However, at a certain point the beast-like creatures repeatedly summoned large numbers of demons and monsters, and thus managed to breach the allied army's defenses at one spot. As a result, Foskar's platoon also found itself facing two enormous beasts. One of them had the terrifying appearance of a horned giant, while the other was a colossal serpent. Nofivos' barracks companions heard their captain hurling curses and insults, mentioning that the dreadful giant was called Kovelis and the serpent Leviathan.
Everyone was stunned and terrified, but Foskir, having some experience fighting beasts, tried to rally his comrades.
"Do not be afraid! Just attack them with whatever spells and curses you know—quickly!"
At the same time, Nofivos summoned Eskeinthos and immediately cast the spell "Protelinka" to reinforce the defense around himself and his group. Thus, the entire chamber of Nofivos' fellow combatants—thirteen men in total—gathered within the defensive ring of flames and began unleashing every offensive spell they knew. Only one among them, Andreas, had fallen to his knees in terror, covering his eyes with his hands and praying to be spared from the dreadful demons.
The monsters unleashed massive waves of magic against Foskar's group. Kovelis attacked with gestures of his hands, while the enormous serpent emitted magical auras, fire, and beams of red light from its mouth. Nofivos and his companions defended themselves constantly with spells such as "Protego", or by creating magical barriers from rocks and metal objects found in the area. At the same time, Foskar's shadow spirit stepped forward and cast the spell "Napolen," causing a dark cloud to appear and cover a vast area.
Now, Xodeinos was hidden inside the cloud, positioned precisely between the two beasts. They therefore turned their terrible attacks into the dark mist, trying to annihilate him. However, by using the spell "Napolen," Xodeinos had swapped places with a soldier. Thus, the dark spirit was now beside his master, while inside the cloud stood the soldier instead. Protesilaos was left stunned, and suddenly saw two massive waves of magic crashing upon him—before he could even realize it, he had been vaporized.
Nevertheless, the collision of the two magical attacks was so violent that the resulting explosion decapitated the demon Kovelis and severely wounded Leviathan, who was nearby. Meanwhile, Foskar saw Eskeinthos beside him, and as the cloud dissipated, he mentally asked the spirit where his fellow soldier was. Everyone could now see that Kovelis was dead and Leviathan greatly weakened, which encouraged them to attack him furiously.
"I used the spell 'Napolen.' It was the only way to defeat those two legendary demons."
Nofivos ran to the spot where the spell had been cast to check whether Protesilaos had survived, while his comrades and the artillery had Leviathan in their sights and were pounding him relentlessly. However, the young mage found no trace of his fallen comrade, who had been annihilated.
"Why?! Why did you kill my friend, Protesilaos?"
"From the moment you summon a magical spirit, it is my master's duty to serve you in battle. Consequently, in order for that to happen, my priority is also to protect my own existence from annihilation in battle, so that I may save you from your enemies."
"Yes, but I never gave you such an order. I would never allow someone else to be killed because of me. From now on, I will never trust you again in our battles, and for that reason I will maintain absolute control whenever I summon you. I would rather exhaust myself mentally a thousand times than ever endanger another human soul."
"My master, if you do this, you will exhaust yourself far more, and you will not be able to perform at the peak of your abilities in battle… You might even collapse during the war from the immense psychological strain…"
Foskar replied mentally, "I will risk it," and immediately canceled the summoning of the dark demon. Meanwhile, a few minutes later the rift closed again, thus ending their invasion of Earth. The united army then began collecting the bodies of the fallen soldiers to bury them. At the same time, Andreas was still on his knees, silent and shocked by everything he had seen and experienced in the war. Some soldiers even mocked him for appearing so cowardly and frightened.
Nofivos, seeing everyone surrounding him and ridiculing him, decided to defend him, feeling pity for his terror and humiliation.
"Andreas may be cowardly and not as capable a mage as you are, but if he weren't the one cooking in the camp, what would you do? Who would prepare the food? Who knows—or even wants—to cook besides Andreas?"
"Oh come on, Nofivos, he's just a cook. Big deal!"
"Yes, but for all of us to perform our other duties and even to fight, we need food. So for anything to happen, someone must cook first. And I personally have no desire either to cook or to learn how. His job is absolutely vital—because if one of us were cooking, we'd all be in the hospital. So you'd better stop mocking him and recognize his value in our unit. Each of us, in our own way, has a role and worth in the platoon. We should not ridicule our comrades; it is neither right nor wise."
Thus, they all stopped mocking him, having realized their mistake. They then changed the subject and began speaking about the unfortunate Protesilaos, as well as Nofivos' exceptional abilities in battle, which had not gone unnoticed by anyone. All his comrades congratulated him on his power and on the rare gift he possessed—the ability to summon magical beasts. However, Nofivos believed that Protesilaos had died because of him, and he had no desire to boast or show off about his achievements in the battle against the fae.
