jdhmnovel Chapter 137: Time Element Attained
Chapter 137: Time Element Attained
"Yes. Indeed, we do."
Cael stood up from the bench and stretched his arms.
"Let’s find a good place."
He extended his hand toward Junior, as if asking for a handshake. Junior just stood there, his blind eyes staring at nothing.
Cael nodded to himself.
"Right. I almost forgot."
He raised his hand and placed it on Junior’s shoulder. The world blurred. The trees, the bench, the afternoon light all dissolved into nothing.
Then they arrived.
The hotel room was dimly lit, the curtains drawn shut against the outside world.
Few lights glowed in the corners of the room, casting soft orange light across the clear floor.
The air smelled of fresh linen and faint citrus, a sharp contrast to the academy’s open gardens.
Outside, the distant sounds of the city drifted through the walls, muffled and distant.
Cael had booked this room in advance for two weeks. It was a safe space. A neutral ground.
He walked to the sofa and sat down, sinking into the cushions. Junior followed and sat across from him.
Junior spoke first.
"I am curious. How did you even find out it was me who used that skill on you?"
Cael smiled and said,
"It was rather easy."
Junior pressed on, saying,
"How so?"
Cael leaned back on the sofa and said,
"I guessed that skill only works on people who sleep. I also guessed that if the skill indeed shows the future, then you would try to prevent it from happening."
"Meaning you might use it on others. Mainly on people with high status."
Cael paused for a moment before saying,
"So, my clones surveyed the areas where people sleep. Then one of my clones found you in the girls’ dormitory."
Junior nodded slowly.
"I see."
Junior could pretty much see what happened next.
Cael asked,
"Do you have a time element?"
Junior paused. He did not know what to say. After a moment, he chose his words carefully.
"It is complicated. But yes. I indeed had."
Cael’s smile widened as he asked,
"Use them. Show them to me."
Junior raised an eyebrow.
"Why?"
Cael shrugged, his voice light.
"I am just curious."
Junior nodded his head.
The training room attached to the hotel was small, barely larger than a bedroom.
The walls were reinforced with dull gray metal, scratched and dented from years of use. A single mat covered the floor, its surface worn smooth. The air was stale, untouched by any breeze.
A faint hum came from the ceiling, the sound of ventilation struggling to keep up.
Cael and Junior entered the training room attached to the hotel.
Although the walls were strong, people could not truly spar in this room. It was only meant for small practice.
The room could withstand power below [Gold]. If anyone exceeded that limit, a complaint file would immediately be sent to management, followed by a penalty.
But Cael and Junior were not interested in sparring.
Cael just wanted to copy Junior’s time skills and unlock his own Time element.
Junior did not resist. He activated his skills one by one.
Minor Time lock, Minor Time field, Minor Time Deceleration, Minor Time Acceleration, Minor Time Reversal (only on objects, non-living things).
Cael watched Junior’s display of skills as he copied them silently.
5 skills of the Time Element were added to his arsenal.
After that, Cael said he had things to do, and he dropped Junior back at the academy.
The blind boy landed softly near exactly where he had been taken from.
...
Inside the Guest Dorm.
Cael returned to his own room.
Without hesitation, he began integrating the newly gained time skills into the time element he already possessed.
"Activate Fusion."
"Merge ’Minor Time lock’, ’Minor Time field’, ’Minor Time Deceleration’, ’Minor Time Acceleration’, and ’Minor Time Reversal’ into the special element ’Time’.
The system responded almost immediately.
...
[Fusion Complete]
[Time Element Attained]
[Mastery: 5%]
...
However, he did not merge the skill Time Deceleration into the element itself.
Just like Teleportation, he left it alone as a standalone skill.
That way, his other clones could also use it.
Evening arrived quietly. The sun dipped below the academy walls, painting the sky in shades of deep orange and pale purple.
Shadows stretched across the guest dorm floor. The distant chatter of students faded as they retreated to their rooms.
Lights flickered to life in the Academy, casting long shadows that danced with every passing breeze.
As the time reached evening, Cael received a message.
He pulled out his device and read the screen.
It was from Seraphina.
She wanted to meet him. Right Now.
...
Cael arrived at the entrance of the Golden Scale Academy.
The massive gates stood behind him, their iron frames casting long shadows in the fading light.
He found Seraphina standing a short distance away, her back facing him.
She was looking out toward Arhal City. The city lights were just beginning to flicker on one by one, tiny stars scattered across the darkening landscape.
Cael greeted her.
"Hello."
Seraphina did not turn around. She did not acknowledge his presence beyond a two word.
"Let’s go."
Then the air around Cael changed.
Cael felt it immediately. The pressure shifted. The temperature dropped slightly. A force gathered around them, invisible but heavy.
Seraphina leaped into the air.
As a [Mythril] ranker, she could fly. Her body rose smoothly, effortlessly, cutting through the evening sky.
Cael felt himself being dragged upward. Not by his own will. Not by his own power. Seraphina was carrying him, pulling him along like a kite on a string.
He could break free at any moment. His mana nullification would sever the connection instantly.
But Cael did not resist.
Wind rushed past his face, cold and sharp. The city lights blurred below.
Seraphina did not look back. She did not speak. She simply flew, and Cael followed.
The ground fell away beneath them. The academy shrank to a small cluster of lights. The city spread out below like a map, streets and buildings reduced to tiny shapes.
Cael did not know the destination. Seraphina had not told him. But he was not worried. He was curious.
’Let’s see where we are going.’