Punk understood that the situation had advanced beyond the point of denial. Once the church began its inquiry, the public would inevitably conclude that the abducted elf had been held by his family.

  But he had no elf to surrender. Thus, he could only admit it—yet craft a unified testimony: the elf had been executed, the body cast into a river or otherwise disposed of, forever unrecoverable.

  Compensation would be paid as required—costly, certainly, but not fatal.

  And most of the blame would be heaped upon the third son, lightening the punishment upon the family as a whole.

  …

  The Abyssfall Gorge.

  Da’off led Glenn to a vast and verdant clearing.

  From here, one could see distant mountains rising and dipping beneath the blue of the heavens, the breeze carrying the clean breath of life across the flourishing earth.

  “Now I’ll guide you in sensing nature. Many mages let their apprentices skip this step, but to me, it’s essential. It will benefit you greatly.”

  Da’off’s voice was soft.

  Glenn took in the scenery—one rarely seen in his previous life—and hummed in acknowledgment.

  “Come. Sit cross-legged, close your eyes, and attempt your first meditation. Here, you will experience something entirely different.”

  Glenn obeyed. He had just opened his mouth to ask how meditation was defined when Da’off’s voice returned:

  “Relax every pore. Feel everything around you—every wisp of wind, every pulse within the plants, every cry of the creatures.”

  His voice carried a dreamlike pull. Glenn did not notice the roughened palm that had come to rest gently against his forehead.

  “Do you feel it? Has the outside world begun to enter your mind? If so, speak softly of what you see.”

  With those words, Glenn slipped into a strange and wondrous state, as though his soul had slipped from his body and now viewed the world through an entirely new eye.

  The world had transformed. Endless elements streamed through the air, functioning in accordance with some deeply intricate pattern.

  Yet when Glenn focused on a single point, he could perceive what it represented in reality—plants, animals, wind, water, and more.

  “I see countless elements—like flowing water—each moving along its own trajectory. It’s… extraordinary.” Glenn’s lips moved faintly as he described the world before him.

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  Da’off’s eyes widened. He had expected several failed attempts before success—this was far too swift.

  This had nothing to do with talent. Achieving the correct state of meditation typically required repeated attempts; the body needed time to adjust before success was even possible.

  For Glenn to succeed on the first try, he must have meditated before—or possessed some unusual bodily trait.

  And his clarity of description… it resembled the accounts of seasoned mages accustomed to meditation. But Glenn had never been a mage.

  Which meant the boy was an anomaly.

  Still, Da’off did not interrupt. Meditation posed no danger. He continued to guide:

  “Beyond that—can you see deeper? Further in…”

  Glenn did not resist. Following the guidance, he probed deeper still.

  The elemental sea around him seemed to fade, revealing gaps—patches of void where the elements did not reach.

  As the elemental world thinned, something else emerged within the emptiness. Glenn could not name it. It was chaos—and yet, with careful observation, strangely patterned.

  A faint drumming drifted through the void. Glenn concentrated.

  No… not drumming—more like a heartbeat. Mine? No… not human… His brows knit, and he spoke again:

  “I’m seeing something strange—hard to describe. And I’m hearing something… like a heartbeat…”

  Da’off’s gaze deepened. This was expected. Those who reached deep meditation often perceived similar sensations, though what they saw and heard varied.

  He was just about to end the session when Glenn’s next words froze him in place.

  “No… there’s more. Heartbeats above. Many of them. Each beating at a different rhythm. It’s eerie… and a little… grotesque. 最好不要.”

  He, of course, did not understand Glenn’s final Chinese word. Instead, he searched his memory for any precedent.

  Those who reached such depth typically interpreted the heartbeat as the pulse of the earth itself—a theory that, while unproven, had become widely accepted.

  But heartbeats above? Impossible. Could Glenn be hearing the hearts of the gods…? Da’off found no answer.

  At that moment, Glenn suddenly toppled backward, clutching his eyes with a muffled grunt.

  Da’off gasped and immediately cast a healing spell.

  But nothing changed. Blood seeped between Glenn’s fingers.

  Before Da’off could attempt another spell, Glenn’s head transformed—swelling into a massive wolf’s head. Twin points of light glimmered within his eyes before the wolf form receded.

  “What happened? What did you see?” Da’off asked urgently.

  Glenn rubbed his eyes, bewildered. “I just… looked upward. And I saw something—someone—throwing something at me. Like a spear. Then the pain hit, and I snapped out of it.”

  Da’off had no explanation. He had never seen meditation injure someone—let alone nearly destroy their eyes. It was unprecedented.

  His tone grew grave. “I’ve never encountered a case like yours. I don’t know what effect this might have on your future path of magic.”

  Glenn scratched his head, glanced at the sky, and felt a sudden—utterly impossible—urge to build a rocket and fly upward to see for himself.

  Of course, that was impossible. He didn’t have that kind of mind.

  “How about we try again?” Glenn suggested.

  He wanted another glimpse of that figure—and if he ever had the chance, he fully intended to poke that person’s eyeballs in return.

  But Da’off refused. “Absolutely not. I lack the experience to handle risks like this. If something happens, I may not be able to stop it. We cannot take that chance.”

  Glenn considered it and admitted defeat. Curiosity gnawed at him, but the danger of the unknown outweighed it.

  “Then… I can never meditate again?” he asked quietly.

  Da’off’s brows had been furrowed since the incident. He answered, “No, not until we understand this—最好不要.”

  Glenn fell silent, seating himself once more, lost in thought.

  “I’ll need to travel to the capital,” Da’off said suddenly. “To search the Royal Library for anything resembling your condition. It may cost us a day or two, but it’s necessary.”

  “A day or two shouldn’t affect anything,” Glenn replied. He had no reason to object.