A little later, Sergeant Zacharias entered the chamber, looking for Foskar.
"Nofivos, come with me for a moment. I want to see you in my office—I have something to tell you."
"Yes, sir!"
Foskir followed the sergeant into his office to speak.
"Kid, you're full of surprises…"
"What do you mean, sir?"
"Why didn't you tell us that you can summon magical beings to defend you in battle?"
"Well… I can, but other mages can do it too, so I didn't consider it that important to mention."
"Personally, Nofivos, I haven't met many mages who can summon spirits—especially not at your age…"
Foskar listened to the sergeant and found it strange, since at Knosaeon, and even at Ezami in the higher classes, many students were able to summon spirits.
"I saw it myself, along with the other officers—the creature you summoned. And from what I've heard, it's a very powerful and rare dark entity… Xodeinos, correct?"
"Yes, Eskeinthos indeed."
"Who?!"
"It is also called Eskeinthos. Many mages know it by that name…"
"My superiors referred to your creature as Xodeinos, however."
"Xodeinos is its ancient name… In my village, in Dyyra, we usually call it Eskeinthos."
"I see… understood. In any case, well done for being able to control such a powerful spirit."
"I don't know. I'm not sure how much I actually control him."
"What do you mean, kid?"
"Today, during the war, because of Xodeinos, Protesilaos was killed by one of its spells."
"Yes, indeed, I saw the incident as well, along with other officers, during your confrontation with those two legendary monsters. But you should know that in war there are always human losses. And I commend you for recognizing your share of responsibility regarding your unfortunate comrade."
"I truly feel terrible, sir."
"Can you imagine, young man, how your battle would have ended if you hadn't summoned your powerful spirit? Most likely, all of you would now be dead, slain by those two dreadful demons. Personally, Nofivos, I believe you did the right thing—it was necessary. Otherwise, you would all have been lost. So don't dwell on it any longer. Keep training, become stronger, so that next time no one will have to die."
"Still, sir, I am seriously considering never using Xodeinos again, because I feel immense sorrow and I don't want something similar to happen in another battle."
"Remember your mistake, and next time make sure you are ready to maintain absolute control over the powerful shadow spirit. Now go rest, kid—or perform your duty if you have one. Dismissed!"
"Yes, sir!"
Thus, the young Nofivos returned to his chamber to read a new book he had found in the camp, concerning the summoning of magical entities. The adolescent mage wanted to discover exactly what his own people knew about these magical and mysterious beings. Perhaps the mages of the ministry knew more, and thus he could better control magical spirits without so much effort and mental exhaustion. He read for a long time, and Foskar noticed in the illustrations of the monsters that many of their names differed from those he knew back at Knosaeon.
His purpose was to find something that would help him tame magical demons, so that summoning them would be safer and easier. So far, however, he had failed to uncover any new information. The book contained material similar to what he had been taught by the elves, such as the fact that the more powerful a demon is, the greater the mental exhaustion and mana required to successfully dominate it. Of course, Foskar already knew from Xodeinos that if there is a strong mental bond with a beast, the summoning becomes much easier.
However, the young mage had now realized that undesirable events could occur during battle, since the creature enjoys greater freedom of movement and action when such a bond exists. The spirit can wield its magic without always requiring direct orders from him, and thus Xodeinos had independently caused the death of Protesilaos. Now Foskir knew that his teacher, Eithamon, had been absolutely right—but it was already too late; the damage had been done.
Nofivos decided that from now on he would avoid magical summonings, and if for any reason they became necessary, he would avoid telepathic bonding in order to retain absolute control over the actions of his monsters. The summoning might be more painful and exhausting, he thought, but this way no fellow soldier would ever be endangered because of him again. With that decision made, he placed the book under his pillow and lay down to sleep, hoping to calm himself and forget, if only briefly, the unpleasant events of the war.
The days passed with duties, combat drills, and occasional fairy incursions through the rift. Whenever such invasions occurred, Nofivos and his platoon were sent to confront them at the front alongside the entire allied army. The same happened today, as the alarm sounded, calling them to prepare for battle. Nofivos and his comrades donned their combat gear and took up their wands. Their equipment included cloaks enchanted with special protective spells that reinforced their defenses against hostile magical attacks.
The mage platoon arrived at the front via flying vehicles and magical broomsticks. Some even had the ability to teleport directly to the battlefield through magical gates. Once everyone had arrived, they took up their combat positions and prepared to prevent the Onia from escaping through the magical opening. This time, however, the fairies were reinforced by Onian forces that had come from the island of Sekilia.
