NEW EDEN: LIVE TO PLAY, PLAY TO LIVE

Astaroth woke up after what seemed like an instant to him. Truth was, he had been out cold for many hours.

Many warriors had been constantly keeping watch on him during this time.

Luckily for him, the melding had gone away before the time limit Kloud had established, otherwise he would have suffered his first death, accompanied by an immense loss in Exp.

"Ugh." Astaroth groaned, feeling like crap.

"Where am I?" He asked, trying to get up and look around.

A man near him immediately unsheathed his sword and placed it in Astaroth's face in panic.

"Don't move!" The man yelped.

Astaroth could clearly see fear on his face and he was slightly trembling. This resulted from what Kloud had told them while Astaroth was out cold.

He had told the men keeping watch that if Astaroth were to rise after losing control, he could kill any of them in a matter of seconds.

All the men in the room Astaroth was in went on high alert when Astaroth groaned, and one of them left in a jog to go get Kloud and Chris.

Both men got there shortly after and Astaroth was still looking at the man with his sword in his face with a gloomy look.

When Astaroth noticed Kloud and Chris in the corner of his eyes, he finally looked away.

"What's the meaning of this, teacher?" Astaroth asked, looking at Kloud questioningly.

"Just a precaution." Kloud replied.

"Stow your weapon lad. If he was out of control, you would already be dead." Kloud told the man with the sword.

"As for you, boy. Next time you lose control over your own power like that, I won't be as lenient." Kloud said to Astaroth, a light scowl on his face.

"Is that what happened?" Astaroth asked, his head still thrumming a little.

"After you let go of Konnor, your eyes went red. You even started howling." Chris chimed in.

"Alright, everybody out." Kloud suddenly said.

Astaroth watched as everyone apart from Kloud and Chris left the room. Chris sat in the room's corner, while Kloud dragged a chair near the bed Astaroth was lying on.

He had a grave look on his face.

"Do you know why people fear soul magic, son?" Kloud asked him, looking him deep in the eyes.

"Because those that wield it are powerful?" Astaroth answered.

"We indeed consider them powerhouses. But that is not the primary reason people fear them." Kloud said.

After a slight pause, he kept talking.

"It's because they are dangerous." He said.

"Dangerous? Doesn't that depend on the person?" Astaroth questioned, now confused.

"Not in this case." Chris answered from the side.

"Huh?" Astaroth said, not understanding where the conversation was going.

"It's because as strong as they are, they are also a major risk." Kloud finally said.

"I don't understand why?" Astaroth replied.

"Because of control. You almost lost it this time. You should understand the most." Kloud said.

"I lost control... I just remember my summon screaming in my mind." Astaroth said with a confused tone, not remembering anything else.

The events from the day before were still fuzzy in his memory. He remembered that at some point he started enjoying beating up his opponent, maybe too much.

And then the yelling in his head, but that was it. Did something happen after that?

"That was around the time you lost it. Luckily for you, I have already seen what that looks like in the past. Otherwise, things might have turned out differently." Kloud said with a sigh.

"Look, kid. You become much stronger when you fuse with those souls. But that also comes with a risk. You are letting them in very close to your mind. All it takes is a little push for them to gain control over you, instead of the other way around." Chris said.

"And then they get to do what they want." Kloud completed.

"Now take a wild guess what would have happened if that wolf were to be set free in this village." Chris added.

The thought sent shivers down Astaroth's spine. Of course that couldn't end well.

The people that killed it were all there after all.

"But how do I keep that from happening again?" Astaroth asked, after a second of pondering.

"You need to make sure you don't give them that push they need." Kloud said.

"How do I even know what that 'push' is?" Astaroth asked, even more confused than before.

"Emotion." All three men heard from the door.

In the door frame stood Aberon, the old mage. Kloud looked at him with a bit of apprehension.

Chris just nodded at the old man.

"I know you blame me for teaching him this, Kloud. But he wants to get stronger. Who are we to keep him from fulfilling his potential?" Aberon stated, walking into the room.

"He has martial talent. That would have been enough. But you had to put dangerous magic at his disposal, you old coot." Kloud grumbled, clearly dissatisfied with Aberon.

"You always thought magic was dangerous, you dumb gorilla. Even when you were offered to heal your wounds with it, you refused. Now, look at you. You have become weaker than ever, and you lost your titles and post because of it." Aberon angrily said, looking at Kloud with disappointment.

"You had a bright future, and you threw it away out of fear of magic." He added, with a tinge of disapproval.

"That was my choice to make, and I did what I felt was right. And I would take the same decision again." Kloud debuted, mildly.

Astaroth could see there was a bit of regret on Kloud's face, but he did not dare ask what they were talking about.

"Umm... Can we come back to my problem, please?" Astaroth ventured.

"Ahh. Yes. Excuse our rambling." Aberon said, focusing back on him.

"You said emotion. Is emotion the key they need to gain control?" Astaroth questioned.

"Yes." Aberon replied.

"If your emotions become in sync enough with the soul you are fused with, the boundaries between your two souls blur. It is at that moment that you are the most vulnerable. It is through that weakness that the mixed soul can insert itself into dominion on the body." He added.

"Therefore, you need to learn to school your emotions." Chris chimed in.

"The Colonel is right. You are going to need to learn to tame your mind. Make it a sea of calmness." Kloud added.

"And, for this reason, you will train your mind with me this week." Aberon said, cutting in.

"What?! But sir! I need to level up!" Astaroth revolted.

*Smack!*

"Oww! Stop slapping me! I'm not a child!" Astaroth yelled out, looking at the person who had smacked him for the second time since they knew each other.

"Then stop acting like one!" Kloud thundered.

"Are you going to be reckless and use that power again, without being able to control it?! Are you deliberately trying to put the surrounding people in danger?!" He added, screaming in rage.

"But teacher! I must g..."Astaroth started.

"ENOUGH!" Kloud bellowed, shaking Astaroth to his core.

The aura washing off of Kloud right now was unfathomable. To Astaroth, it felt like he was looking into the eyes of a dragon.

This feeling of visceral fear that washed over him made him shut his mouth.

"Now. Are you going to do the training? Or do I have to beat you to death until you can no longer survive a mosquito bite?" Kloud said, calming down a bit.

Astaroth bit his lower lip in anger. He was going to lose precious days.

He might even lose his chance at the tournament with this!

"Yes, teacher. I will do the training." He finally grumbled out.

"Good. Then my work here is done for today." Kloud said, getting up.

He walked in the door's direction but stopped in the doorframe.

"Oh, and don't slip out like last time. I will have a sentry posted at the entrance of the village. If you try to leave before your training is over, I will hunt you down myself. Are we clear?" He added, not even turning back.

"Yes, teacher." Astaroth growled.

Chris got up from his chair to the side and walked to Astaroth. He put his hand on Astaroth's shoulder.

"Don't resent him for that, kid. He is only trying to protect you and the others." Chris said, before patting his shoulder and leaving.

"Now that all this drama is done, I can also leave." Aberon said, walking towards the door too.

"Wait, sir! What happened to Konnor?" Astaroth called out.

"He is dead." Aberon said plainly.

"Did I...?" Astaroth stuttered.

"No. It was the captain. He cut him down when the man tried to escape. Don't think that Kloud is a merciful man, kid. He is a cold killer." Aberon said, before leaving the room.

'Should I have minded my own business?' Astaroth thought, before lying back down.

His mind was a mess so he would rather sleep it off. And so he closed his eyes and fell in the arms of Morpheus.