Knock.

Girls?

Tails frowned, only to feel more and more memories come back to his mind, as if the fog on the sea was gradually disappearing, revealing the clear water.

"Girl?" he asked, confused.

But the strange figure doesn't seem to have patience anymore.

"We don't have much time," whispered the stranger, hidden behind a strange curtain:

"The tipping point of the first threshold is only one step away from knocking, and as long as they come back to their senses and bow their heads slightly, they can still detect your presence. ”

Tails' heart moved, and he suddenly knew the identity of the "girls".

Why.

The others, whether Giza or Ashida, spoke of them with a deep sense of fear.

But this person ......

They are called ......

"And you ......"

The strange figure slowly raised his hand to Tails, his fingers flowing with a colorless wave.

A slight tinnitus sounded, and a faint sense of threat arose!

Tails couldn't help but tighten his facial features, and subconsciously wanted to be on guard.

But he was embarrassed to find that in this strange space, he couldn't even find his arm.

However, what surprised him the most was that a silver glow and a white light appeared in front of his eyes at the same time, like a stimulated beast.

They seemed to consciously stand in front of Tails and the stranger, forming a barrier.

What the?

The sudden change made Tails stunned.

"Yes, old friend......" The stranger's words revealed a faint exhaustion and vicissitudes.

Thankfully, the vague stranger didn't seem to have any desire to explore further, and he lowered his fingers, just silently watching the silver glow and white light appear on Tails, and silently watched them fade away.

Thoughtful.

Tails was left alone, looking at the abnormality on his body in amazement.

"You're lucky, child," the stranger looked at him for a moment, then shook his head slowly:

"It's not just an old friend who cares for you—you can hide from the girls, and even rarely stay on the verge of being lost, so that you don't get lost or suffered, and it's all thanks to them. ”

Tails became more and more puzzled:

"Old friends?"

Take care of me.

Stay at the borderline.

Don't get lost.

He realized.

"You mean...... This?"

Tails raised his right hand—he suddenly noticed that his vanished limbs were in full view of him—and nodded to his forehead where the silver glow was.

Is it "never lost"?

The stranger didn't deny it, he lowered his head, as if thinking about something.

Tails was observing his sudden appearance of his right hand in astonishment, and raised his head when he heard the words:

"So, you and the one below Longxiao City...... Are you a friend? ...... you are."

The stranger figure looked up, but he didn't mean to ask Tails a question.

"In the last six years, Ashida has sent me more contacts than in the previous 600 years combined. ”

His words made Tails slightly stunned:

"The content has also changed from a cookie-cutter demagogue to a purely academic discussion about the Magian, and he has almost become a scholar - you can see that he cares about you very much. ”

There was a hint of interest in the stranger's words.

"But I didn't know why until I saw you in person, kid. ”

Tails was furious at the other party's staring, even though he couldn't sense where the other party's eyes were.

"You are different," said the stranger unquestioningly:

"Whether it's the last unqualified knock you completed to escape, or the wayward ascent this time. ”

Last knock?

Tails was shocked.

Wait a minute.

The last time I knocked on the door, I was trying to escape......

Dragon Sky City, Blood Magician, Sky Queen...... More and more words come to memory.

And what about this time?

Tails froze.

This "willful ascension"...... Again...... What the?

His heart grew more and more agitated.

What the hell had he forgotten?

"But it's not good to be different. ”

The stranger with an unrecognizable face stood in front of him, as if with emotion:

"You know, becoming a mage is not an easy process. ”

The stranger gently parted his hands, and colorless ripples poured out of the air between his hands, and four transparent doors the size of palms emerged, each more delicate and majestic than the other.

"Matter, Perception, Chaos, Purity - these four stages have been summarized by countless predecessors, and the only way to become a magician from a mortal body, different magicians have slightly different progress, experiences, reactions, and results in each stage, and even a world apart, but the four stages of magicians are roughly the same. ”

From left to right, the four transparent gates shatter one after another, returning to colorless ripples.