The Onia had spies, and now whenever the magical rift opened, they immediately sent their own forces into the field to help more fairies escape and regroup at their hideout on Sekilia. Thus, on this occasion, Foskir's platoon was tasked with intercepting the Onian forces, which had arrived to disrupt the allied army's efforts to contain the breach in the magical veil. As a result, epic and ferocious battles unfolded, with spells and magical beasts unleashing devastating attacks on both sides.
The Onia even had dragons at their disposal, bringing them into battle through some means of control. As if that were not enough, they had also summoned a legendary lightning demon—the dragon Slavir. This spirit of light caused immense trouble for the allied army, and its attacks were catastrophic for Foskar and his unit. The light demon unleashed magical assaults from its mouth in the form of lightning bolts, incinerating allied defenses and causing numerous deaths whenever the spells pierced their magical barriers.
As a result, Nofivos' platoon was forced to retreat to regroup. This time, the allied army seemed unable to withstand the coordinated Onian assault, which struck simultaneously on two fronts—one from the rear, and one from the magical opening in the veil, where the fairies were aided by numerous magical spirits. Foskar considered summoning his shadow spirit, but hesitated. In the end, seeing that the battle was heading toward annihilation, he decided to summon it to defend them.
This time, however, he maintained absolute control over Eskeinthos' actions and made no attempt whatsoever to establish a telepathic bond with the beast. With the help of the shadow spirit, Nofivos and his unit managed to gain the time they needed to regroup against the attacks of the dragon Slavir, who was now occupied by the shadow entity. At the same time, Nofivos urged his comrades to summon magical beings of their own to assist them—but none of them possessed that ability.
As a result, Foskar pushed himself further and summoned a second shadow spirit: a female demon named Skogisa. This magical being was one of many summoning spells Xodeinos had confided to him, and the young mage knew well how capable a demon Skogisa was. When he summoned her, Skogisa appeared magnificently within a dark aura, wearing a blue cloak, holding a magical scepter in her hand, her long blond hair flowing gracefully in the air.
Nofivos' entire unit stood in awe—not only at the striking presence of the female demon, but also at the power of the adolescent mage, who was now fighting while simultaneously controlling two such formidable spirits. Foskar, however, felt tremendous mental pressure, as if his head might split apart from the effort of maintaining absolute control over both beasts in battle. On the other hand, the two dark entities cooperated flawlessly, managing to repel the attacks of the light demon and even significantly restrain it.
As the battle raged on and young Foskir felt himself weakening, on the verge of collapse, Eskeinthos suddenly pierced his mental barrier and communicated with him telepathically.
"I have been trying for some time to warn you and help you, but you will not listen. You will faint again if you do not allow telepathic communication between us during the battle. You will not manage to endure while keeping both me and the powerful Skogisa under absolute control at the same time."
"I have no intention of letting you back into my thoughts," Foskar replied mentally, "but I must admit that if I continue like this, it may be far worse. So for now, let us maintain our mental link—until I regain my strength."
And so, at once, Nofivos felt a surge of mental clarity and a weight lifting from his chest as soon as he re-established a mental connection with Xodeinos. At the same time, the Onia launched a renewed assault and, through successive attacks, managed to advance closer to the allied lines. Specifically, within Foskir's platoon now stood the light demon Slavir alongside four Onia. The fairies had the forms of humanoid beasts and continuously bombarded the young mage's unit with spells, while his comrades defended themselves desperately.
And while everything seemed overwhelmingly dire for Foskir and his fellow soldiers, Xodeinos urged his master to grant him control over Skogisa. At first, Foskir was reluctant, but as the battle took a turn for the worse, he decided to allow it for a brief time, if only to understand why the spirit desired it. Thus, when he relinquished control, he mentally sensed Eskeinthos casting a new spell—"Myvox."This spell created a dark veil around Skogisa, and then lightning bolts and thunderbolts began to rain down from the sky, producing deafening noise and blinding flashes of light.
After this terrifying spell, the dark veil dissipated, and in place of the demoness now stood the dragon Slavir, while Skogisa appeared among the Onia, under their control. However, the legendary dragon had been utterly struck down and collapsed under the devastating magical force of "Myvox." And just as Xodeinos managed to annihilate Slavir at the cost of Skogisa, he immediately cast a second spell—"Sevadia."With this spell, countless metallic blades appeared above Skogisa, falling upon her at great speed and piercing through her, annihilating her as well.
The Onia were left stunned that the shadow spirit had inflicted such a devastating blow upon them, and while they were still reeling, Foskir and his platoon seized the opportunity and launched a coordinated attack. As a result, one Onian was slain, and the remaining three surrendered, realizing it was futile to continue. Suddenly, however, Xodeinos unleashed an enormous fireball from his hand and incinerated all three fairies, even though they had already dropped their wands to the ground.
