《The Wandering Fairy [LitRPG World-Hopping]》 Chapter 1: Enchanted Forest

Chapter 1: Enchanted Forest

Soren¡¯s eyes fluttered to life as he placed his hand above his face to shield himself from the blinding sunrays. The herbal smell of unseen flora made him almost forget the ringing pain emanating from his temples. His mind was akin to a reverberating church bell, sensations fragmenting with every vibration. Countless shards of muffled sounds entered and left his body, leaving him unable to distinguish anything. Fuck! This damn pain! Ugh! It took a few minutes of wrestling with his own psyche before he could even get a glimpse of his environment. With his hand blocking the light flooding into his hazel eyes, Soren blinked a few times. His vision was a mix of blurred pastel colors, as if someone had poured water onto a yet not dry canvas. The breeze brushed against his chestnut hair, soothing his mind¡¯s pain in its wake. He could finally think clearly again. The ritual failed?.. He sighed to himself. Six attempts¡­ What the hell am I doing wrong? No wait, my previous attempts didn¡¯t end like this¡­ From what he could remember, there was a bright flash of light mere seconds after he finished invoking the chant. His heart raced, did I successfully prove that magic exists!? Rubbing his temples, his lips curled up into a faint smile. I seriously need to go back and research this! A throbbing ache persisted through his mind and he clicked his tongue in protest. Why can¡¯t this migraine go away already? I have shit to do! Years had passed since the last time he had felt this excited about anything. He continued to rest on the floor (impatiently) as countless floral scents invaded his nose, calming him slightly. It only took a few minutes for his body and mind to sync back up together. His blurred vision had also finally stabilized, allowing him to peer into his newly-lit environment. He clumsily lifted himself up against the pushback of his protesting limbs. Soon, his eyes refocused, allowing him to see everything more clearly. Soren¡¯s eyes widened¡ªradiant beams of light penetrated through the leaves of crimson trees, leaving patches of luminescence scattered across the cyan-colored grass. Suddenly, a bird roughly the size of his neighborhood stray dog flew past him, breaking him from his reverie. Its wings, shaded in a smooth gradient of greens, purples, and blues, could put any peacock to shame. With his mouth hung open, he trailed its path as it flew into the distant treeline. Soren blinked a few times¡ªwhat he was seeing was real. What the fuck? He could feel the chilliness of the shade and the warmth of the sun across his skin. He tried to pinch his cheek, but the scene before his eyes stayed the same. No matter how I look at it, this is clearly not my backyard¡ªheck, it doesn¡¯t even look like I¡¯m on Earth anymore¡­ If he looked hard enough past the chaotic treeline, he could spot towering mushrooms with colorful mushroom caps that pierced above the sea of leaves. Yeah¡­ this is definitely not Earth¡­ The ¡®Secrets of the Records¡¯ ritual was supposed to be a bestowal type¡­ How the hell did I end up being the one bestowed instead?! He slammed his hand against his forehead. I should¡¯ve never trusted that sketchy website¡­ Soren closed his eyes and sighed. Not in a million years did he ever think other worlds existed. Though, aside from just fear, his stomach was bubbling with excitement. A wide grin took over his face, isn¡¯t this what you¡¯ve always wanted, Soren? A new reality, one filled with countless unseen thrills that he could chase after. Yes, the ritual might have failed, but in return, he had finally achieved true freedom. Freedom from his mundane life. Freedom from all the abuse and manipulation. Freedom to find new ways to have fun. This was a true blessing in disguise. He chuckled to himself. It¡¯s not like there is anyone waiting for me back on Earth anyway¡­ That whole planet can go fuck itself. Right now, there were far more important things to think about. Namely, his survival. Despite the serenity, the forest almost certainly hid many lurking threats. A dense canopy blocked out most sunlight, dappling the cyan grass in an unsettling mosaic of light and shadow. Soren was inexperienced in out-door activities, but even he knew better than to assume this tranquil facade meant safety. In fact, it was almost¡­ Too quiet for his own liking. The silence was deafening.. You might be reading a stolen copy. Visit Royal Road for the authentic version. Soren quickly recalled the moment he awoke from his slumber. There were distant echoes of fractured human-like