Four stages?

Matter, view, chaos, purity?

Tails' nerves tightened: in his recovering memories, Ashida never seemed to explain these things to him—or did he actually explain them, but he didn't remember them?

So......

He squinted at the stranger in front of him.

What the hell is this guy......

The stranger's words slowly became serious:

"However, the process of starting from the 'matter' stage of experiencing the magic energy out of control, until successfully knocking on the door at the last step of the 'pure', obtaining the threshold name, and transforming into a real magician, is not all smooth sailing. ”

"It's that every step is full of hardships and obstacles. ”

Hearing this, Tails' curiosity was completely aroused.

"Historically, whether it is the three magic towers or the inheritance of mages outside the tower, too many people have fallen on these four steps before they finally become magicians, and they have been lost ever since," the stranger seemed to sigh:

"There's no going back. ”

"And even if you take the last step and succeed in finding the person with the threshold......" The stranger figure paused slightly, and did not continue.

Tails' eyelids twitched slightly.

He's got a lot of keywords in his head.

Three Magic Towers......

Too many people...... Become a magician......

The stranger's words returned to indifference:

But these difficulties and risks are not meaningless: the process of progressing through them is a rare exercise in itself, and the cornerstone of our becoming magicians. ”

The stranger spoke eloquently, fluently, and clearly.

Compared with a certain unscrupulous teacher who often plays disappears.,I also like to hang my appetite.,Look personable but actually have a bad temper.,Nothing but a handsome face......

Tails shook his head, shaking off the blue-clad image.

"But as I said, you are different. ”

"From ancient times to the present, there has never been a person like you, who has been able to cross the barrier of the first three steps when he is 'out of control', ascend to the sky in one step, go straight to the stage of 'pure', abruptly ascend to the threshold and knock on the door, and enter the true state - that is the final test of the magician. ”

The blurry stranger's face moved slightly, as if vibrating behind the air, and in the background, which was also impossible to see, there were a few ripples:

"It's your strength, but it's also your weakness, in fact, it's extremely dangerous. ”

Tails frowned:

"You mean...... I've heard Ashida say that they can find me when I knock, but leave that aside, can you explain ...... first?"

"That's just an outside threat," the stranger interrupted him unceremoniously:

"For us, the greatest danger always comes from within. ”

Tails was stunned.

The other party continued to speak, and the sentence suddenly became tense:

"For example, as the number of times increases, when you 'lose control', do you always slide uncontrollably to the edge of the knock?"

Unstoppable?

Tails was startled, and he jerked his head up to look at the other man's ethereal face.

The stranger asked coldly:

"For example, when you were 'out of control', did you feel like you were drunk, your memory was broken, and you suddenly forgot everything?"

"Even ...... Forget yourself?"

Memory breaks.

Forgot everything.

Forget yourself?

Tails' short-lived lost memories flooded in, slowly filling in the void that had been left before.

Forget?

His heart became more and more frightened, and his body trembled slightly.

I must have forgotten something.

Something very important......

Especially, especially me, why do I ...... Why the hell am I here? What was I doing?

Tails only felt cold sweat and shudder.

In a panic, he raised his head, and the eyes of the stranger were different:

"Are you...... How do you know ......"

But the figure is still indifferent, and it seems that even talking to Tails is just a boring and businesslike task:

"Because you're going too fast. ”

"You haven't experienced the important step from 'thing' to 'view', and you haven't stepped through the hurdle that every newcomer must pass through after 'losing control'......"

"There is no opportunity to comprehend what it means to be a foreign object, what it is to be oneself, how to touch it, how to observe it, and finally how to comprehend the magic energy......"

His words became more and more serious, as if expounding a valuable research question:

"That's why when you come into contact with demonic energy, you can't restrain the urge and pleasure to ascend the threshold, and your consciousness is so blurred that it's hard to distinguish between yourself and the outside, so you can only subconsciously rely on the demonic energy whose name is still unknown, and rush around. ”

Until he hastily knocked at the door and entered into a state full of dangers. ”

Tyers, who was worried in his heart, opened his mouth to speak, but it was difficult to say anything.

