Damien chose the Shadow Lounge as his hiding spot not just because of its secrecy, but also its policies.
This lounge specifically was the type of place that didn't ask any questions as long as one was paying proper attention to the rules.
As for those rules, they were simple.
Nobody in the lounge would try to enquire about other guests's identities or conversations without express permission from said guests.
If this rule was broken, one would be banished from the lounge. Worse consequences would follow, varying from small misfortunes to the destruction of an offender's entire fortune.
No fighting was allowed in the lounge.
Peace has to be maintained, along with a certain level of decorum. If one was a nuisance to others in the lounge, then one would be banished.
It was a simple set of rules, but one that absolutely catered to the guests.
And it also left room for certain things.
"As long as you arrive in the lobby, it doesn't matter how you arrive."
The main entrance was only for potential new members. Even the people who had used the tailor shop were arranged to test if August and his group were worthy of becoming members.
They had recommendations from Damien, so of course they were shown a bit more lenience than a normal person.
August didn't have the Sanctuary.
He needed a place where he could escape to when he had no other options. That way, Damien wouldn't have to become an absolute presence in his son's life.
August couldn't forever exist thinking that Damien would save him from anything that was too hard for him. That would never allow him to grow.
The last thing Damien had for the three was a gift.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64ce79d606107d003c23ea27", id: "pf-5140-1"})First, rings that were imbued with his power. Using them, they'd always be able to return to this place, even if placed under spatial restrictions.
It was only meant to be used during emergencies, so Damien made sure to warn them about their overuse.
They were specifically designed so that they wouldn't be indestructible. Misuse would lead to their destruction.
Secondly, he took them to a place outside of Fort Halleya.
The four of them were teleported to an island in the middle of the ocean. It was sufficiently large with a wild ecosystem of its own, and it was inhabited by any sentient or extremely powerful creatures.
It was a perfect training ground.
August would be close to the sea, Valerie would be close to the forest, and Melania would be close to the earth.
Here, they could spend the next two weeks honing their skills before their first match started.
And, since they were sufficiently distanced from civilization, Damien temporarily made their rings indestructible for the sake of transportation to the mainland.
It was enough to make Valerie and Melania's wonder fade.
They were forced to get used to the strangely nigh absolute power of the unknown being who August called "dad" so endearingly.
Instead, as Damien left them to their own devices, they immediately made use of their new blessings.
Two weeks was not a lot of time, especially when they knew the significance that this match held.
Melania didn't have to fight for a month, but that just meant she had to use her time to practice even better than her peers so she could truly stand on their level.
Her strength alone wasn't enough against people who would attack with massive swathes of mana that disallowed her approach.
Draga could split mountains with a stomp. He could raise the earth and wreak havoc because his physical body had evolved beyond its means.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "64cc9e79c7059f003e4ad4b0", id: "pf-5109-1"})Right now, Melania really was just at the starting point. She didn't have time to focus on vague matters unrelated to her training.
She, August, and Valerie were on the same island, but they each had their ideal training locations away from each other.
They had the ability to converge when they needed to, but most of their training would still be done alone.
That was how Melania found time to sneak away to the mainland in search of Damien.
He hadn't gone far. He decided to stay in Fort Halleya in case August needed him. Two weeks later, he would go watch the first official match before departing to actively search for the Dragon Emperor again.
The Shadow Lounge was not just a location, but a club. They had multiple safe areas around the city that served different purposes.
Damien had booked a room in their hotel. He was planning to head there, but he'd stopped at the lounge for a moment to speak to the person who ran it.
Melania just so happened to catch him before he left.
Damien raised his brow as he saw her.
"You are…Melania, right?" He said, nodding to her.
"Yes, sir," she replied respectfully.
"I see. Good luck with your training. I'm sure you'll do well."
Damien was already leaving, so he was planning to just go on his way, but Melania stopped him before he could.
"Sir, please wait!" She said, somewhat desperately.
"Please tell me if you are the crow-masked man!"
She didn't waste any time or try to skirt around the subject.
window.pubfuturetag = window.pubfuturetag || [];window.pubfuturetag.push({unit: "663633fa8ebf7442f0652b33", id: "pf-8817-1"})Since Damien was probably more knowledgeable about her situation than even she was, she directly told him what she wanted to say.
Damien raised his brow curiously. Being straightforward was different from this. Melania was just saying what she thought and telling him to confirm.
"What would you do if I was?" He asked, curious about what she wanted.
The crow-masked man was an avatar created to show her the way. He was meant for nothing other than the distribution of rewards.
In earthen terms, he was a non-playable character. Damien never expected Melania to see him as anything important.
But, he was wrong. Melania saw the crow-masked man as the one who gave her a chance. Unlike Damien, she didn't see it as the result of her own efforts.
She already knew what she wanted from him.
Damien's lack of refusal was practically admittance in itself.
She got on her knees and kowtowed in front of him to show her sincerity.
"Please be my master!"
The one who gave her the technique was the one who would know more about it than anyone else.
With Draga's techniques, there wasn't much to actually be taught. The process was quite straightforward.
The problem was that the environments necessary to carry them out were not.
Places like the mountain she'd been placed in before; she needed access to them so she could truly push herself beyond her limit.
That caught Damien's interest.
"Oh? You have already decided to pursue Draga's path?" He asked.
"That is correct," Melania replied.
"I've accepted the consequences. All of them."
"I see…"
In front of a person like Melania, there was no point in wasting effort denying her allegations. She believed them wholeheartedly and wouldn't budge.
Damien didn't necessarily have the time to take in another disciple. It would've been a problem if she needed him to teach her.
But, if all she wanted was help finding places to train and challenge herself?
Damien could do that without a problem.
'This one has a lot of loyalty towards August.'
She was already planning to stay by his side repaying him for as long as possible. If that belief didn't waver, then Melania at her peak would be one of August's greatest aides.
'It's not bad to give her a little bit of help.'
She had the worst start of them all. Melania just wanted to stand at the same level as the rest of them. When she'd accomplished that, she was fine with doing the rest on her own.
The beginning of her development had to be done in the harshest way possible.
Melania needed another mountain.
She was somewhat like Damien in that regard, willing to sacrifice herself and struggle tooth and nail for power.
He admired that determination. And for it, he was willing to give her what she wanted.
"Stand up," he said, a smile on his face.
"Let's go visit a place."