laughter, but now, he was beginning to believe that was simply the ramblings of his hallucinatory mind. Other than the rustling of leaves and the faint howls of distant winds, the forest emanated an aura of isolation. Even the birds he had previously spotted were nowhere to be seen. Suddenly, his stomach rumbled¡ªthe worries of the forest had made him forget himself. Blinking, he looked down at his own body. He found himself sprawled on a bed of wildflowers, their delicate beauty a stark contrast to the sharp thorns digging through his rumpled linen shirt and trousers. Soren sighed¡ªthis was another problem he had to deal with. No matter how he wished for it, rituals and fairy dust did little to satiate his hunger¡­ At least not yet, anyway. What exactly should I do first? Build a shelter? Maybe look for a river to follow and fish for some food¡­ Somehow?.. He frowned. None of these were things he could do. And even if he did want to somehow leave this forest, there was no correct path for him to head toward. Despite his efforts, seeing anything past the meadow he found himself in was basically impossible. The crimson trees were twisted and twirled into loops around each other, forming a mesh of shadows and uncertainty. He could almost imagine himself needing to snake around their mangled branches, let alone being able to see anything past the few sets of trees. He chuckled, Fuck it, I guess Ill just figure it out as I go¡­ Soren stood up. The cyan grass grazed against his naked feet, bringing life back to his previously numb toes. Walking barefoot around your home turned out to be the worst idea for when rituals went wrong. He walked only a few steps before his eyes trailed off to the ground. Sitting plainly on the grass was a¡­ Book? It was a thick tome that seemed to contain more pages than what its spine could hold. The leather that was stitched to its hard cover was visibly aged; cracks were spread all across its purple surface. Above the leather was a layer of gilded gold that formed patterns which ran across the book¡¯s spine and onto the other side of the cover. However, something else caught his attention. At the center of the book was a small, circular indentation which all the gilded gold patterns were converging on. Soren¡¯s eyes squinted as he leaned in closer to pick up the ancient tome. Much to his surprise, it weighed less than a feather, despite the thickness of its pages. He brushed off the dirt, and his eyes once more darted toward the circle engraved at the center of the cover. It was very strange. His gut feeling was telling him that something had to fit into that space¡ªthat it was a socket of some kind. Is this a grimoire or something? His mind couldn¡¯t help but trail off into fantastical ideas, but his heart knew that something was very off. Why would a random book just lay there, in the open¡­ Did someone place it there for him to find? Or has it always been here? He looked around the meadow suspiciously¡ªutter silence. There was probably no one around him for miles¡ªheck, this entire world could be devoid of other humans for all he knew. Frowning, his eyes refocused on the ancient tome in his hands. The old leather reeked of coffee mixed with tree mulch. There was only one way to find out its purpose; he needed to read its contents. Swallowing down his hesitation, he pulled back the cover and cast his gaze onto the first page. The parchment, with its sun-baked yellowish hue, spoke volumes of the book¡¯s antiquity. It wouldn¡¯t surprise him if he found out it was a thousand years old. But what truly made him bat an eye was what resided at the center of the page. Written in pure English were the following words: Status Name: Soren Andersen Race: Human Age: 22 Vocation: Scribe Soul Weapon: The Records (Unique) (Tier 1 - Tome) Skills: [Record] (Rank 1) - Chronicle the information around you. [Eyes of the Fairy] (Rank 1) - See the unseen. Titles: [Traveler] - You have embarked on a journey across space and time. Echoes of the rift will no longer shatter your sanity. Rune Collection: ??? He stood there motionless for a few seconds, trying to process what he had just read. To anyone who had even an ounce of culture, this was obviously some sort of character sheet commonly seen in video games. Soren himself had spent years of his life grinding away mindlessly at many RPGs, much to the dismay of his grandparents. A part of him wanted to smile at this fantastical development, but another also wondered¡­ How the hell did this book know this information about him? Who wrote it? And for what purpose? The fact that it held his name and age hinted that the book was meant for