The stranger nodded, as if he knew what he was about to say.

"Under the watchful eye of old friends, once or twice, you may be lucky enough to come back and not get lost......"

His voice grew terrifying:

"But three, five, ten, twenty ......"

Tails clenched his fists.

That's why I can't remember......

He gritted his teeth.

I can't remember the ...... before this

Tails seemed to have a villain in his heart, constantly urging him:

Hurry, hurry, you still have something to do.

Fast!

The stranger nodded, "You're lucky, but you're not as lucky as that." ”

"It's impossible to be lucky forever. ”

Tails jerked his head up!

The young man forcibly suppressed the anxiety in his heart, and looked at each other with resolute eyes:

"Then teach me. ”

The stranger stared at him fixedly, and did not reply.

"I know that since you're here, there's a way to do it. ”

Tails gritted his teeth and said, "Teach me how to overcome this, I need to ...... I can't, I can't be stuck in this state anymore. ”

Damn it.

What the hell am I taking the risk of using magic energy on my own initiative?

Come to think of it!

Remember...... Something I should have cared about.

Back...... I went where I was supposed to be.

However, the other party shook his head slowly, and even turned his body sideways, looking into the distance.

"It is Ashida's responsibility to guide you, and I can't interfere. ”

The stranger said lightly:

"In the group of magicians, there is a sacrosanct relationship between the guide and the guided. For example, you and Ashida, you have a special and close bond, and you are a special and important existence for each other. ”

What the?

Guides?

Tails frowned slightly.

Me and Ashida?

A special and close connection, a special and important existence.

Sanctanct relationship......

Thinking of this, Tails suddenly felt a chill.

Are you kidding?

Tails looked up angrily: "But ......"

However, the stranger changed his mind at this point.

"But for the sake of my old friends, I can still give you a little inspiration, so that you can be more or less prepared when you face such a dilemma again," said the stranger seriously:

"At least not to completely forget consciousness and lose oneself when we lose control and ascend the threshold. ”

Tails, who was about to convince the other party, was slightly surprised, but he didn't expect the stranger to let go so quickly.

"Listen. ”

"To protect ourselves, and to protect others," the stranger became serious again:

"A handful of advanced magicians have summed up three conventional rules, which you might as well interpret as advice. ”

Tails' eyes lit up:

"You mean...... The three major covenants of the magician?"

The stranger nodded:

"Ashida told you?"

Tails frowned, trying to extract what he wanted from his hazy memory.

"There is only one way: the first covenant of magic energy, and we don't study each other deeply. ”

Tails chewed on the words, looked up, and looked at the other with hope.

But he was going to be disappointed.

This time, the stranger figure was silent for a long time.

The other party just stood quietly in the void as if nothing was there, not moving at all.

Finally, when Tails felt like he was about to stare through his blurred face, the other man spoke lightly.

"That's it?

The stranger moved slightly:

"This is what he told you first?"

"The first appointment, 'don't delve into each other'?"

From the tone of the other party's voice, Tails felt a little inappropriate.

Under the mysterious fog and eerie clouds around him, the strange figure actually gave Tails an indescribable sense of fear.

But the anxiety and pressure in his heart made Tails have to suppress his doubts and urge the other party.

"That's all he told me," the boy frowned.

"What's wrong?"

After a while, the stranger shook his head decisively.

"Nothing. ”

But his tone made Tails inexplicably uneasy.

But soon, Tails was attracted by the other party's next sentence.

"Listen, kid, since Ashida has already taught you the first covenant, then ......"

I saw the stranger raise his head and say with great solemnity:

"What I'm going to tell you now is the second of the Three Covenants of Demonic Energy. ”

Three covenants of magic energy.

Article 2.

Tails looked solemn and listened intently.

"Magic Energy Second Appointment," only the stranger behind the vague curtain whispered, and his tone was thick:

"'Guard yourself.'" ”