"Being able to open a stable spatial gateway amid such chaotic energy—your mastery of the spatial school is growing ever deeper." As Gloria spoke to Angel, she smiled and walked out through the door.
The moment she stepped out, Gloria spotted Azaz standing dazed not far away.
"What are you doing standing here in a daze?" Gloria asked curiously.
Azaz greeted her somewhat blankly, then pointed at Toby with curiosity. "Toby's all right now, isn't he?"
"What do you think?" Gloria asked with a smiling squint. As she answered Azaz, Toby bounced about and turned his little head toward him, staring at him with tiny eyes.
Azaz and Toby silently stared at each other.
For some reason, Toby appeared unchanged, yet when Azaz met his gaze, he could always sense a dense, terrifying aura lingering around him.
It was like an undercurrent—unseen, yet surging violently beneath the sea's surface.
Seeing Azaz stare at him in silence for so long, Toby seemed to feel like teasing him. He did not appear to move, but secretly summoned the aura of the Snakebird.
Azaz suddenly felt his heart panic. He staggered several steps back, his calves beginning to tremble faintly. "This is... the aura of a formal wizard?"
At that instant, Azaz saw a terrifying giant snake raise its head. But the next moment, the giant snake vanished, as if it had all been an illusion created by his eyes.
Yet Azaz knew it had all been real. Even after the giant snake's phantom disappeared, that eerie, terrifying feeling still lingered in his heart.
Azaz suddenly recalled what Sebastian had told him not long ago: "Your strength cannot even compare to a single hair on Toby's body."
Was this the truth?
"Toby advanced?" Azaz asked with some difficulty. Though he was asking a