The witches parted silently as Liam and the others approached. It happened naturally, almost instinctively, like water separating around a stone. No one spoke. No one gave instructions. Yet a perfect path opened through the gathering crowd, leading directly toward the center of the hill.

The chanting never stopped.

Hundreds of voices continued moving together in strange harmony, rising and falling in waves that seemed to vibrate through the very air itself.

Liam walked at the front beside Mary, his eyes fixed ahead.

The closer they got, the brighter the glow became.

At first he thought it was just some kind of magical circle.

Then he finally saw it properly.

"...Wow."

The word escaped before he could stop it.

The entire hilltop had been carved into an enormous formation.

Countless symbols stretched across the ground in overlapping rings and patterns, each one glowing with a soft silver-blue radiance. Some symbols resembled stars. Others looked like ancient letters from forgotten languages. Thin streams of light connected everything together like veins carrying energy through a living body.

And embedded throughout the formation were crystals.

Massive crystals.

Some stood waist-high.

Others reached nearly to Liam’s shoulders.

Every single one pulsed with power.

Light moved inside them like flowing liquid, traveling upward and downward in endless cycles.

The entire thing looked less like a drawing and more like a machine built by gods.

Tatiana’s mouth slowly opened.

Irina stared silently.

Even Leonid looked impressed.

"I have absolutely no idea what I’m looking at," Liam admitted.

Mary smiled slightly.

"Neither would I if I wasn’t taught."

At the very center of the formation stood seven glowing marks arranged in a circle.

Two figures were already waiting there.

Both wore dark robes similar to Mary’s.

One was an elderly woman with silver hair braided down her back.

The other was a tall man whose face carried enough wrinkles to suggest centuries of knowledge despite appearing physically no older than forty.

Neither looked particularly powerful.

Yet something about them made Liam instinctively pay attention.

Their eyes.

Both possessed the same observant eyes as Mary.

Eyes that seemed capable of seeing far more than they should.

The elderly woman inclined her head.

"So this is him."

Her gaze settled on Liam.

The older witch beside her nodded slowly.

"Interesting."

Liam immediately pointed at himself.

"Why do people keep saying things like that whenever they meet me?"

Nobody answered.

Mary simply walked onto one of the glowing positions.

"Everyone take your places."

The joking atmosphere disappeared immediately.

The seven travelers moved toward their assigned locations.

Liam.

Irina.

Tatiana.

Leonid.

Mary.

The silver-haired witch.

The older male witch.

One by one they stepped onto the marks.

The moment Liam’s feet touched the symbol beneath him, light surged through the entire formation.

WHOOOOOM.

The hill shook.

Not violently.

More like the earth itself had taken a deep breath.

All around them, the chanting grew louder.

The witches surrounding the hill raised their voices.

The air began to hum.

Liam felt it immediately.

Energy.

Raw energy.

Tens.

Hundreds.

Thousands.

Streams of power flowed through the formation from every direction.

The glowing crystals brightened.

The symbols beneath their feet intensified.

The sky itself seemed to react.

Clouds above began slowly rotating.

A circular formation developed directly over the hill.

Leonid looked upward.

"That’s not normal."

"No," Mary replied.

"It isn’t."

She closed her eyes.

The two supporting witches did the same.

Immediately they began chanting.

Unlike the witches surrounding the hill, their words carried authority.

Ancient.

Heavy.

Powerful.

"Ashara vel korum..."

"Thalen vae noris..."

"Elythar en sol..."

"Vareth kaelum..."

The symbols exploded with light.

Lines of energy shot outward from the center before reconnecting into an enormous lattice.

Tatiana felt the hair on her arms stand up.

Irina’s eyes narrowed.

Leonid instinctively shifted his stance.

The air pressure was changing.

Getting heavier.

Denser.

Like reality itself was being compressed.

Mary’s voice rose above all others.

"Liam."

He looked at her.

"Now."

Instantly he understood.

His role.

His energy.

The anchor.

He closed his eyes.

The System responded immediately.

Power surged through every cell of his body.

Golden energy leaked from beneath his skin.

The moment it appeared, every witch on the hill gasped.

The formation beneath him erupted.

BOOOOOOM.

Light exploded upward.

A massive pillar shot into the sky.

The rotating clouds accelerated violently.

Wind swept across the mountain settlement.

Children grabbed their parents.

Doors slammed shut.

Trees bent under the pressure.

The witches continued chanting despite the storm surrounding them.

Liam could feel their power.

Thousands of streams flowing together.

All being guided.

Focused.

Controlled.

By Mary.

The crystals began cracking.

Tiny fractures spread across their surfaces.

Not from weakness.

From overload.

The amount of energy flowing through them had become absurd.

Tatiana shielded her eyes.

Everything was becoming too bright.

Leonid could barely keep his footing.

Irina planted herself firmly and refused to move.

Then something happened.

The center of the formation bent.

Not physically.

Reality bent.

Like a sheet of glass being pushed from the other side.

A ripple appeared in empty space.

Then another.

Then another.

The air distorted.

Light twisted.

Space folded inward.

Liam watched as the impossible happened directly in front of him.

A hole appeared.

Not a hole in the ground.

A hole in existence.

Inside it there was nothing.

No sky.

No earth.

No stars.

Only endless darkness.

The chanting reached its peak.

Blood began running from several witches’ noses.

Others dropped to one knee.

Still they continued.

Still they poured power into the formation.

Mary’s voice trembled.

"More."

The crystals shattered.

One after another.

Explosions of light erupted across the formation.

The portal suddenly expanded.

A meter.

Two meters.

Five.

Ten.

The darkness grew larger until it towered above all seven travelers.

Wind rushed toward it from every direction.

The portal devoured everything.

Dust.

Leaves.

Loose stones.

Even light itself seemed drawn toward the opening.

The pressure became unbearable.

Tatiana nearly lost her balance.

Liam immediately grabbed her arm.

Mary’s face had become pale.

Sweat ran down her forehead.

The two supporting witches looked even worse.

Yet their eyes shone with excitement.

After generations of searching.

After countless failed attempts.

After centuries of theories.

They had finally done it.

The path was open.

Mary slowly raised her hand.

The chanting stopped.

Instantly.

The silence that followed felt deafening.

Every witch on the hill stared at the portal.

Nobody moved.

Nobody breathed.

The darkness within the opening seemed endless.

Ancient.

Unknown.

Waiting.

Mary looked toward the seven travelers.

Her voice was quieter now.

Yet somehow everyone heard it.

"The road to another galaxy is open."

Her eyes moved from Liam...

To Irina...

To Tatiana...

To Leonid.

Then finally back to the portal.

"Once you step through..."

She paused.

"...there is no guarantee of what waits on the other side."

Nobody answered.

Liam simply stared into the darkness.

Then a grin slowly appeared on his face.

The same grin that appeared whenever danger stood directly in front of him.

The same grin that had gotten him into more trouble than he could count.

"Well," he said.

"This should be fun."

And before anyone could stop him—

Liam took the first step toward the portal.