"Behold, a major expanse of white marble."
The moment Jezebeth stepped through the enormous doors, he stopped.
The training grounds stretched farther than he had expected, almost resembling an indoor palace rather than a place meant for training.
The polished marble floor extended endlessly before him, smooth enough to reflect the faint golden light pouring through the enormous glass dome above.
The morning sun slowly peeked through the dome, its rays scattering across the chamber and painting the white floor with warm streaks of light.
Jezebeth slowly looked upward.
The glass dome was enormous.
From where he stood, it seemed as though the entire sky had been placed directly above the training grounds.
Clouds drifted lazily across the glass, their shadows passing over the marble floor.
Jezebeth's eyes wandered across the enormous chamber.
High walls surrounded the grounds, decorated with intricate carvings and ancient symbols.
Some depicted warriors holding strange weapons.
Others depicted enormous creatures standing beside humans.
Jezebeth stared at one of the carvings.
The creature looked vaguely familiar.
A long body.
Massive wings.
A skeletal head.
Jezebeth frowned.
He couldn't explain why, but looking at it sent a strange sensation through his chest.
He quickly looked away.
Along the edges of the training grounds were several large stone platforms.
Some were empty.
Others were covered with weapons, training equipment, and strange metallic structures Jezebeth had never seen before.
There were even enormous pillars rising from the floor, each one covered in faintly glowing markings.
The markings pulsed softly.
Almost as though the entire building itself were alive.
Jezebeth's mouth opened slightly.
"Fascinating."
Arahel stood beside him, watching his reaction.
"It was built by some of the finest builders in the land."
Jezebeth continued staring.
"How long did it take?"
"Several years."
"Why so long?"
Arahel smiled faintly.
"Because this isn't simply a room."
He gestured toward the enormous chamber.
"The entire structure was designed to withstand the abilities of the Chronos family."
Jezebeth looked around again.
"So people actually fight in here?"
"Train."
Arahel corrected him.
"There's a difference."
Jezebeth looked at one of the massive pillars.
"What happens if someone destroys something?"
Arahel gave him a sideways glance.
"We repair it."
"And if they destroy all of it?"
"Then they pay for it."
Jezebeth quietly nodded.
He wasn't sure whether his father was joking.
Arahel turned his attention toward the training grounds.
"This place is a major testament to our reputation."
He paused.
"The Chronos family has been known for generations as the strongest family in the kingdom."
Jezebeth looked up at him.
"The strongest?"
"Apart from the Royal Household."
Jezebeth's eyes widened.
"Even stronger than the other noble families?"
Arahel nodded.
"By quite a margin."
Jezebeth looked across the enormous training grounds again.
Suddenly, the size of the place made a little more sense.
This wasn't simply a training ground.
It was a statement.
The Chronos family didn't build something like this because they needed somewhere to practice.
They built it because they could.
Arahel began walking toward the center of the chamber.
Jezebeth followed.
Their footsteps echoed across the marble.
Step.
Step.
Step.
The sound seemed to travel endlessly through the chamber.
Jezebeth glanced toward the walls.
"So all of this belongs to our family?"
"Most of it."
"Most?"
Arahel nodded.
"There are several other facilities throughout the estate."
Jezebeth stopped walking.
"Several?"
Arahel continued forward.
"You'll see them eventually."
Jezebeth hurried after him.
"How big is this mansion?"
Arahel smiled.
"Large enough that you haven't seen half of it."
Jezebeth stared at him.
"Half?"
"Less than half."
Jezebeth's eyes widened.
For the first time, he realized just how large the world he had been born into actually was.
And somehow, he had a feeling that the training grounds were only the beginning.
Arahel eventually stopped at the center of the chamber.
Jezebeth stopped beside him.
The enormous room suddenly felt strangely quiet.
Arahel turned toward him.
"Now."
Jezebeth looked at him.
"Now what?"
"Manifest him."
Jezebeth blinked.
"Who?"
Arahel raised an eyebrow.
"Your shikigami."
Jezebeth's expression changed.
His thoughts immediately returned to the creature he had seen before.
The enormous dragon.
The voice.
