Philip's life kept on being as business as usual. One day, when he was teaching a group of tour guides who were on a scheduled trip to Germany, someone called him at the door.

"Philip, there are two men here who want to talk to you. Can you see them?" The travel agency's owner asked him.

"Ms. Francesca, do you know what are they here for? Is it an emergency?"

"They didn't say anything. But they look like Buddhist monks. Are they your friends? Are you a Buddhist?"

"No, I'm not a Buddhist. How odd! I'll talk to them now... Would you excuse me for a moment?" he asked the students and then got up and went to the lobby where two visitors waited for him.

"Gentlemen, how can I help you?

"Are you Mr. Philip?"

"Yes, I am."

"As you can see, we are monks and we need to speak to you urgently."

"Please, call me Philip. I am as young as you," said Philip, as he noticed that the visitors' age was about 25 years old. "I'm sure that the issue you have to discuss with me is of great importance. However, would you mind waiting until I finish my class? It'll take only twenty minutes. After that, I'll be all yours."

"No problem. We can wait for you. Patience is not an issue for us. The subject we've come to discuss with you requires a long time, anyway," said the tallest monk.

Philip went back to the classroom. He was curious to know what it was all about. But before that, he had to teach German to his students.

The class finished a few minutes later. He said goodbye to the students, as he always did. As soon as he opened the door that went to the lobby, he met the two monks again.

"How about going to a cafe? There's a nice one just around the corner."

The monks nodded and then followed him. As they crossed a square, the Buddhists discreetly signaled to a disguised pair that was on watch.

"Do they serve tea here?" Asked Leonardo, one of the monks, as soon as they entered the café.

"Sure."

Philip ordered a coffee for himself and two cups of tea to the monks.

"So, gentlemen, can you tell me now what is it that you need to talk to me so urgently? If you don't mind, I'm curious to know what your religion has to do with it."

"We belong to a different lineage of monks. We are specially trained throughout generations and then assigned to carry out missions that aim to protect humanity. It turns out that a long time ago, a book that was under our protection was stolen from our temple. This book can be very dangerous if it falls into the wrong hands," Leonardo revealed.

"What book are you talking about? I'm getting more curious..." Philip asked. The mention of a special book immediately reminded him of the power contained in the Book of Souls, which had become part of him.

Philip was afraid that what the monks wanted from him was something that he wouldn't be able to provide. Philip and the Book of Souls had merged into one being. Their visit had something to do with the fact that he was the Phantom Man?

"It's not what you are thinking," Dante answered his question, anticipating what the young man was in fact thinking.

"How do you know what's going on in my head?"

"We know that you are the Phantom Man and that there is great power within you," Dante explained. "We were chosen for this job because we have reached a spiritual level advanced up to the point that it matches your spirituality."

"The book that was stolen from our temple in Tibet many centuries ago is the Book of the Dead. This manuscript has the power to establish communication with those that are gone. And that's not all. The book also has the unique capacity of bringing spirits back to life. Our mission is to preserve the peace of those in the eternal rest. In other words, we have to use all necessary means to intercept anyone attempting to rule the spiritual world."

"What do I have to do with all that?"

"The enlightened masters have warned us that the one who has stolen the book travels through the centuries with the sole purpose of destroying the Phantom Man. This being aims to drain the power contained in the Book of Souls. Since he is an immortal, he wants to rule both worlds. If that happens, it'll be chaos. This warlock will use all weapons at his disposal to achieve his goal."

"You must be talking about Klaus!" Philip shouted. He could feel that something bad was coming.

"Do you know him?" Leonardo asked.

"We had a fight in the past. I know how powerful he is. I managed to defeat the hideous creature that follows him, a Doppelgänger. Unfortunately, that monster took the life of the woman I loved. Klaus defeated my master, though. When I run into Klaus again, I will finish him off."

Soon, he thought of Alexia. Was the dark warlock already there?

"You don't have to worry, he's not here yet. That's why we came sooner rather than later to protect you." Leonardo took another sip of the tea and then looked around. "The elders said that the warlock is getting stronger by the day. If he learns how to use the power contained in the book, he may even be invincible."

"That's why we're here. We've come to teach you our ancient martial arts. Once you learn everything, you'll fight like one of us," Dante finally revealed their mission to Philip.

"I appreciate your interest, but I think I can handle that bastard myself. We have pending issues and I will finish him off once and for all."

The young man had forgotten about the dream in which Juan advised him to get ready for the worst. Philip continued to be brave, but not wise.

"You should not underestimate your enemy. True wisdom lies in training both mind and body. Here's our card. You can find us in the temple. When you feel ready to learn, give us a call," said Leonardo. "The best gifts we earn must be accepted at free will."

"Thank you! I appreciate that. I also have a weapon, a sword that goes by the name 'Night's Fury'. It has the capability of destroying any creature that hides in the darkness."

