Arcane Academy: The Divine Extraction Legacy Chapter 1117: The Secret of the Paths

The knock at the manor gates wasn’t loud, but with the Immortals living inside, there was no way they would miss it.

Soon, their Divine Sense swept over the figures who had just arrived.

Kaela turned instinctively, sensing something unusual...

She stepped down from the balcony and walked through the main hall with her silver robes trailing behind her. Ryn and Elvar followed as they also confirmed the identity of their visitor.

Outside, the gates were opened by the guards.

A young woman stood there, her white hair could be easily recognized. There were also streaks of black hair that ran through it...

With such an exquisite appearance, there was no way Kaela wouldn’t recognize her...

’It must be Denise... She looks just like how Vale described her.’ She mused.

Behind Denise, four Magic Automatons stood in formation. They seemed like real knights, and they were even equipped with Mystical Artifacts.

Soon, Kaela’s eyes widened.

She had sensed these constructs or automatons before. She saw them passing through the city, assisting with logistics, even helping with the reinforcements. But she’d never had the chance to observe them up close.

Now, they were here... and so was their creator.

"Denise..." Kaela said warmly while stepping forward. "Welcome."

Denise bowed slightly, her expression was calm but friendly. "Lady Kaela. I’m honored. Sir Vale mentioned you might be interested in exploring the Shadow Domain. I thought I’d offer my assistance."

Kaela smiled. "He was right. I’ve been meaning to see more of this realm."

Although she wanted to explore the place, it felt rude to just vanish and explore the place. Vale also realized this, and as a host of these visitors, he sent Denise to accompany them.

After all, Denise also wanted to meet these people as she felt quite stuck in her research. She believed that being together with people from another realm might give her some inspiration for her new projects.

Denise then gestured behind her. "I brought something for that."

Just then, a small-size airship descended from the clouds... It didn’t take long before it started hovering just above the manor’s land.

It wasn’t large, but its design was elegant and compact. There were arcane turbines that rotated silently beneath its hull, and its frame was surely filled with Rune Arts, reinforcing the entire airship.

Kaela’s eyes lit up. "It looks majestic... Ohh... With this design... Did you design it yourself?" She asked.

Well, the design seemed to show Denise’s character, and Kaela noticed it immediately.

"Ahem... Alongside my master, Heinz, and a few Arcanists," Denise said. "It’s faster than the standard passenger models. More agile, too."

Of course, she was proud of it as well.

Kaela turned to Ryn and Elvar. "We’re going."

Elvar smiled at the young lady who seeemd so excited to finally leave the manor. "No hesitation?"

Kaela laughed. "None."

Denise stepped back and raised her hand. "Arthur."

One of the Magic Automatons, taller than the others, with a Sovereign-Grade Artifact and equipped with a stronger propulsion system, stepped forward. Without a word, it lifted Denise gently and launched upward, carrying her toward the hovering airship.

Kaela didn’t wait as she saw this...

She summoned a burst of Arcane wind beneath her feet and leapt skyward... Ryn and Elvar followed, as they released their Spells.

In the meantime, they also noticed that Setsuna and Madoka watched from the balcony.

’Not interested?’ Ryn asked through telepathy.

Madoka had simply shrugged. "We have to be ready in case Lord Kilo wanted to escape from the Shadow Realm to here."

Setsuna had nodded. ’Let her enjoy it. She’s earned it.’

Just like that, they arrived at the airship’s deck. Aside from a few crew members maintaining the airship, there were no other passengers around.

At the deck, it looked spacious and clean... It seemed to be well taken care of, and it was certainly a good first impression.

Even if Denise was the first to leave, Denise arrived last as she landed softly...

Kaela walked to the edge and looked out over the valley.

"This airship feels different," she said. "The Shadow Realm doesn’t have anything like this. It’s not powered by Divine Crystals. It’s mostly made with machines and some Arcane Energy Gathering Array." Kaela felt impressed since, within the Shadow Realm, most energy concerns were being resolved by Arcane Crystals and Divine Crystals.

Denise smiled at her reaction.

Kaela then noticed where they’re heading.

"Ohh... Are we going to that restricted area?" Kaela asked while looking ahead.

"Yes... I got permission from Sir Vale to show them to you. It’s the 16 Arcane Towers of the Shadow Domain. Right now, they were together. However, Sir Vale was planning to separate them and place them around the Shadow Domain."

"Ahhh... Why? Isn’t it more convenient for them if they’re placed close together?" Kaela asked.

Denise wryly smiled at this.

"That’s true... Vale’s initial intention was to help the students learn easily through the trials of the Arcane Towers. That was why they’re placed close to Marshall Academy. However, they were simply eating up too much energy around this region, and it’s causing numerous problems." Denise muttered.

Kaela and the others didn’t need more explanation as they understood.

With just one Arcane Tower, they knew that it would already suck up a lot of energy. With 16 of them gathered together, the region would dry up quickly.

It was already amazing that they had lasted this long.

***

As the airship moved closer, Kaela leaned against the railing, while observing the towers...

She then turned to Denise and asked curiously. "So... these Arcane Towers. What exactly are they? Why sixteen?"

Denise’s eyes lit up, clearly pleased by the question. "Each one represents a distinct Arcane Path... sixteen in total...

Kaela tilted her head. "Ahh... Those Arcane Paths..."

Within the Shadow Realm, there were only eight dominant Arcane Paths, so she didn’t immediately connect the 16 Towers to the 16 Arcane Paths...

"There are twelve recognized paths here..." Denise said... "But four of them are considered lost or forbidden. Still, they’re part of the original Arcane framework."

She began listing them off, one by one.

"Dark Arts. Summoning Arts. Mystic Arts. Elemental Arts. Knight Arts. Alchemy Arts. Rune Arts. Beast Arts. Holy Arts. Combat Arts. Psychic Arts. Transformation Arts..."

Kaela nodded along, familiar with most of them.

Denise continued, her tone shifting from excitement to a slightly lower one.

"And then there are the Lost Arts. They’re not being taught in the Academies, but we’re aware of it. The Primordial Chaos Arts. Void Arts. Celestial Arts. And Spirit Arts."

Kaela smiled and nodded.

Now, she was curious how much they knew about Celestial Arts...