The terrifying presence that had invaded his mind.
"Ryoma?"
Arahel nodded.
"You've already made contact with your Other Soul. Now you need to bring that power through your body."
Jezebeth looked down at his hands.
"So... I just call him?"
"No."
Arahel's voice became firm.
"You don't summon your shikigami."
Jezebeth looked up.
"You manifest it."
Arahel stepped closer.
"Your shikigami is already within you. Your Other Soul carries its presence."
He placed two fingers against Jezebeth's chest.
"Reach for it."
Jezebeth swallowed.
"And then?"
"Allow it to flow through you."
Jezebeth stared at his father.
"What happens when I do?"
"You'll find out."
"That doesn't sound reassuring."
Arahel chuckled.
"It wasn't meant to."
Jezebeth took a slow breath.
He closed his eyes.
At first, nothing happened.
He stood completely still.
He could hear the faint wind moving through the upper vents of the chamber.
He could hear his father's breathing.
He could hear his own heartbeat.
Thump.
Thump.
Thump.
"Reach deeper," Arahel said.
Jezebeth focused.
He searched within himself.
Past his thoughts.
Past his emotions.
Past the sensation of his own body.
Something was there.
A presence.
Faint.
Distant.
But unmistakably real.
Jezebeth reached toward it.
The moment his consciousness touched it, his heartbeat suddenly faltered.
Thump...
Silence.
Jezebeth's eyes opened.
His pupils had narrowed.
Arahel's expression changed.
The air around them shifted.
A faint mist began leaking from Jezebeth's skin.
It curled around his fingers before disappearing.
Jezebeth stared at his hands.
"What...?"
His breath became visible.
The temperature inside the training grounds began dropping.
Arahel took a step backward.
Not out of fear.
Observation.
"Keep going."
Jezebeth gritted his teeth.
He reached deeper.
The presence responded.
Something enormous stirred inside him.
His heartbeat slowed further.
The mist thickened.
It spilled from his shoulders and drifted across the marble floor.
The glowing markings on the pillars began flickering.
Jezebeth's body trembled.
Then his vision went black.
He was no longer standing in the training grounds.
There was no marble beneath his feet.
No glass dome.
No sunlight.
No Arahel.
Only darkness.
An endless black expanse stretched around him.
Jezebeth looked around.
"Where am I?"
His voice echoed into the distance.
Then came a sound.
A deep vibration.
Almost like thunder.
Jezebeth froze.
Something moved within the darkness.
The ground beneath his feet trembled.
His heart raced.
A gigantic silhouette slowly emerged from the void.
First came the head.
Then the neck.
Then the enormous body.
The creature was so massive that Jezebeth couldn't comprehend its size.
Its skeletal frame stretched farther than his eyes could follow.
Two enormous wings rested against its back.
Its claws were larger than Jezebeth himself.
And its eyes...
They were fixed directly on him.
Jezebeth couldn't breathe.
He recognized it immediately.
The same creature.
The same presence.
The same voice.
The dragon lowered its enormous head.
Jezebeth instinctively stepped backward.
"Ryoma..."
The dragon's eyes narrowed.
A low rumble passed through the darkness.
Then its voice entered Jezebeth's mind.
Not through his ears.
Through his very soul.
"You have returned."
Jezebeth's body went rigid.
He stared at the enormous dragon.
"I... I'm inside my Other Soul?"
The dragon remained silent.
Then a deep laugh echoed through the darkness.
Jezebeth clenched his fists.
"What are you?"
The dragon slowly opened its jaws.
Its enormous teeth glimmered within the darkness.
"You already know my name."
Jezebeth stared at him.
"Ryoma."
The dragon's eye seemed to brighten.
"Good."
The darkness trembled.
"Then remember it."
Jezebeth's breathing became heavier.
Outside the mental space, his body remained standing in the training grounds.
But the Cryogenic Mist continued pouring from him.
His skin began developing faint markings.
His eyes slowly changed.
Something was beginning to manifest.
And inside his Other Soul, the dragon smiled.
"Now..."
Ryoma lowered his head closer.
"Let us see what your body can endure."