"Good weapons must be mastered with practice. Otherwise, they'll be utterly useless," Dante added, in the hopes that those words would cause a positive reaction in the young man. "Your fame is great in the spiritual world. Even dark creatures fear your sword. But you should never forget that its former owner was also a brave warrior. Nonetheless, he died with Night's Fury in his hands."

"How can you know so much about events that happened a long time ago?"

"The most enlightened monks are the ones that travel across the worlds by only using meditation. What makes them so special is that they know how to return. We know that you also have that power. That's why we have been assigned to train you."

"I'll think about your offer. Thanks for letting me know about all that stuff, but I think this issue is more yours than mine."

The two monks stood up and left the cafe after hearing such inconsequent words coming from someone who didn't take responsibility for anything. Philip watched the two men as they left the place. He saw when they met the couple standing in the square. It was the same couple that they had signaled to earlier. The man was bald. He was dressed in a suit and had sunglasses on. The woman wore a wig and was also wearing glasses.

Philip was more concerned with Alexia. He had to protect her at all costs.

He believed to be capable of doing so. As soon as he entered his room at the hostel, he called her.

"Hi, Alexia! Is everything ok?"

"Everything is fine, hon! I had a busy day. I'll get over it after I take a little nap. Are you coming over? You promised we would meet today."

"I've just arrived from work. I'll take a shower and, in an hour, I'll meet you."

"How about we have dinner? My treat. I'm working on a case."

"I prefer to split the bill. I was paid today."

"Whatever you want..."

While Philip was having a shower, he thought of the monks' words. He had to admit that knowing that Klaus was getting closer each day did worry him a lot.

For this reason, he decided it was time to stop by the museum to pick up Night's Fury, that he had left in the statue of a Viking. He said a few magic words to open a portal, and then stepped onto it. Philip took care to use his invisibility to get into the museum this time. He knew there were cameras everywhere. A few minutes later, the Viking statue had no sword in its right hand.

Meanwhile, at the public monitoring center, two guards were paying attention to the screens that showed the museum's interior. Suddenly, one of them noted that there was a sword floating in the air. He looked closer, and then saw weapon vanish right before his eyes.

He rewound the record to check again what he had just saw. And there it was, the sword floating as light as a feather. Confident that he was not dreaming, he showed the footage to the other guard.

"Julio, check it out! Is someone using some kind of invisible thread to steal that sword?"

Conscious of the problems that could be caused by cameras, Philip decided that he should pay a visit to the monitoring center before he left. He entered the room, and before the two guards could notice his presence, he deleted the images of the Night's Fury floating in the air with a simple snap of his fingers.

"Carlos, I don't see anything strange. What's up, man?"

"Hey! The footage is gone... But it should be here!"

"I think you are in need of a vacation, dude."

Since the guard could not prove what he saw, he decided to complete his shift and just ignore the fact. As to the young wizard, he kept his invisibility for a little longer and double checked the Viking statue to make sure that he had left no trace of his visit.

He stopped for a moment to look at a statue that was on the other side of the hall. It was the statue of a famous illusionist, holding a chain and several padlocks with which he locked himself up to prove that he could escape that trap.

Below the statue, there were some words written on a label that read: "The Great Harry Houdini".

Philip smiled at the magician in whose pockets he had kept the gold coins. He had read about Houdini, so he knew about that man's great ability to escape traps he personally set to himself... Philip thought that if he ever got chained and locked like that, he would melt the metals with the heat of his fire. Then, he would disappear in a heartbeat.

Back in his hostel room, he waved the sword for a few moments and then stared at the Viking signs engraved on its grip. They were awesome! Philip felt the old weapon's power erupting as if it had been forged specially for him. Then he produced a spell that made the sword penetrate the wall and then disappear, as if it had been sheathed. Now Philip was the only one to know the secret place where the magical weapon was hidden.

Philip then headed to Alexia's. Her house was just a short walk from the hostel. When he was near her street, something strange happened. The wind seemed colder. His warm breath condensed into a small wave of fog. Out of the blue, the lights went out and he felt bats' wings flapping close to his face. Rats ran to the alley as if they were hiding from something.

Philip's eyes began to burn in flames. He took a pair of sunglasses from his pocket and put them on immediately. He could feel a close presence nearby.

"Help me, mister! Help me!" Said a girl's voice coming from a dark alley.

Impetuously, Philip followed the voice. He found the image of a child. She was begging for his help. The sad girl was sitting on the floor, holding her legs, hiding her face between her knees. She sobbed and stuttered at the same time.

"What's up, little girl? Why are you alone in this alley?"

"My name is Aurora and I lost my parents... They were taken by some men in a black car. What do I do now, mister? Help me, please!"

He bent down to get a better look at the face hidden by the gloom. When he was close enough, the little girl opened a big mouth showing two lines of pointed teeth. The creature had blood clotted red eyes.

