Damien stared at this girl blankly, but before he was even able to get a proper impression of her, multiple auras converged on their location.
"Clarice!"
"Little Risa!"
"What happened here?! Who is the rat intruding upon our sanctuary?!"
A slew of exclamations followed those auras, loud voices filled with mana attempting to break Damien's will before the bodies of these experts could arrive.
But Damien simply stood and waited for them. These mere threats wouldn't make him budge at all. The mana contained in those voices brushes over him like a warm spring breeze.
Whoosh!
Over the figures arrived within seconds, the group being a random collection of men and women. But without even acknowledging Damien's existence, this group rushed over to the girl's side and began hounding her.
"Clarice, are you okay?"
"Lady Clarice, please tell us if you encounter any problems."
"Risa, what was all that energy? Don't tell me you went berserk again?!"
The voices of concern were a mixture of those speaking for benefit and those speaking from the heart, but regardless of their reasoning, it was clear how much these experts valued the girl named Clarice.
And as soon as they judged that she was fine, their attention turned on him.
"Boy, you actually dare to peep on our Risa? Do you have a death wish?!"
A woman in front of the rest spoke menacingly. The aura of an early 4th class existence weighed on Damien's shoulders, attempting to force him to kneel.
Void Essence circulated through his body and removed the invading aura. At the same time, Damien's bending back returned to its upright position, his eyes staring straight into the woman's eyes without fear.
This showing naturally filled the woman with rage. With her status and strength, there wasn't a single person who dared to disrespect her. And now this brat was easily resisting her coercion? This was an immense slap to the face!
She was initially going easy on him, but she no longer had the desire to do so. The strength of the aura weighing on Damien's body increased exponentially.
Although this showing irked Damien, he didn't say anything or show anger. This woman's strength was already a step below him. Why should he needlessly fight with her?
It was at this time that the girl named Clarice finally spoke up. "Big sister, he didn't interrupt me at all. Why are you trying to hurt him?"
Her voice was clear and soft like the sound jingling of morning bells transmitted through dew drops. It had a soothing effect that would calm one's soul without one even realizing it.
Naturally, the woman was affected by this strange power. Her spirit was soothed and her aura melted away, freeing Damien from his not-so-confining confinement.
After doing so, Clarice ignored her "big sister" and turned her eyes to Damien. Her eyes were large like an anime character, her pupils a tranquil black color that seemed capable of sucking one's soul.
"May I be so rude as to ask this sir's name? As sir is aware, this lowly one is named Clarice." Her tone was extremely humble, like a mortal talking to a supreme master.
Damien felt strange hearing this kind of tone directed at him, but he responded naturally, giving her his name.
"Damien Void."
"Damien…what an interesting name."
Damien cringed. If not anything else, the fact that she didn't repeat his last name embarrassed him. He didn't know whether or not it was on purpose, but it was a low blow nonetheless.
"Sir Damien, would you perhaps be interested in having a chat with me over some tea?" Clarice asked suddenly, much to the chagrin of the surrounding experts.
But Damien was too quick in agreeing. Before these experts could even comprehend the situation, the two young ones had already entered the hut together, closing the door.
The group had a mixture of expressions on their faces, but they were mostly wry smiles. As always, their Risa did whatever she wanted.
'Let it be. Even I'm curious to see what becomes of this combination.'
It was only after this sound transmission arrived that the experts finally calmed down. Looking at the hut one last time, they retreated back to their own residences. As for the sound transmission they received, even Damien didn't notice its mana fluctuations.
Currently, he was seated on the floor in front of a small table, Clarice sitting opposite from him.
"Why did you call me here?" Damien asked curiously.
His semi-conscious movements earlier were extremely beneficial to his comprehension of World Force, and since this little girl was the one who allowed such a thing to happen, Damien naturally had a positive opinion of her.
"Mm, I was simply curious?" Clarice responded, tilting her head. It seemed like even she didn't know why she invited him.
But Damien didn't think so. Even if her aura was innocent and pure, Damien refused to believe anyone in this universe could maintain such purity as they grew.
Even the most innocent person would have to walk a bloody path for strength. This was the singular law that governed the universe.
People who radiated such innocent auras usually fell into two categories.
There were the snakes who used their aura and atmosphere to lure in prey, and there were saints who had benevolent hearts and only killed in the name of justice.
Regardless of the reasoning, it was true that a pure aura almost never truly meant "purity."
But there was an outlier…
Damien shook off the thought. Even if what he assumed was the truth, it didn't have anything to do with him.
"Sir Damien, if it isn't too presumptuous to ask…how did you do that?"
Clarice got to the main point relatively fast. She didn't spend too much time trying to lead Damien around.
And when Damien heard her question, he realized it. Right, this girl had been trying to use her music to move the elements into action before he even arrived.
At that point, the only thing she could do was cause them to materialize and dance through the skies like an Aurora Borealis. But Damien was different.
The instant Damien began his strange movements, the elements followed him and multiplied as if he was showing them their natural path.
This wasn't something a human should've been able to do. As a matter of fact, even Elves and Spirits who were loved by nature might not be able to pull off what Damien did.
But the problem was…
'How am I supposed to answer a question even I don't know the answer to?' Damien smiled wryly as he thought.
His movements were entirely instinctual. While he realized that he was following the "flow" of the world, he also had no idea what this meant. It was terminology that appeared in his head as if he'd always known it.
This phenomenon was quite normal for people who experienced natural enlightenment. The will of the universe itself would bestow names and terminology that could be used, ingraining them in practitioners' minds before they exited their ethereal state.
Nevertheless, Damien had no way of answering Clarice's question. First, he needed to find that answer for himself.
But before their conversation could continue…
BOOOOOOM!
A massive explosion rocked the Shadow Garden's very foundation.