him in some way. But what truly left him scratching his hair was what his supposed ¡®Soul Weapon¡¯ was named. The Records¡­ The name reminded him of the ritual he conducted. It got him to think¡ªdid his ¡®Secrets of the Records¡¯ ritual truly fail? What if this was the intended outcome all along? Ah, who am I kidding? He grinned from ear to ear. Regardless of how creepy it was, he couldn¡¯t help but be excited. Who wouldn¡¯t want magical powers similar to video games? It was taking his entire will to hold off from testing those ¡®Skills¡¯ out. Before he could continue investigating, however, a faint breeze brushed against his skin and carried with it the sound of muffled laughter and giggles¡ªthe same sounds he had heard when he awoke from his slumber, but this time, they were not fragmented. His eyes widened in a frenzy as he twisted his body to where the source had come from. ¡°Show yourself! Whoever you are!¡± His shouts were met with a heart sinking silence. Sweat trickled down his cheek as he frantically darted his vision across the shrouded woods. What is even going on anymore¡­ It was clear to him now that the silence of the forest did not mean no one was watching. Chapter 2: Record

Chapter 2: Record

Soren''s eyes darted across the serene meadow. Silence prevailed all around him as the winds howled a somber melody. It had been a few minutes, but the eerie laughter he had heard had yet to return. With his back reeking of sweat, he looked back down at the opened tome in his hands and sighed. "Could this book have something to do with this?" He remembered that the laughter had only come to him mere moments after opening it. He cast his vision back onto the ''Status'' page. Other than the mention of his supposed ''Soul Weapon'' being related in some way to the ritual he had cast, he was much more curious about the only title currently under his possession. The brief description it offered for [Traveler] almost immediately confirmed his suspicions. The forest he was currently in was not a place on Earth at all. He had somehow been magically transported into a new world. A world that seemed to enjoy frightening him with creepy laughter. He shook his head and chuckled. All around him, the sweet fragrance of honeysuckle and jasmine flowers swam happily in the air. Despite the eye-catching elegance of the forest, his heart only felt the opposite. The twisted tree lines reflected in his eyes looked more like a cage than it did a natural habitat, and the distant mushrooms emitted a fuzzy glow, which he assumed to be clouds of spores. Whether they were poisonous or not was not something he was eager to test. If he wanted to survive in this half-sinister, half-jolly environment, he would need more than just wits. He needed a way to defend himself from the countless potential dangers lurking within this ''Enchanted Forest.'' Fortunately, he already had an idea regarding this. The ''Status'' page not only displayed information about his titles but also a section labeled ''Skills.'' It wasn''t hard for him to assume what these were as an avid player of video games. According to the book, he currently possessed two skills, [Record] and [Eyes of the Fairy]. When he first read over their descriptions, he couldn''t help being disappointed. Neither of them offered any way for him to defend himself. [Record] apparently allowed him to chronicle information¡ªwhatever that meant. As for this supposed eye ability, three words made up its entire description¡­ "See the unseen..." He muttered to himself. What exactly did the ''unseen'' even mean? Did it allow him to see invisible things? Or could it hint at the fact that there was some sort of hidden reality that everyone was oblivious to? Either way, the only thing he could realistically think to use it for was to scout potential dangers. If there were any hidden enemies around him, this ability could somehow help in detecting them; at least that''s how he assumed the ability to work. He had no way to test it. He had tried reciting the name of the skills out loud, as well as in his own head, but neither of these methods magically worked to activate them. If what the book was displaying had any ounce of truth to it, the skills he supposedly possessed needed to have some sort of condition or rule for their activation; conditions he had no knowledge of. He held his chin tightly, "Could me being a scribe have anything to do with it?" Scribes, as he knows them, were tasked with writing information. They were known as record-keepers in olden times. Suddenly, a thought entered his mind. If his vocation was called ''Scribe'', did that not hint at the fact