Cedric pursed his lips, letting his eyes roam around the luxurious room before shrugging. "It’s great."

In all honesty, it was better than great. This townhouse was located in the upper Oakshaven district, an exclusive area where only the most elite and powerful resided. In fact, just owning property here required a level of influence that money alone couldn’t buy.

Alicia took another sip of her drink. As she set the porcelain cup back onto its saucer, she smiled. "Glad you love it."

Then, her expression shifted into something more serious as she leaned forward slightly. "Just as the Raven of Decay instructed, I made sure that no one knows that this is where you live. Not even Leon. Which is a good thing, considering I heard that the king himself recently questioned him about your whereabouts. From what I hear, the dean of our bastion was even asked to use her truth-seeking ability to ensure he wasn’t lying."

"Ah..." Cedric bobbed his head back, then smiled slightly. "Thanks for that."

"Sure," Alicia replied, offering a casual shrug.

She then leaned back again. "By the way, speaking of the Bastion, since we are now Grade Three’s you should know that we will be returning there in a week’s time."

Of course, Cedric knew that already.

Aside from teaching the basics of normal subjects, the Bastions also served as military encampments. Because of that, they didn’t exactly function like a normal academy. Instead, the way they operated was based entirely on how causality affected Dominants.

You see, after a Dominant reached a certain age, visiting the rings became mandatory. If they didn’t go, causality, which was responsible for enforcing the laws in the realms, would kill them.

For some unfortunate Dominants, they got their first call at the age of sixteen. The majority got theirs at seventeen, while a few like Leon got theirs at eighteen.

Some people prefer to describe the feeling plainly as an itch at the back of their mind and at the spot where their tattoo was. Others would describe it as a desire in their heart to just pack up and start walking toward the nearest bridge.

Once a Dominant felt this call, that meant they had to join the next lunar eclipse at all costs.

It was then that they would go register as a first-year Cadet in any of the bastions in order to prepare for their first journey to the world beyond the Veil.

If they went to the first ring and came back alive, they would earn six months of absolute peace from the call.

At the end of those six months, a Dominant was expected to visit the bridges again. If they missed their next eclipse after the break, the call would return that very month. This time, the symptoms wouldn’t just stop at a mild itch or a vague desire. It would get progressively worse and harder to ignore as the days went by.

If a full year passed and the Dominant missed a second eclipse, they would die as soon as the red smiling moon faded from the sky. Usually, they just dropped dead the following morning.

...Because of this cycle, the Bastions operated on a two to three month preparation basis before a Dominant visited a new ring.

For instance, if a Grade One was going for their first deployment, they would enter the Bastion a few months before the eclipse as a first-year. There, they would learn everything about basic survival and the First Ring.

If they didn’t evolve to Grade Three by the next scheduled eclipse, they wouldn’t need to return to the Bastion months in advance, since they were already familiar with the territory. They would only need to show up a day early to use the magic centers for transportation to the bridge.

They could still go to the Bastion, however, if they wanted to finish their three years training early.

If they evolved to Grade Three like Cedric had, they would absolutely need to register as second-years a few months prior. That gave them enough time to learn about the second ring and prepare for the dangers ahead.