They stared at Philip. Wrinkled hands came out from the sleeves. Philip had been caught in a trap. The force of evil had lured him by manipulating his good will.

The creature in the shape of a child gradually began to grow up to the point that it revealed itself as a shadow, expanding until it had the shape of an adult's body. It was Silene. And she was smiling at Philip.

"At long last I meet the Phantom Man, Mr. Philip Reinecker, son of the great Agathor, the king of the wizards... Or would you rather use your human father's surname?"

"Who are you? What do you want from me?" Philip asked as he took out the sunglasses from his face to see the monster better.

His eyes began to burn in flames as he felt the presence of other creatures getting closer to him in the dark alley.

"I am a Basnet witch, thus a servant of Klaus. I am not alone here. Some of my people are here to pave the way for our master. Soon he'll arrive and then you'll be our prisoner. This way will be easier for us to take over this world."

"I need to warn you that I won't make it easy for you..."

"Take him, Belami. Maurizio, attack!"

The two guys drew the guns from their holsters and began shooting at Philip. He bent his body back. His spine was so flexible that it was as if it were made of rubber. He dodged all the bullets. Belami walked towards Philip as he fired at him until it was no longer possible for him to dodge the bullets. However, the monster's gun ran out of shells. He got another magazine out of his pocket and inserted it inside the gun.

More bullets rained down the alley that echoed the dull sound of never-ending shots. Moving both hands, one on the top of the other, Philip twisted the barrels of their guns in a way that they became useless. The two monsters went after him and managed to hold the young wizard's arms. Silene came forward and punched Philip in the stomach a few times until a stream of blood ran from his mouth.

"Do you feel my strength now, Phantom Boy?"

Silene's punches really hurt Philip. The pain got worse when Belami punched him in the face. At that moment, Philip transitioned into the Phantom Man. He raised high up, holding the two men, one in each arm, while Silene watched them from below. Then, he released the two cops, and both fell the ground. Philip's gaze shone upon them in a way that they both had to cover their faces to block the powerful rays of light.

He stretched his arms towards Silene and she was thrown against a parked car. The vehicle's alarm went off. He did the same with the cops, and they were thrown towards a wall. The impact was hard, and they fell a strong pain. The Phantom Man then floated to the end of the alley and them opened his hand.

"Come on, Night's Fury!"

Back in the hotel room, a portal was opened. A magical hand penetrated the wall and then pulled the precious sword out.

With the sword in hand, Philip was now ready to attack the monsters. Holding a bat, Belami was the first to face him. Right after the blade touched the bat, it was broken in two. Aiming the Basnet's heart, Philip pierced the blade with one clean blow. For the first time, he felt the power of the blade as it slashed through a spiritual being to destroy it.

As the Basnet warlock looked at his chest, he found himself gradually disintegrating until he was nothing but a handful of dust.

The wind blew it away, never to return. The Basnets were terrified. However, they could not escape the fight.

At the entrance to the alley, three red-eyed black pitbull dogs stared at the Phantom Man and the remaining Basnets. One of them howled, although none made the slightest movement. Maurizio and Silene noticed their presence. The hag smiled in satisfaction. It seemed that at long last their master had sent new allies to help them out.

Philip looked at the beasts. Their red eyes frightened him deeply. The moon seemed to increase the warlocks' power. Before Philip could figure out an escape, Maurizio attacked him with an iron rod. As the young warlock concentrated on finishing off another spirit that had emerged from the shadows, Silene took advantage of his distraction and produced a spell that created a black mud. It covered his feet, then climbed up his legs, and finally sucked him downwards. Philip was caught by surprise. He didn't know how he would manage to escape.

One of the dogs howled in the pitch dark. The three beasts began to walk towards Philip, closing in on the siege. The Phantom Man tried to get rid of the sticky material by hitting it with Night's Fury. However, not even the magical weapon could produce any effect on the mud.

Philip tried to recall all the spells described in the Book of Souls, but he was so desperate that he could not think straight.

Seeing the young man completely swallowed by the sludge and almost defeated, Silene laughed with pleasure.

"It seems that our mentor overestimated the boy's power. He'll never really become the Phantom Man. There's never been a task so easy... Too bad we lost Belami, but he won't be missed. We're still absolutely able to pave the way for our master's arrival."

The two Basnets laughed out loud, and their laughter echoed in the alley. Silene looked at the newcomers.

"Basnet friends! I'm so glad that you've arrived... Soon there'll be lots of things to be done. The time will come when everything around us will be ours."

The dogs turned into humans. They didn't even have to accomplish their mission. Meanwhile, more warlocks arrived from the realms of death to join the group.

Philip's bones froze. Now he really feared death. He finally realized that he should've listened to Juan and get ready for the fight. It seemed that Philip would pay with his life for his unwise decisions.

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Read #ThePhantomMan by #ChaieneSantos