The Greatest Sinner

Evan looked at the straight black chain floating in the middle of the blue sky. He examined it carefully and could tell with certainty that it was part of one big magical circle.

Whoosh.

Then he had understood the meaning of the chains on the pillar, the young man smiled broadly and walked away from the "Library" into the space with the black lion. All the mana accumulated in his "Nirvana" had already been absorbed by this chain. For this reason, Evan urgently needed to "Create" again.

He had already condensed 333 drops of Void Liquid, but there were still a lot of chains on the first pillar.

Before he left, Evan decided to count how many there were. After a while, he muttered with a puzzled face: "There are a hundred chains here... and another one already in the Library, so that makes a hundred and one chains."

Evan was shocked by such a large number. He expected that now he could learn a very rare and powerful spell. But it would take an incredible amount of mana to unlock all the chains.

"Well, honestly, that was to be expected. I don't know what kind of spell is painted on those chains, but it's obviously not a simple one. Now I have more reason to "Create", even though I haven't broken through the remaining two Barriers."

Calmly Evan said and returned to "Nirvana".

There were still three days before he would leave the fourth section of the" Pond of Mountain Crystals". During that time, he had to have time to absorb as much mana as he could at all.

Soon he would no longer have that opportunity. Immediately after leaving this place, he would have to go to the Academy of Magic. Moreover, if he were to "Create" outdoors, then it would take a very long time to unfold the chains.

In the fourth section, his speed was six times faster than in the special room in the Zak`s mansion. That meant that if he were to "Create" outdoors, his progress would slow down ten times or even more.

He needed to make the most of his remaining days.

Whoosh.

Evan's crimson "Warp" swirled again and pale blue bubbles began to appear in "Nirvana."

They instantly turned into blue streams and were absorbed by the Demogorgon's mouth.

With each passing second, the second chain gained more and more mana.

...

Thus passed the remaining three days. Evan opened his eyes and stopped "Creating". He smiled and mouthed contentedly, "Three chains in three days, I've got four in total already, pretty slow, but there's nothing I can do about it."

Evan stood up and looked around. The crystals that were near him were pretty dull, but it was still a long way from complete destruction. The water in the lake, had turned paler, but it wasn't critical.

Two weeks wasn't long enough to deplete a place like the fourth section of the "Pond of Mountain Crystals".

As Demien had warned, by the time Evan emerged from section four, he had already gone. When Evan's time was up, another man, Koen's subordinate, came for him.

Unlike Demien, who turned the smoke into slabs and so they crossed the chasm, the Koen man used a special amulet. A path out of the barrier was created and they walked back safely.

As they walked Evan pondered the chains and the space he`d called - "The Library". There had already been four chains hovering over each other there. Nevertheless, such a small number were not enough to know what kind of spell was behind them.

<I hope that when I unlock all the chains I'll get something really worthy for it.>

...

After a while, Evan left the "Pond of Mountain Crystals", with only one day to go. He had promised Zak he would be home by then, so that's where he headed.

Zak's house was very far away, but that wasn't a problem for Evan. He didn't mind walking and thinking about everything that had happened to him lately.

<I need to set myself goals for the near future. I think the first thing I need to do is break through the remaining "Barriers" and reach the "One-Pointed Star". It takes too much mana to unlock all the chains, it's better to put it off for later.>

If Evan wanted to unlock all the chains, he would have to "Create" for several years at a time. He had no desire to spend that much time on this case. He needed to get stronger and gain access to places like the fourth section. Then he could have unlocked all the circuits not in a couple of years, but in just a few months.

Moreover, Evan believed that the chains also concealed the power of the pillar itself. When he freed it, he would most likely increase his powers many times over.

...

"Well, I am here. Who would have thought that the first place I would go after prison would be this mansion?"

Evan muttered to himself and walked quietly through the main gate. The guards recognized him immediately and let him inside.

Evan didn't know exactly where Zak was, but he was sure he would find him in the one place he knew well - the training ground.

From afar, Evan saw Zak swing his massive black sword and repeat the same movement dozens of times.

"Commander!" Evan said loudly as he approached the training area.

Zak turned around, saw Evan and smiled broadly: "Who I see! I thought you'd forgotten you had to leave tomorrow."

After these words, he put his sword aside, walked over to Evan, and patted him kindly on the shoulder.

"Evan, go to the dining room, I'll be there in fifteen minutes. I have much to tell you about the Academy of Magic you will be going to."

The young man nodded and headed for the mansion.

...

Twenty minutes later, Zak had showered and came into the kitchen where Evan was waiting for him.

"Evan, let's start with what the Academy is called and where it is located. Tomorrow you will go to the Academy of Magic - "The Last Moon", located north of the 'Kingdom of Fallen Hopes'." Zak said calmly.

Evan nodded.

"I would like to say that both Marcel and I believe that "The Last Moon" is the best Academy of Magic in the entire kingdom. Many people wish to study there, but it is not suitable for all new magicians. The rules there are peculiar, and so is the head of this Academy."

"I see, if you both think so, "The Last Moon" is indeed a good place where I can progress quickly. What time are we leaving tomorrow?"

"Early in the morning, the recruitment will be in exactly two weeks at noon, I think you can get there in seven days. Speaking of which, I'm not going with you, I'd like to, but... the head of "The Last Moon" doesn't approve of outsiders visiting, believing that students should get to the Academy on their own. It's best not to quarrel with that man, I think you see."

Evan calmly replied, "Good, then I`m going there alone?"

Zak shook his head and said: "No, like I said you are leaving tomorrow morning, but not alone. All the rookie magicians from the Mossy Vulture are going there together. It will be safer and faster that way."