that the book wanted him to be a record-keeper? His Soul Weapon itself was called ''The Records'' for a reason. A faint smile littered his lips. Maybe I need to add information or knowledge to the book... This was all going by the assumption that the book itself was the Soul Weapon. Nowhere in the status page did it ever declare itself as such. Just as he was about to think of ways to add information to the book, it suddenly began to glow. Soren''s eyes widened as he stared at the status page and the rest of the tome, blanketed with golden light in absolute disbelief. The edges of the pages shimmered, as if they had been transformed into flames, yet their original shape remained the same. Even though Soren was holding the book tightly, the incorporeal flames did not burn him. He could feel warmth softly entering into his palms; it was akin to holding a cup of hot chocolate on a winter day. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Suddenly, without a breath of wind or the touch of a hand, the pages began to turn. They fluttered softly, as if they were embraced by an unseen force. Then, without giving Soren a chance to react, they picked up speed, flipping rapidly through what looked to be numerous empty chapters. It seemed as if the entirety of the book was empty except for the first page, which held his status information. The air around the book shimmered in a subtle glow, and the soft rustling of the pages seemed to whisper to its purpose: It had acknowledged his desire to [Record] knowledge into its pages. I see... The way to activate my skills isn''t through some sort of voice command. I needed to think about what I want to use them for¡­ The pages continued to turn for a few more seconds before stopping. The moment the tome landed on this peculiar page, a pitch-black fountain pen magically manifested itself above the book, levitating in the air. A cloud of fog surrounded its form, only to disappear from wherever it had come from. Soren blinked a few times at this development. Is this how the [Record] skill works? I am supposed to use this pen to write down information in the book? He hesitantly inched his hand closer and grabbed it. However, no matter how he tried, the fountain pen would not move. Even when he put all the force in his arm into the task, the pen did not budge a single bit away from its stationary, levitating position. Relaxing his grip, he rubbed his temples and frowned. "How am I supposed to write with it if I can''t even move it?" Nothing was ever straightforward with this supposed ''Soul Weapon.'' He then thought of something. If his skills needed him to think about activating them, then could the same be said with using them? According to the description, [Record] allows him to chronicle the surrounding information. If he couldn''t ''chronicle'' things using the pen, then maybe all he needed to do was to learn about the subject matter he wanted to [Record]. The only way to know would be to test it. Soren looked around him. The small, enclosed meadow he found himself in had nothing of importance. Other than the faint, cyan grass and the distant tree line surrounding him from all sides, there weren''t any landmarks for him to investigate and report on. Wait a second... plants! I can try to investigate the grass and those weird trees! He quickly dropped to his knees. With a bit of force, he pulled a few weeds of grass from the ground and examined them closely. Their faint cyan color dimmed slightly the closer you looked to their roots. Their stems were a slightly brighter hue than the rest of the leaves. From what he could remember of his biology class, plants tended to have a green color to their leaves due to a chemical within their cells that was responsible for their ability to absorb sunlight. Since the grass in this forest was cyan instead, it had to mean that the chemical responsible for their pigmentation was different. He held his chin, "Do they not need sunlight then? What do they use for energy?" He moved the grass to his nose. The aroma it released was almost identical to that of ordinary grass. Although he knew he needed to investigate things and chronicle them as knowledge inside his ''Soul Weapon'', he didn''t know how exactly to do that. Therefore, the only logical conclusion he could come up with was to analyze the subject matter using his five senses and see if maybe that could work. After all, he wasn''t a biology major or a botanist. He followed up with this idea by finally doing a taste test, which resulted in him gagging and spitting it back out. Frowning deeply, he glanced over at the tome. Surprisingly, a reaction did take