A subspace within a subspace that's what Hiro thought when he entered and found himself in an pitch black space. He couldn't tell how big it was or confirm any information beyond the fact that he felt solid ground beneath him, and strangely enough he could see the others as clear as day, not from his own efforts but simply the nature of this dark space.

  (This definitely isn't like an illusion but how come I couldn't sense an abnormality in space regardless of whether the puddle of ink is a portal or this is a subspace within a subspace.)

  It was at this time that Aleus the one who knew the most about this started to explain what he had found out.

  "As you might have already guessed the painting hall was a test, a test to reveal the nature of the paintings an illusion world. Right now we are in that world. And if the portraits are any indication there's a total of four tests."

  Hiro appeared calm while internally he was bewildered, an illusion, he was confident it wasn't. By reflex he looked to B One before turning to his thoughts to find the answer.

  "Right now you are probably seeing three objects of choice floating before you."

  Aleus continued, hinting to their current test. Everyone except Hiro began to nod, agreeing to seeing three objects floating before them but Hiro could not see anything of the sort. This drove him into more confusion as he wasn't experiencing the same phenomenon, ending his former train of thought, but this time he arrived at the answer with ease.

  (The test likely isn't manifesting before me because I'm not a rune practitioner.)

  The second test was obvious to everyone, they just had to choose between the three objects before them but the truth they did not know was the decision wasn't theirs to make. Hearts choice, regardless of what they picked what they deeply wanted to pick would end up being what was assessed, making selecting the correct answer pointless.

  This time Nubel was the first, from the three objects floating before him, a sword, a pen and a blank page, he made his choice.

  (Hahaha, everyone knows when it comes to multiple choice, the lone choice is always wrong so pen or page. The answer is page.)

  He took a guess and selected after which a door materialized, he gasped in joy and moved towards it. Obviously this caught everyone's attention, as they began to ask what he'd seen and done but this time Hiro held one answer, the door could be seen not just by Nubel but Hiro as well. And Nubel didn't hold them in suspense, he explained his process before disappearing into the door. Someone tried to follow after him but the door was like a mirage before him and did not send him to the next test. This action wasn't just that individual's will but the collective conclusion of everyone to assess the boundaries of the test itself.

  (Does that mean even I can't use it.)

  With such a thought Hiro's expression became solemn, evidently there was no tracing his way back. If these doors could not accept him as well he would be stuck, fortunately he had Spiriton or so he thought.

  After Nubel everyone began to make their choices based on his, others selecting the same answer as him while others choose what felt right. Leandro was the latter from his choices of shield, sword and pen he chose sword. He disappeared on the spot no door appeared before him. He wasn't the only one who left the dark space this way. Time passed and everyone left one by one until finally only Hiro and Aleus were left.

  "It's a shame it is only after everyone has either failed or passed that I now fully understand this test. Only those who are finders and helpers at heart can proceed to the next test, selecting the correct answer or wrong answer is no use."

  Said Aleus looking at Hiro with a complex gaze.

  "You can't participate in the test so how do you leave?"

  "You forget I have Spiriton, my sword with me. All I need to do is summon it just like this..."

  He willed but nothing happened, Spiriton didn't appear beside him or anywhere in sight for that matter. He lost his calm his expression showing shock before turning slightly grim.

  (What is going on, I can feel that Spiriton has responded to my call but I don't see it around me.)

  Hiro thoughts were in turmoil as they struggled with all their might make sense of everything till he arrived at an answer.

  "So that's it, what I thought of as an illusion was simply false images used to conceal the truth but this is beyond that, turning reality into illusion. We are in the illusion world nothing here has essence, we have no essence and the same is true of this space its not real thus Spiriton cannot be summoned here."

  "Ah, that. Portraits, illusion, I honestly thought you reached the answer before I did. Guess I was wrong."

  Hiro let out a deep sigh, at this point he just had to hope the doors would let him pass through or Aleus had some way for him to leave otherwise he would be stuck here.

  "If it rejects me, then you are my only hope."

  He said as he advanced to one door among the manifested doors for those who moved on to the next test. Contrary to his expectations he successfully advanced to the next test.

  "What in the..."

  He exclaimed as he side stepped avoiding the person who was apparently lying crudely on the ground just before the door he went through. While he was looking to see who it was another door manifested in this similarly dark space.

  Thud!

  Aleus came out and immediately fell, evidently he too had been affected by this space to fall into a deep sleep state. And with the arrival of Aleus and the number of doors and persons lying before them Hiro no longer needed to check who the one he had nearly stepped on was.

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  "What kind of test is it to require everyone to sleep."

  "It shouldn't come as a surprise, can't a dream be thought of as a false world."

  B One pointed out and Hiro had no arguments.

  "The way and they are, I'm sure some will die of embarassment when they wake up."

  Said Hiro acknowledging that their postures weren't so dignified due to the sleep being sudden and not according to their will. These individuals were young lords of Akarn, even the prince of Akarn himself was among them. How would they react after waking up to see themselves sleeping in such crude manner, granted this wasn't a public space.

  "Fixing them is an option you know."

  Hiro's gaze bounced among his sleeping companions as he asked from concern.

  "Won't it cause complications?"

  "No, this place is not that simple. No matter what happens to them in this state they won't wake up without resolving the root cause."

  B One assured before Hiro moved to improve their sleeping postures then sat down himself. In a way this test was an opportunity for him to plan ahead while there's still time, and he did that.

  (I've already wasted this time to examine my physical parameters, when we return I should focus on my senses. Speaking of, they have that rune of mystic perception, I should find out if there are any runes that deal with senses, chances are they have what I need.)

