"I'll come with you," Tom Nguyen suddenly said.
"Maybe it's not a bad idea to head to the gym," Devonte thought while also standing up.
"Is this necessary? It's only one day," Evans sighed while shaking his head.
"Millions of people are competing for 5 spots. If you don't have a sense of urgency, then there is no point in competing," Zane calmly replied while heading to his room.
His words made everyone contemplative, and a few seconds later, Ahmed apologized and headed to his room as well. Evans frowned for a while longer before heading to his room as well; he realized his mindset must change if he wanted a future in the world of the extraordinary.
"Fake," James sneered, his voice loud enough for a few people who hadn't entered their room to hear him. Glancing at Sanjay next to him, James suddenly felt this man wasn't too bad, and he initiated a conversation.
Meanwhile, Zane swiftly changed into more comfortable clothes — sweat pants, shirt, and running shoes — and retrieved his magic staff before exiting the room. As he walked out, he realized that Devonte was the first to finish preparing. Glancing at the tall, young man who stood silently in a sleeveless t-shirt, basketball shorts, and his black Air Force 1s, Zane secretly shook his head in jealousy. If there was one thing that God forgot to give him, it was height; he barely reached 6 feet when wearing the right shoes.
While Zane lamented his cursed fate of being short, two minutes passed, and everyone had prepared, and they chose to head out together.
"You have a staff? Can I see it?" Tom Nguyen asked, and Zane did not mind, so he handed it to him.
"It's so easy to wield my mana," he commented, his eyes shining brightly. "How much did it cost?"
"16 mana crystals, and it was the cheapest."
"That's $16,000," Tom Nguyen clicked his tongue. "How long will I have to save before buying a magic staff?" He is currently surviving only because he has a full ride to Harvard, which covers his housing and food. Luckily, the full scholarship has allowed him to work part-time and save a bit of money, but not much, since he still has other expenses.
"It's not as hard as you think," Zane said. "If you can kill one magic creature and retrieve its core, it will be enough."
"How can I kill those things? I almost died during the second shift because of one of them," Tom Nguyen said with a pale expression.
"Agreed," Ahmed sighed. "My partner died because of a crocodile that spewed acid."
"Mine was a wolf that can shoot lightning," Evans said. "Luckily, we encountered a group of goblin warriors and used them as a distraction to run away. You're telling me you killed yours?"
Zane nodded. "I faced a wind tiger, and after killing it, there was a core inside its body with a lot of mana. After selling it, I had enough money for a magic staff." The information about the beast core might have been valuable before, but in this school, everyone will probably learn about it soon, so he didn't mind sharing.
"Wait, you said I? You didn't kill it alone, did you?" Ahmed asked.
"I hadn't met my partner yet," Zane replied.
"How did you do it?" Tom asked.
"Kill it? I just cast my shield fast enough to block his wind blade and killed it with an attack spell." Zane's description was lackluster, but that was truly the gist of it.
"Didn't you feel overwhelming fear and become immobile?"
"Yes, that," Evans nodded. If not for his knight, who blocked the first attack and yelled to wake him from the daze, that creature would have torn his throat.
"I did," Zane nodded. "But with a bit of luck, I forced myself to wake up and face the beast." The two looked at him and sighed to themselves. The saying was correct: comparison is the thief of joy. Most of them thought they had done well enough, but when compared to others, their actions were truly pathetic. In this world, there is always someone better than you.
"Now that I think about it, my mage also froze on the spot; it was as if she was facing an unimaginable terror. I thought it was because of their weak personality, but it seems all of you had the same problem?" Ahmed asked.
"Our perception is a gift and a curse," Tom Nguyen explained. "When I looked at that creature, the only thing I felt was that it would kill me, and there was nothing I could do about it. The sheer terror locked my body in place, and no matter what I did, I couldn't move."
"It's a terrible feeling," Evans nodded.
"Strange. I wonder why that is?" Ahmed uttered.
"Killing Aura," Zane explained.
"What's that?"
"I don't know exactly, but after I killed the creature, I received a title and one of the descriptions stated I had overcome the creature's Killing Aura," Zane stated.
"Interesting. I wonder what an aura is?"
"I don't know, but I do know there is a 0-ring Darkness spell called Fear Aura," Evans stated.
"What does it do?" Zane immediately asked.
"I haven't tested it yet, but the description said it will overwhelm the opponent's mind with a sense of dread."
"So, a spell to scare people?" Tom Nguyen asked.
"I don't think it's that simple," Zane added. "It probably allows other people to feel the same fear and powerlessness we felt when facing those monsters."
