Khan had done his best to memorize the areas crossed during the flight. Calculations happened in his mind as he tried to understand how far away he was from the human camp and the marsh.
It turned out that the many hours spent flying had been mostly pointless. The two envoys had invested longer in deceiving eventual pursuers rather than in the actual travel.
Khan believed that the valley at the center of the seven mountains was at mere five or six hours from the camp. The place was farther away from the human settlement than the flat area in the mountain chain and the marsh, but it wasn't unreachable, especially with an Aduns.
A vague map even appeared in Khan's mind. The Global Army didn't have access to detailed maps of Nitis, and the telescope outside the planet's orbit couldn't get a clear idea of the surface either. Khan didn't even have clearance for those pictures, so he had to rely on his personal experience to understand the general layout of the area.
Khan had traveled a lot in the past four weeks. Snow had allowed him to fly above many lands as soon as he landed on Nitis. He had even spent most of his time outside the camp. His time with Liiza, the hunts, and the other travels had granted him a vague but general understanding of the areas around the base, especially those near the mountain chain.
The marsh, the valley, and the mountain chain were in the same general direction, so coming up with a simple map with a few checkpoints ended up being relatively easy for Khan. He could even add a vague number that marked their actual distance from his new home.
The flat area in the mountain chain was pretty close, at less than thirty minutes from the camp. Khan used to take almost an hour to go back to his home only because snow wanted to have fun along the way. Still, it became the farthest location from his new position. He even guessed that it would take his Aduns a bit more than six hours to go back there.
The marsh was a bit more than two hours from the camp but closer to the valley compared to the mountain chain. Khan believed that Snow could reach it in less than three hours if it didn't have fun for too long during the flight.
His situation didn't sound so bad after completing that map. He could reach the marsh and Liiza rather quickly, so his happiness was safe. The only issue was his lack of knowledge of the academy's customs and regulations. Khan didn't know how free he would be after the official enrollment, but he believed the Niqols wouldn't restrain him too much.
The Aduns quickly flew away after exchanging affectionate or playful goodbyes with their riders. The two envoys didn't hesitate to lead the recruits across the forest at that point, and the group mostly remained silent since everyone did their best to study the area.
The recruits knew that magic oaths would prevent them from spreading information about [The Pure Trees], but none believed those restraints to last forever. They wanted to have something to say to the Global Army when those limits fell and granted them complete freedom over their knowledge again.
Khan relied on his sensitivity to mana and eyes to learn as much as possible from the area. The insides of the forest didn't feature paths or footmarks that hinted at the presence of Niqols. Still, the peculiarities in the energy flowing through the trees, ground, and air revealed invisible details.
Nitis wasn't like Istrone. The energy contained in the ground and plants of the Kred's planet made Khan's sensitivity to mana inaccurate and unreliable. Instead, the Niqols' planet didn't have those hindrances, so he could gain a decent understanding of its secrets during the march toward the center of the forest.
Some trees contained far more mana than the others. Some areas seemed utterly devoid of energy instead. It was clear that someone had tampered with the ground and plants, but Khan could only guess the nature of that process. Those spots should have defenses and similar mechanisms due to their strategic position, but he didn't dare to jump to conclusions.
The presence of defenses didn't surprise Khan. The Niqols appeared devoid of internal conflicts, but their fauna was quite dangerous, especially since monsters appeared on their own even before the approaching of the sunlight.
The forest didn't seem to contain Tainted animals, but that was only a tiny area in the middle of seven mountains. Khan could guess that the nearby regions would feature the usual distribution of threats that filled the rest of Nitis.
The group moved quickly and steadily. Memorizing the path wasn't an issue since the envoys were moving toward the center of the forest, and finding the beginning of the academy turned out to be easy too.
A patch of white crowns suddenly expanded in the group's vision once they reached the central parts of the forest. The large leaves abandoned their black shades to make room for white and grey colors that radiated the same glow as the Niqols' eyes.
That sight obviously left the humans surprised. The scene wasn't only stunning due to the unusual illumination. Khan and the others didn't understand how they couldn't see that white patch from the sky.
All the recruits didn't hesitate to inspect the top of the crowns hidden at many meters above them, but they couldn't notice dark shades among those glowing leaves. Lucky for them, the envoys took care of clearing their doubts.
"A barrier covers the entire valley," The female Niqols explained. "You wouldn't notice anything from the sky even if the whole forest were on fire."
The news left everyone astonished, especially Khan. He had made sure not to miss details connected to the distribution of mana, but he didn't even come close to sensing the barrier.
Khan tried to focus on the areas above the crowns, but his sensitivity to mana continued to betray him. He couldn't sense anything different from the normal air, and that forced him to reevaluate his previous inspections.
The presence of the barrier proved that the Niqols could deploy defenses that used mana and didn't trigger his senses. Khan had initially thought that the peculiar areas on his path were traps with specific functions, but they felt as decoys meant to hide the real protections now.
'I'm still so ignorant,' Khan sighed in his mind at that realization.
His knowledge had never stopped expanding, but the world kept getting bigger. It didn't matter how much Khan learnt. There was always something else that he didn't initially see or even consider.
The vastness of the fields that involved mana was disheartening but also exciting. Khan had lost his naïve curiosity toward the immensity of the universe after everything he had gone through. Still, a more mature version of that sensation reappeared inside him inside the forest.
The trees grew clearer as the group marched forward. Their trunks became whiter and started to radiate the same faint glow as the leaves, but more empty areas also started to appear.
