I Know The Secret To Surpass Level 100

Elliot told his friends that he was going to go out. They agreed to him, but was worried that he might be pushing himself too far.

"Can't you just rest for a bit, Mr. Moon?" Hope asked. "We can still go next time. The Final Round will not begin in two weeks."

"I need every time I can get," Elliot said. "I'll be back."

He got out of the inn and asked the people on the streets for the oldest antique store. He scoured the streets for a few minutes, listing all their answers. And the most mentioned one was Madam Locraine's store.

After asking for directions and for the past hour, and finding his way there, he arrived at the shop. It was a mansion that had a shop inside.

For Elliot, the store was intimidating. It was located in the neighborhood part of Solaguer, the neighborhood for the rich people. And Madam Locraine's mansion was one of the biggest of them all.

Just by the street, the grandiose gate that was gold plated would take anyone's attention. The gate was so huge and the entrance was so beautiful, it would be hard to imagine that a shop for antique items would be located here.

Elliot was walking towards the gate when the guard lowered his sword, blocking Elliot.

"Do you have an appointment?"

Looking around, he realized that the guard was talking to him. After all, he was the only person who was there.

"I didn't know I have to set up an appointment," Elliot chuckled awkwardly. "Where do I set an appointment? I want one–"

"Are you a royal?" The guard suddenly asked that surprised Elliot. He slowly shook his head no and the guard continued asking. "Are you a noble?"

Once again, Elliot shook his head. When he was about to speak, he was cut off again by the guard, "Are you a son of an Elitist?"

"I'm an Adventurer–"

"A barbarian," the guard cut him off, making Elliot scoff.

"Unbelievable," Elliot rolled his eyes. "So, I have to be really rich to get in?"

"Yes," the guard answered nonchalantly. His eyes were stern and his face never broke character. "Now, if you don't have an appointment, I would like to ask you to–"

"Let him in," a plump woman dressed in sequin dress said from right inside the large gates. Four guards were accompanying her, two in front of her and two behind her. "I know the boy."

The plump woman turned and walked back to the mansion. Elliot grinned at the guard who had a surprised look in his face. He could only raise his hand in defeat and signal the guards inside to open the gates.

"Thanks," Elliot said to him and hopped inside. He could feel the white stone path that trailed down to the entrance of the mansion. The white stones were so shiny that he felt like it was illegal to step on them.

With a gulp, Elliot continued walking. He used some of his mana to lift himself in the air and lose a lot of his weight. He could feel the stones through his metal boots and all of them felt fragile.

It didn't take long before Elliot arrived at the entrance of the mansion. He took a few steps up the marble stairs and into the marble entrance. There were two more guards who were stationed right outside the door. 

Just how many guards does she have? Elliot asked himself.

"Come in," the plump woman said from the inside. Elliot bowed past the guards and into the large mansion. "What is it that you want, child?"

"I would like to ask if this is the oldest antique store in the city?" Elliot said with a high pitched tone. He couldn't let his nerves settle in his body, they have to ruin his speech.

"Don't be so afraid, my dear, I don't hurt nobody," the woman laughed lightly. "But yes, my shop is the oldest in Solaguer. It was built by my ancestors in this very land to collect the artifacts from the past."

"That's what I want to ask," Elliot said. "Can I see the big mirror?"

Madam Locraine paused and turned to Elliot with her face. Her body stood still while her head was slightly tilted forward while facing sideways.

"Interesting," Madam Locraine grinned. "You want to see the Mirror of Secrets."

"T-The Mirror of Secrets?" Elliot gulped. "Is that like just a name for it, or is it because it actual holds secrets?"

"Both," Madam Locraine grinned. "It holds secrets that is why it was named that way."

"O-Oh," Elliot slowly nodded. "When can I see it?"

"Much too excited, my dear boy," Madam Locraine giggled. "Follow me."

She walked through the hallways, passing through the items that were on display on small column-like stands. Everything inside the mansion was made perfectly. Everything was sculpted like it fit with everything else.

The designs were all in light brown color, complimenting the golden designs of the wall and the crown moulding of the ceiling.

After about a minute of strolling, Madam Locraine stopped at a large wooden door. There was a sign in the door that says "DO NOT ENTER" all in bold capital letters.

"This chamber is a very precious place," Madam Locraine said. "The cheapest item here costs about fifty thousand gold coins. Enough to buy yourself three mansions."

Elliot gulped after hearing his. He didn't have that kind of money. Even top Adventurers would take months or even years to earn that amount.

"Come, come," Madam Locraine urged Elliot and opened the door. And inside, Elliot felt the multiple auras coming from all the antique items. It felt as though it was a blast from the past, a past he wasn't even a part of.

"This is how you decide the value of an antique item," Madam Locraine said, lifting Elliot's shoulder and making the boy look at it. "The goosebumps, the thrill, the memory it holds, and how it latches on through time itself."

Elliot nodded in understanding. He could clearly see where the woman was coming from. There were a lot of emotions conveyed in all of the items. How they lingered in the air, and how strong they are.

"That is what you are looking for," Madam Locraine pointed in the middle of the room.

There stood a dried up fountain with a mirror in front of it. Elliot slowly walked in front of the mirror, seeing nothing there.

"Why don't I see myself in the–"

Elliot stopped. Just when he was about to turn back, he found himself in a different location.

It was a dark and silent hallway. Ice littered the corridor like they were decorations.

"W-Where am I?" Elliot asked himself. He walked around the hallway and heard people whispering.

He followed the voices and found a large group of Adventurers there. He was about to call them when he heard a familiar name.

"Lock the Pentos inside. They're dead meat now."

Elliot took a step back and covered his mouth with his hands. He didn't want to believe it, but he thinks he was sent to the past.

He wanted to find a place to exit this place. This was the Azure Palace. And based on Lance's story, something would happen right there.

"I have to leave this–"

Elliot stopped himself when he felt the ground shake. There seemed to be something that's incoming. Something big, something ominous.

And before he could utter the words, the fifty foot Azure King dragged its sword through the halls, turning to the corner where Elliot was frozen in place.