  Hiro thought shifting his focus to putting effort into his senses, and as he was about to close his eyes to assess the changes in his other senses Aleus woke up.

  "How long have I been asleep for?"

  "Less than ten minutes."

  "That's a relief. You wouldn't believe how much time past within the dream. So long I wouldn't be surprised if someone forgot it wasn't reality."

  He said getting up, his face flashing with excitement when a door appeared evidently he had passed the third test.

  "What now, do we move on or wait for the others?"

  Asked Hiro hoping they advance to the next test even with just Aleus, time was not something they could spare after all.

  "This test isn't simple, it could take days before they pass or fail. Events that occur in the dream cannot be easily conveyed in normal time, and from my experience there's no time limit within the dream itself."

  With just these points it was clear what Aleus's stance was, advancing to the final test without delay.

  (This third test was strange felt like two tests or is this feeling wrong. But more importantly is master beyond this door?)

  He thought anxious while they left this space, he couldn't shake the feeling the tests were over and if so the chances of his master still being present dropped considerably.

  Third space, unlike the previous spaces the last one was bright white, Aleus had to closed his eyes immediately after entering while Hiro adjusted to the light instantly.

  After entering they found they weren't the only ones in this space, the one they'd been searching for was before them sitting cross legged on the floor. She had dark smooth luminous skin that suggested softness, with straight shoulder length white hair. Her voluptuous body was adorned in a grey robe different from the standard light colors of Akarn. She had a rune glowing in gold before her eyebrows, she was fully engrossed in her thoughts that their arrival went unnoticed to her.

  "She's currently receiving the knowledge of the rune and it's accumulation of applications over generations and it would be best not to disturb her... Sorry but now that I'm here even I can't hold back my selfishness."

  Aleus turned to Hiro and said while he thought.

  (So I was both wrong and right.)

  He moved with evident enthusiasm matching his master, as he wordlessly sat down in the same manner and the same rune appeared between his eyebrows. Since waiting couldn't be avoided Hiro didn't object, only continuing to observe while immersing in his thoughts.

  (Hmm, a master, I wonder what it's like to have one.)

  Looking at the master and student absorbing the knowledge within this space Hiro felt envious. Though starting out as a swordsman he had Shadow teaching him, Shadow could hardly be considered his teacher or master, if anything he would be closer to a rival. Beyond this he had never received anyone else's teachings or guidance in the way of the sword and after becoming a sword grandmaster, he and Shadow couldn't use one another as reference for improvement due to the increasing difference between swordsman and assassin.

  "Shadow was a thief by day and assassin by night thus his weapon of choice was daggers. But despite the difference in paths and weapons, during our early ranks by periodically sparring and exchanging pointers we could help each other improve thus advancing smoothly to higher ranks..."

  Hiro went silent as a hopeless thought sparked within him.

  (Does that mean if I had someone who's an equal in swordsmanship as my sparring partner there's a chance my improvement will be several times faster than now.)

  After coming to this world, stabilising his growth had been Hiro's goal all along. At present if swordsman were birds, Hiro would be a hawk that had mutated into a falcon and in the next moment a hummingbird. With Hiro a hummingbird every other swordsman being either sparrows, pigeons, Ravens, eagles and such but none as hummingbirds like himself. No matter how perfectly he flew like other birds he wouldn't be able to display his maximum capabilities and reach his maximum potential.

  But if there was another hummingbird or even a falcon regardless of how much of its might it could display, by repeatedly competing with it Hiro would soon display peak hummingbird potential and have another chance at evolving.

  With this thought he remembered something else, the demon lord had also surpassed the rank of sword sage, still not a hummingbird but a falcon at least.

  "I guess his growth was coming along well before I came along, to bad our fates were in conflict we could've been great rivals when it came to the sword."

  He said looking helplessly at the ground, it was quite regretful, the only other person who came close to being an equal thus sharing a point of understanding was someone he was at odds with and he had already killed.

  "I'm not so sure, do you know how long it took him to reach that rank. And you, no proper master and guidance reached the same rank as him. He would likely hate and curse you if nothing else. Look at yourself now, you've already surpassed his rank."

  (Sigh, the recent slump has made me forget how much of an achievement my current state is on its own. And the demon lord also serves as some level of proof that others have likely gone above the rank of sword sage back in my world, but the lack of information is also proof of how few the cases are. While I have gone up not just one but two ranks above sword sage. Back in my world if this was known I would definitely be hailed as a once in whatever years genius.)

  "You may be right but does it really matter. He isn't here but I still have to walk down this path going farther than anyone's ever reached or has ever dreamed of reaching. In end genius or ordinary it is irrelevant, using other people as a measuring stick is flawed, they are too short to measure my goal, the true peak of swordsmanship you spoke of. I simply cannot be comfortable with stagnations just because I've done better than most if not all."

  Hiro's eyes ignited with uncharacteristically calm flames of passion, more motivated than ever. Regardless of his current pursuit this was something he could not neglect. Following the Manager's arrangements he would no doubt become strong beyond belief but that had nothing to do with his capabilities as a swordsman. And would he be willing to stay as he is after what B One had said, of course not.

  After some time passed Aleus's master finally took in all the knowledge and opened her eyes, scanning the space and seeing two new additions.

  "I'm Isis, chief rune finder of Akarn. You are?"

  She asked as her gaze moving from Aleus before settling on Hiro, them being here together meant they likely knew each other but she didn't recognize Hiro. As such she became deeply curious as to who this person before her was, to be allowed to travel and find a ruin together with a prince of Akarn, something even close kingdoms fight over.