"If that's true, then it's a scary spell," Tom replied, his body involuntarily trembling.
"It seems the second shift terrorized everybody," Zane sighed.
Everybody soon reached the ground floor, and the group separated into two: the mages headed to the library while the knights walked toward the training grounds. During the trip, Zane and his group began discussing their respective specialties, and without realizing it, the three soon reached the library.
"So many books," Tom Nguyen said as he glanced around like a child in a candy shop. Although this was his second time here, he still couldn't help himself. "But, where do we begin?"
"How about we start with the history of magic?" Evans suggested.
"That's not a priority right now," Zane shook his head.
"Then, what do you suggest?"
"We need an introduction book on mana," Zane recommended.
"Mana is the foundation," Tom Nguyen nodded.
"Good idea, but where do we find it? I still haven't got the hang of their organization system."
"That is an issue," Tom nodded. Although the library used a system similar to the Dewey Decimal System, there were still a few minor differences that made things a bit more challenging.
"Let's ask the librarian for a recommendation," Zane said. With their current knowledge, even if they could find the section about mana, it would take too much time to find a decent book — and they might not even do so. Following his lead, the group walked to a dark purple-skinned elf with glasses, a blue blouse, and a black skirt, who was reading a book.
"What do you want?" the librarian asked without raising her head.
"Miss Valeria, we are looking for a book about mana for beginners," Zane stated after a glance at her name tag.
"Go to the Arcane section, third shelf, fifth row; there is a book called [The Mana Guide] by Archmage Losita Bandi."
"Thank you," Zane nodded.
"Is there something else?" Valeria asked.
"Can I ask you a question?"
Evans and Tom looked at Zane, wondering what he was up to.
"What is it?"
"You're a drow, right?"
"And?" Valieria said, finally glancing at them through her glasses. "Do you have a problem with that?"
"Why would I?" Zane calmly replied. "My question is about all the different races. Why do they look like all the fantasy and mythical creatures of Earth's literature, media, art, and cinema?" This question has been haunting him ever since the first shift, and he googled goblins and other fantasy creatures.
Valeria glanced intently at him for a few seconds before focusing on her book. "Your question is quite astute. Do you know what most dimensions of life share in common?"
"Probably souls," Tom Nguyen said.
"That's one of them, but I'm talking about dreams," Valeria explained. "There is a section of the Astral Plane called the Dream Realm, created from the dreams of all creatures with a soul. Anyone who dreams can enter the Dream Realm. It's one of the few ways that all dimensions are connected."
"So, Earthlings were influenced by other dimensions' cultures through dreams?" Zane summarized.
"Basically."
"How fascinating," Tom Nguyen sighed.
"Indeed," Evans nodded. He knew that Tolkien defined the modern concept of elves and dwarves, but their origins go back to Germanic Mythology. And now he finds the idea that Tolkien and older mythological stories originated from people's dreams quite interesting and funny.
"Wait, you said all dimensions were connected through the Dream Realm?" Zane asked.
"Yes, and?" Valeria casually replied.
"Doesn't that mean that other people could find Earth's coordinates from the Dream Realm?"
Tom and Evans' expressions suddenly became grave. Why was Earth facing such a catastrophe? It was because a higher civilization had discovered their dimension coordinate and plotted an invasion. But if another arrived, then there would truly be no hope for this planet.
Valeria once again interrupted her reading to glance at them, especially Zane. "Sometimes, being too smart is not a good thing."
"I've been told that a few times," Zane replied with a wry smile. "Now, please answer my question. Otherwise, I won't be able to sleep tonight."
Valeria remained calm as she closed her book. "You are worrying over nothing. Do you think it's easy to find a coordinate through the Dream Realm? Most civilizations cannot navigate the Astral Plane, and those that can may not have discovered the Dream Realm, let alone know how to navigate it.
"And have you forgotten what I said? The Dream Realm is created from the dreams of all sentient life across all dimensions. Can you fathom how vast it is? How challenging is it to navigate?"
Zane frowned. She was right. Although he didn't know how many dimensions of life exist, the number itself should be unfathomable, let alone the number of individuals. A spatial dimension created from the dreams of so many people would probably be infinite in size.
"I'm not even mentioning the complex rules of the Dream Realm itself, which have safety mechanisms for such an act. And even if someone did try, the process would be cumbersome, complex, and not something that could be done in a day or two."
"So, we're just worrying too much? I'm relieved," Tom Nguyen sighed.
"No, it's not that simple," Evans shook his head. "All those explanations only prove it's unlikely, not impossible."