Foskir immediately canceled Eskeinthos' summoning, having once again seen him act without command. He thought grimly that, this time at least, none of his comrades had been endangered by the creature's reckless behavior. Meanwhile, witnessing Nofivos' astonishing victory over the Onia, the allied forces regained their morale and ultimately managed to push back the fairies who had gained ground. This feat also left a strong impression on the Onia themselves, who had not expected their enemies to possess mages powerful enough to destroy their legendary dragon.
Ultimately, the outcome of this battle was the retreat of the Onia, and all the officers of the allied army congratulated the young mage for his extraordinary magical prowess in combat. When the opening in the sky finally closed completely, they returned to the camp, where the adolescent mage was greeted with cheers and acclaim, as news of his incredible achievement had spread. From that day onward, everyone knew how capable and talented a mage he was, and many wished to fight at his side and witness him in action.
Meanwhile, as the days passed, the Onia intensified their attacks on Earth's major cities. It seemed as though they were searching for something, as it was evident that their assaults were not random—they always targeted important locations containing strategic positions of the allied army. Of course, another motive was clear: by causing destruction and civilian casualties, they sought to break the allies' morale and force them to abandon the defense of the magical veil on the island of Dora. Thus, the Ministry of Magic now bore the responsibility of defending civilian populations from the sudden attacks of these horrific beings invading the world of Earth.
Back at the camp, the young mage engaged in a mental confrontation with Xodeinos, demanding explanations from the dark demon who had executed the surrendered Onia without orders.
"The Onia are our enemy, and you must show them no mercy!"
"You had no permission whatsoever to kill them, and from now on I will never summon you telepathically again! That was the last time. Since you do not obey my commands or wishes in battle, I will only summon you when it is absolutely necessary—and then only under my complete control!"
"And yet we are far stronger when you allow me freedom of action. You must admit that we work far better together that way, and you do not need to waste so much mental energy…"
"It is better that I exhaust myself than for you to become the reason more innocent lives are lost!"
"Innocent lives—the Onia… remarkable… I've heard everything now. Still, know this: whatever I do is always for the benefit of my master who summoned me. And I promise you—I will never again disregard your commands on the battlefield."
"You won't sway me… a wasted effort, my friend."
"Then to persuade you, as a sign of goodwill and repentance, I will reveal to you the location of an immensely powerful magical artifact—one that could greatly aid the war against the Onia, should you acquire it."
"What kind of artifact are you talking about?"
"It is an ancient ring bearing a raised image of a pegasus. The moment you see it, you will be astonished by its powerful magical aura and striking appearance. It is a magical construct from a very ancient era, forged from aether magic. Whoever possesses it gains the ability to fly through the air without the use of any other flying means."
"So… I'll be able to fly without a broom?"
"Exactly! And more than that—you will be amazed at the incredible speed at which the ring carries its bearer. There is nothing like it in the world today, no magical flying vessel to compare it to."
Foskir appeared thoughtful and then asked Eskeinthos, "Where is it located?"
"The ring lies in a desolate region that was once a famed city. Today, near that area, stands the city of Rikonthos. The ring is hidden within a cave, close to a tributary that flows nearby."
"Where exactly?!"
"Go to the city of Rikonthos, and once you arrive, summon me. I will guide you immediately to the mysterious and ancient cave of the aether ring. Its ancient magic is so powerful that, with your gift, it will be easy for you to sense it once you reach the area."
Foskir ended the mental summoning and began seriously contemplating the acquisition of this magical artifact. With its power, he would be nearly invincible, almost impossible for enemy spells to strike if he harnessed such speed in battle. After some time passed, he requested a week of leave from his captain, claiming he needed rest—though in truth, his intent was to search for the ring and obtain it at all costs. His captain, who respected and relied upon him greatly due to his talent and effectiveness in battle, did not deny the request.
"Thank you very much, Captain Ketara!"
"Enjoy your leave and get some rest—you've earned it!"
During his summer leave, the adolescent mage resolved to locate the cave containing the magical ring somewhere near the city of Rikonthos. One day, he mentally summoned Eskeinthos and asked him to guide him to the cave said to house the ancient ring of magic bearing the pegasus relief. While flying above the skies of Rikonthos on his magical broom, he sought directions from Xodeinos. Indeed, after some time, he spotted a small tributary, and the shadow spirit instructed him to land nearby.
The young mage descended beside the riverbank, drew his wand from his belt, and with his left hand lifted a stone. Aiming at it with his wand, he uttered the spell "Amoivu," and the stone transformed into a finely shaped stone cup. He then knelt by the river, filled the cup with the clear, cool water, and drank deeply. Once his thirst was quenched, he asked the dark spirit to tell him where exactly he should search for the cave.