That trend peaked when a large empty area that featured multiple buildings made of mud and black ground unfolded in the group's vision. The structures appeared quite poor-looking. They were short and scarce, but they all had the iconic azure symbols on their surface.
There seemed to be faint paths on that dark plain illuminated by the white glow around it. A few benches and marks on the ground created rudimentary gathering points. Other spots had large holes with stages and cauldrons.
There didn't seem to be anyone inside the area, but everything changed after the group crossed the last white tree in sight. Khan and the others felt as if they went through a dense invisible membrane before a series of dark figures materialized in their vision.
Many young Niqols appeared inside the empty spot in the forest. They mostly sat on the ground and created circles in different areas while older aliens stood at their center. Multiple lessons were happening at the same time, but all of them had stopped by the time the recruits entered the area.
All the Niqols in the area stared at the humans. None of them was surprised by their arrival since their superiors had spread the news concerning that event, but it still felt strange to see those recruits walking inside such a secretive area.
Khan didn't suppress his curiosity at all. The other recruits lowered their heads or tried to keep stern faces to express the importance of the mission. Instead, Khan's eyes darted through the environment and tried to memorize every detail of the academy.
The place basically was the exact opposite of a human camp. The Niqols seemed to prefer holding their lessons outdoors and without the help of specific devices.
Khan couldn't help but notice how mystical auras that carried different vibes surrounded every group sitting on the ground. Some of them felt peaceful, others were intense, and a few even filled his nostrils with the faint scent of blood.
The almost complete absence of technology didn't manage to make them appear as a barbaric species. The young Niqols all wore casual clothes, but the professors donned elegant white robes that demarked their status and divided them from their students.
Moreover, the peculiar auras that enveloped every group gave them the appearance of sages who had a deep understanding of the world. Khan found it hard to describe how he felt in front of that scene, but he inevitably fell in a daze.
The same happened to the other recruits. Even those who firmly believed humans to be superior couldn't help but admire the differences in their training methods. They almost felt that their camps lacked something after studying that scene.
The two envoys didn't let the recruits stop to study the academy. They would have time to familiarize themselves with the few structures and functions of the place in the following days, so the Niqols found no reason to stop moving now that their task was almost over.
Khan soon sensed a familiar gaze falling on the side of his face. His mana informed him that his girlfriend was looking at him, but he limited himself to glance in that direction from the corner of his eyes.
Khan found Liiza sitting on a thick branch of one of the few trees that grew inside the area past the invisible membrane. She was alone as she read an old book with a dim azure symbol at the center of its black cover.
That short glance didn't allow Khan to see much, but he still felt part of his tiredness vanishing from his mind. The couple didn't get the chance to spend the previous night together, so their meeting inevitably gave birth to intense sensations inside them. Still, they both suppressed everything and avoided leaving clues about their relationship.
The envoys led the recruits across the entire empty area until they reached one of the short buildings. The structure featured a thick wooden door covered in a pungent smell that became almost unbearable once it opened to reveal its insides.
A small dim area appeared in front of the group, and the Niqols didn't hesitate to bring everyone inside. An old female alien who wore a sweaty white robe and sat between two fuming cauldrons that reached her shoulders.
"Hair," The old woman said while picking wooden cups and filling them with the dense bubbling dark liquid contained in the cauldrons.
The Niqols showed their palms to the recruits, and they exchanged a glance before pulling one of their hairs and handing them to the aliens. The old woman then used them to complete those strange drinks and handed them back to the recruits, making sure to match the hair with the owners.
Khan couldn't help but notice the differences with Zalpa's method. He felt sure that the old shaman would have asked for his blood again to complete the potion.
The recruits obviously hesitated, but Khan gave them some confidence by gulping the potion in one sip. The liquid scorched his insides and fused with his throat, but it didn't cause any damage. Still, a spot on the side of his neck started to itch, and Khan noticed that an azure glow illuminated his hand when he raised it to scratch the area.
Khan quickly picked his phone and used it as a mirror to inspect the area. An azure symbol had appeared on his neck, but that mark disappeared in a few seconds without leaving any trace. He could sense only when he made mana flow through that spot.
The other recruits imitated Khan after confirming that nothing too strange had happened to him. Azure symbols also appeared on the side of their necks, but no after-effects unfolded.
"I used the white leaves and roots of the trees around the area to create this potion," The old Niqols explained in a raspy voice. "You will be able to talk about [The Pure Trees] only with those that carry the same mark. Don't worry. It's easy to understand who doesn't have it."
Khan and the others could only nod before the envoys brought them outside the building again and began to lead them toward their habitations. Yet, a peculiar scene unfolded before they could leave that central area of the academy and force them to turn toward the tree where Liiza was sitting.
"[Liiza]!" A tall and good-looking Niqols shouted while kneeling in front of the white tree.
The alien kept his arms stretched toward the girl a few meters above him. He held beautiful multicolored flowers in his hands, and his face expressed pure devotion.
"[Please, accept this small gift]," The Niqols pleaded. "[I only ask for a chance. Close your eyes in front of our political obligations and follow your heart]!"
The multicolored flowers appeared quite rare in Nitis dark environment. Even humans could understand that those plants were quite expensive. However, Liiza didn't seem to care about them. She only showed an annoyed expression at the boy before answering with a clear "[no]".
Her answer caused a series of faint laughs to spread among the Niqols on the scene. Some of them even shouted words meant to encourage the boy to try again in the following days. They appeared used to that scene, and Khan couldn't help but feel annoyance spreading inside him at that sight. Something told him that he had found Ilman.
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