“Did you see that?” I asked Kai, stunned by the whole exchange. “And did you hear that?”

Kai was now about to burst in laughter as he witnessed a man going as far as levitating in order to avoid me and my questions.

“I think I’m going to like these monks, Myriam,” he said, a smile still lingering on his face.

“Hello,” I heard another male voice say next to us, though I couldn’t see anyone.

Out of nowhere, a rectangular door appeared in the space between Kai and myself. The door was mid-opening as it materialized, and a male monk was coming through it.

Name : Galad Esterian

Race : Human

Class : Mouthpiece of the Divine

Level : 46

This man wasn’t wearing the white robes the other two had been dressed in, but rather loosely-draped red and gold garments that clung tightly on half of his torso, leaving the right side of his chest bare.

His shaggy blue pants were tucked into his dark leather boots, and instead of having long milky-white hair and a beard, he was shaved clean, his head void of any sign of hair. He looked young and physically strong but by far the most impressive thing about him was the fact that he didn’t have a Carta Magica strapped on his back but an actual scroll, almost as large and thick as his toned torso.

“I am sorry I was not there to admit you,” the man said, and slightly bowed his head. “My name is Galad, mouthpiece of the monastery at the End of the World. Who might you be?”

“I’m—” Kai started replying, but I interrupted him.

“Kai and my name is Myriam.” I finished his sentence because I thought it would be best for us if we were completely honest.

We could, of course, lie about our names like we did so far but a mana wielder of this level could easily cast a spell and determine whether we were lying without us even noticing. Considering we were not prepared for a prying spell of this sort, and in order to appear trustworthy to them, I figured that responding honestly would be the best option.

“Walking around in different names yet I cannot sense any mana emanating from you,” the man said, his face not showing any hint of whether he was annoyed by the fact I had cast protections against gauging our mana deposits. “However, given that you have reached the monastery and are able to mask yourselves against me determining your mana level, there is proof enough that you are Elysians.”

I smiled and nodded while Kai prepared himself to respond and possibly shower the man with questions.

“Yes, we are Elysians,” he said, looking the man straight in the eye. “We’ve come a long way but those two monks who were just here—”

“Monk-priests,” the man interjected.

“Yes, those two monk-priests who were just here,” Kai continued, correcting himself. “They simply ignored us.”

“I see it’s your first time in our monastery,” the man said, and now his face hinted at a smile as he pointed his open palm to one of the empty tables. “Please have a seat.”

Kai sat next to me on the same side of a large wooden table while the monk-priest took his seat opposite us.

“Being the monk-priest with the fewest years in the monastery, I am assigned most of the operational roles,” he explained. “One of them is being the mouthpiece of the monastery, hence my class has changed accordingly.”

“You mentioned that before,” Kai interjected, “but what does it mean?”

“It means I am tasked with communicating with outsiders,” he replied. “The senior monk-priests are not bound to any societal and cultural norms. They are focused on their research and generally do not trouble themselves with distractions such as other people.”

“So that’s why they avoided us,” I concluded. “But one of them did reply to one of my questions.”

“Well, it is kind of rude not to respond to questions directed at you,” Galad answered, and I was sure I saw a smile this time. “They simply do not bother initiating conversations they can avoid. What about you? Why have you come all the way here?”

“We would like to study in the monastery for some time,” I responded, making sure I didn’t mention anything about the book we were after yet.

“Wonderful news!” Galad replied. “Not many young people choose to study at a monastery in the stead of the Elysian university. I think you will find the research subjects conducted here quite extraordinary. However, that still does not explain how you ended up at the southern end of the world, across the Endless Sea.”

“We were kidnapped by slavers and brought to this land by ship,” I said, and turned my gaze toward the stone ground. “We escaped them and decided to travel the land and continue our studies here. If you would have us.”

“How could we say no to fellow mana wielders,” he reassured me. “You are more than welcome in the house of The Divine.”