place. The levitating fountain pen moved on its own and began writing elegantly onto the glowing page. The strokes of ink resembled that of radiant light piercing through the parchment. Soren''s eyes widened; none of the symbols resembled any language that he was familiar with. The fountain pen was producing writing in a completely unfamiliar language. He could only describe the ''glyphs'' as blocky structures reminiscent of Mandarin characters. However, the arcane energies emanating from them were unmistakable. There was an ominous sensation building within his heart the more he tried to pry into their secrets with his eyes. Suddenly, the pen stopped and returned to its freely levitating state. Soren smiled and brushed his lengthy hair back. "It seems that it worked. The Records can only store information that I have learned or analyzed myself. But how much of this information is even truthful? I only made inferences, so would wrong information also be chronicled? Chapter 3: Eyes of the Fairy

Chapter 3: Eyes of the Fairy

Soren reached out to the levitating book and observed as the fountain pen vanished into thin air, as if it had never existed in the first place. This did not invoke any surprise in him, as his thoughts had already trailed away from wanting to record anything. It did, however, confirm to him that his abilities were intrinsically tied to his thoughts, both activating and deactivating them. Just as he was about to flick through the pages of his Soul Weapon, his ears suddenly shot up as sounds he had never heard before swiftly entered his ears. They were noises he should have expected to hear from the beginning; sounds that mirrored and echoed the feel of a forest. From the distant audible sounds of woodpeckers drilling holes into trees, to insects buzzing around him that he had only just now noticed¡ªa flood of information rushed into his mind faster than he could process. He was already feeling overwhelmed by the aromas of countless fauna surrounding him, both close and far, and now there was another sensation for him to focus on. What the hell? The silence of the forest he had only just adapted to had now been replaced by the chaotic sounds of nature. He felt as if he was a monochromacy patient, finally seeing color for the first time. How could this be? From the chirping of birds to the ruffling of leaves and bushes¡­ No wonder he was so anxious before this. His mind had already alerted him of something feeling off ever since his awakening, but it was only now that he was beginning to notice the reason behind it. Why did I not hear any of these noises from the start? What the hell is up with this forest? Chills were running up and down his spine. His eyes were trailing off into the direction of the noises, past the twisted treeline blocking his vision. He had no idea how close some of these animals had been to him; if he had failed to hear them and entered into their territory accidentally, would he not have been viciously attacked? He gulped down a mouthful of saliva. Although the laughter he had heard earlier was creepy, what he was currently experiencing felt much worse. Something was clearly off about this forest from the very beginning. The moment his vision had returned to him, he had spotted a large bird with feathers more enchanting than the autumn leaves. And yet, not once had he heard that bird chirp or make a noise, even with its wings casting the air in all directions. And only a few moments later, all semblance of the creature, and whatever flock it belonged to, had disappeared completely. But just as he was about to make heads or tails of his current predicament, he realized something more unsettling. His sense of smell¡ªit had vanished faster than even the fountain pen of his Soul Weapon. Instead of the earthly aroma of jasmine flowers and damp soil, his nose detected nothing but the sterile, antiseptic cleanliness of a hospital room. The once vibrant meadow had turned into an inodorous void. At this point, the adrenaline was shooting through his body like fireworks. Not only had he failed to realize his sense of hearing had most likely been altered with, he could now no longer even feel a whiff of the countless honeysuckle flowers scattered across the meadow. He watched as they all swayed happily in the wind, unable to even grasp a fraction of the despair he was currently feeling. His lips curled into a deep frown. I need to find a way out of here, fast. Someone or something is clearly fucking with me¡­ He glanced down at the golden shimmering book in his hands. His Soul Weapon¡¯s pages continued to flutter like flames, and yet¡­ Unauthorized