Page 55 of Axis of Fire

Hopefully, Moirz, Louise, and Aars would help with that.

“And magic,” I added, glancing at him.

Airis Kairos nodded slowly.

“Istarus is the ninth world.”

His body still hadn’t relaxed after my question.

It made me uneasy.

Like I could physically feel that tension pressing against me.

But I forced myself to focus.

“Alright... then what about the other three worlds?” I swallowed and reached for my cup.

The tea had already gone cold.

“Darkness, the voice of knowledge... and the last one...” he paused,

“is a mystery. Nothing is known about it at all.”

“How is that possible?” I frowned.

“Its location, element, and any connections to the other worlds—it’s all classified.”

“Why?”

“That was the will of the being who created it.” He shrugged.

“It was created by a fox named Quartai, by the way,” Aars jumped in.

“Which translates from Urpis as ‘cunning fox.’”

“So...” I began, going over everything in my head.

“Four natural elements, illusions or dreams, light and darkness...”

I kept counting.

“Magic, lightning, death, knowledge... and—” I paused, frowning.

“The unknown.”

“Not the right order, but yes,” Aars said.

“Does the order matter?” I asked—

and noticed Airis’s gaze shift past me, toward the clock on the wall.

Eleven p.m.

I blinked.

Time had slipped by far too quickly.

Though, to be fair, I had no idea what time I’d even arrived here.