“What are you researching here, Priest Galad?” Kai asked.

“Monk-priest,” he corrected him again, before proceeding to answer his question. “Until a new spellcaster is deemed worthy of taking over my tasks, I’m not conducting any research myself. However, the seniors are studying a variety of topics, from the origin of The Divine to Its position in relation to other deities, the validity of the tales and mythos of Its creation and place in the Apocosmos multiverse, and so many more.”

“That sounds really exciting!” Kai almost shouted as he stood up from the bench we were sitting on, only to be seated again as he tried to tame his excitement. “I have another question Priest— Monk-priest Galad.”

“Please,” the man prompted him, as he nodded his head slightly.

“The rainbow whips on the mountain path,” Kai said. “What are they?”

“Ah, I thought you had figured it out, since you managed to cross it,” Galad said, and leaned toward us before continuing. “The Divine is worshiped in the land of Elysia. People in Fjalhun serve Arirlun, the God of the Forge. However, monasteries of the Order are beacons of The Divine’s power. We worship our God in a place not belonging to It. I guess you have noticed our monastery is bathed in sunlight?”

“Yes, we did,” I replied. “Is that magic from The Divine?”

“It is indeed.” He nodded again. “The Divine has blessed this monastery. However, Arirlun does not appreciate our God’s presence in his domain.”

“So the forces of the two gods are clashing with each other,” I said, almost too quiet to be heard.

“Ever since this monastery was built,” Galad added. “And probably until one of them recalls its power.”

“That’s even more exciting!” Kai exclaimed yet again. “Do you also have books with tales and legends, Monk-priest Galad?”

“We have a plethora of books,” he replied, “including what you are looking for. I’m sure you would prefer to rest now. However, you can certainly come find me tomorrow and I will provide you with such books.”

“Do you own all the books?” Kai continued asking, unfazed by Galad’s previous remark.

“Librarian is another of my duties in the monastery,” he replied, and turned his face to me. “May I show you to your quarters?”

“Yes, please,” I said with a smile, and I put my arm around Kai to make him stop questioning our patron.

The monk-priest led us to a floor standing two levels higher than the dining room in which we’d met him. Walking up the stairs of the tower, I noticed that the monastery had more floors than I could count and definitely many more than the ones that appeared on the outside. Galad led us into a small but comfortable room with all the necessary amenities for two people and then immediately retreated through one of his instantly-appearing doors.

“Why are we in this room, Myriam?” Kai asked, as soon the door that Galad had closed disappeared.

“Don’t worry,” I reassured him. “We’re not sleeping here. I’d still like to sleep in our chest, but he doesn’t have to know that.”

“That’s not what I mean,” he said. “I mean why are we here instead of looking for the book?”

“I can barely hold myself back either, Kai,” I started explaining, as I sat on one of the beds in our windowless room. “But this place is full of powerful spellcasters. We can’t just demand to see one of their books. We just arrived, and we need to play it safe because if they decline to show us what we’re looking for, there’s no way we’d be able to force them.”

“What do we do then?” he asked, clearly frustrated.

“We wait,” I replied, and smiled at the opening he’d provided us while talking with Galad. “Your request for books is the perfect way to get to their library as soon as tomorrow. That was very clever of you.”

I was sure he hadn’t done it on purpose but still, I liked how he always acted shy whenever I complimented him.

“Let’s rest,” I proposed. “We’re here. All we need to do is find the book.”

“You’re right,” he replied, and opened our chest.

Pretty soon we were downstairs and tucked into our beds. Being in the monastery, even though we didn’t stray too far away from our chest, felt strangely familiar.

For more than a year living in Leka An and during our travels south, I had dealings with people who believed in the Jungle God, in Arirlun, or in no god at all.

But I always avoided people of The Divine. So much so that I’d forgotten how it was to be close to kinsmen. I didn’t feel safe by any means, especially since the Order had initially funded the creation of the monastery, but it was refreshing to see people using mana.