"What condition?" Lucas asked, arms crossed and one brow raised.
"I'm going to enter your sea of consciousness," Athena replied calmly.
Lucas narrowed his eyes, slowly uncrossing his arms. But before he could say anything, Athena continued,
"I swear in the name of Zeus, I won't do anything to harm you. On the contrary, I'll show you—just how much potential you really possess."
Lucas fell silent, weighing her words carefully. There was conviction in her voice. And a vow made in the name of the highest god wasn't something to be taken lightly.
A few seconds passed in stillness before Lucas finally nodded.
"Alright."
Athena nodded in return. "Good."
"What do I need to do?" Lucas asked.
"Hold the jade and close your eyes."
"Okay," he said softly, then closed his eyes and focused.
His mind slipped into calm—like a rippleless lake, serene and still.
Athena reentered the jade, and through her connection with Lucas' hand, she began tracing the pulse of his soul.
With her astral form, she dove in—gliding through a tunnel bathed in red and blue light like a vine, flying toward a single destination: Lucas' sea of consciousness. If she reached the center, his entire soul would be laid bare before her.
And she would see everything she needed to see.
RUMBLE!
Thunder cracked, rain poured in torrents. Violent winds howled through the soul tunnel.
Athena pressed forward, undeterred by the storm that raged through his soul-path. Every individual harbored different obstacles in this realm. For Lucas… it was a storm. Rare—unnatural even.
But for Athena, it was still manageable.
The farther she advanced, the storm began to fade, replaced by a deep crimson hue—an ocean of chaos, untouched by order.
Athena admitted to herself: this boy... is truly gifted.
---
Unbeknownst to either of them, nearly thirty minutes had passed in the real world.
Lucas still sat silently, calm and unmoving, gripping the jade tightly in his hand.
Deep within his being, Athena now stood in a place of absolute darkness. No light. No color. Just black void stretching endlessly in every direction.
"Where… is this? This isn't his sea of consciousness…" she muttered, frowning.
She was certain she had taken the right path—headed straight toward his soul's core. In all her experience diving into others, there had always been a pattern. But this… was something else entirely.
Still, she shook off the doubt. Lucas is different, she thought. She had to keep going.
But with every step forward, pressure began to wrap around her. Heavy. Suffocating. As if an invisible force was crushing every fragment of her spiritual form.
"What is this…? A pressure this intense shouldn't even exist…" she whispered, her breath turning shallow.
She halted. Her body wouldn't move. It felt like being pinned beneath a hundred elephants.
With immense effort, she forced herself to take a single step forward.
And at that moment—
RUMBLE!
A violent tremor shook the entire spiritual realm. Lightning cracked. Fire erupted. Icy winds screamed through the void, and Athena's body was flung into the air—gravity abandoned her.
Then… she saw it.
A pair of colossal eyes in the distance. Glowing crimson, filled with hatred and fury. Not human.
Athena froze.
But it wasn't over.
Another pair emerged—icy blue, sharp as blades of winter.
Then a third pair. Golden-red, blazing like molten metal.
And the last—silver eyes, radiant and blinding. All four pairs stared directly at her… stripping her soul bare.
Athena gasped. Disbelief flooded her chest.
All this... Impossible.
And then—
FLASH!
All eight eyes blazed at once, and in a split second, an overwhelming force yanked Athena's soul out of Lucas' body—without warning.
CRACK!
The jade in Lucas' hand cracked.
His eyes snapped open. One brow lifted as he caught Athena's stunned expression.
"So… what did you find? Was that some kind of test? Or just a part of your 'potential evaluation'? Well, what's your verdict?" he asked, grinning with a hint of challenge.
Athena didn't respond.
She remained silent—her breath shallow, her face pale. What had just happened… she had never experienced anything like it. Not even as a goddess.
She couldn't penetrate a boy's soul.
"Hey, Lady Athena? You hear me?" Lucas repeated.
At last, Athena looked up at him.
"I… couldn't see your potential. But… there's something inside you... Who are you really?" she asked quietly, her voice laced with unease.
Lucas looked confused. "I already told you. My name is Lucas Drakebane, of House Drakebane. Well, something about my family—you could say we have a signature Miracle Spirit… dragons. Maybe you've never heard of it before," he said casually.
Athena stared at him, her gaze deep and searching. "Actually… I have."
Lucas' eyes widened.
"In the Upper Realm… there's a family deeply connected to dragons."