tale usage: if you spot this story on Amazon, report the violation. The book felt cold? No, that wasn¡¯t it either. It wasn¡¯t a matter of hot or cold. It was a disconcerting absence, as if he had been turned into a ghost that could pass through anything. His fingers and palms were left feeling like phantoms trying to grasp an illusion. So not only did my sense of smell disappear, but also my sense of touch? How could this be¡­ There was no longer any hesitation in his eyes. Regardless of his missing senses, his gut feeling remained the same: whatever was currently happening to him was dangerous. The situation would most likely continue to deteriorate if he could not find a solution or an answer to what was currently happening to him. Swiftly, he flicked through the ethereal chapters of his Soul Weapon back to the first page. The status sheet he had seen had not changed at all. However, there was a section beneath it that was entirely new. The following words were transcribed: Event Log New Entry Recorded: [Blue Silver Grass] He knit his brows. That¡¯s it?.. A lump began to form in his throat. So out of the entire experiment, it only recorded the name of this grass? How the hell did it even know the name of it in the first place? He ground his teeth in frustration. Could it be that he was destined to lose all his senses and die without knowing why it happened? His mind was racing to reject this notion with every aspect of his will. Fuck, what the hell should I do? Maybe I should scream for help?! No, that might attract those animals instead! How the hell do I escape from something I can¡¯t even see?! He was grappling with a phenomenon that he couldn''t even understand, like trying to fight a shadow in the dark. Suddenly, an idea struck him. Maybe it was out of desperation or he had always been a genius, but the thought of perceiving the unknown reminded him of a certain phrase: ¡°See the unseen.¡± Just as the thought entered his mind, his vision slowly turned into pastel colors. He stared down at the glowing book in his hands. Its shimmering had not ceased one bit. But something was different this time. Strange butterflies made of glowing gold burst out from within the chapters of his Soul Weapon, rushing straight into his hazel eyes. His vision shifted once more¡ªinfiltrated by countless ethereal spirit-like beings, and with them came a haze of information. The pastel colors dissipated, leaving behind a mesh of congruent shapes and objects. Looking beyond the scope of the meadow, strange configurations were morphing indefinitely before his eyes, like fractals trapped within a never ending renaissance painting GIF. The nauseating scene almost made him throw up his lunch from a few hours ago¡­ Was it even a few hours ago? His sense of time had warped; he could no longer even tell up from bottom, or left from right. And yet, within this haziness, he could see more clearly than anyone else. He could see the unseen. And that unseen¡­ It was grotesque in nature. Wrapped around his body were strange strands of skin that slithered across him like snakes. They twisted and twirled into loops around his feet and upper body, while others simply phased through his stomach and out his back. Soren was just about to scream when all fear left his body. The buildup of dread instantly vanished like smoke. He immediately realized what had happened. The entity clinging to him had consumed his emotions and he could no longer feel anything but emptiness¡ªas if he was nothing but a passive spectator to his own body and soul. An indifferent movie-goer who could not relate to any of the characters on display. That character, however, just so happened to be himself. Soren twisted his neck slowly, and the face of the monster behind this egregious attack came into focus. Behind the mesh of fractals was a shape of a large, pale-skinned child. His eyes were pitch black, hiding a deep void within, while the rest of his body beyond his head was made up of an orchestra of skin tentacles that clung around his body. Some of them even phased through him, as if he was a specter. The entity stared directly into Soren¡¯s eyes with an amused expression. There was a hint of mockery in its tone. ¡°Y???o????u??? c???a????n?? ??se???e??? ????m???e¡­¡± Chapter 4: Memories

Chapter 4: Memories

¡°Y???o????u??? c???a????n?? ??se???e??? ????m???e¡­¡± It said, in a gargled and slightly mocking tone. Soren simply stared back into its abyssal eyes with a blank expression on his face. Although his emotions had been stripped away, his ability to think had still not been. Though he doubted that would last for long. Whatever this thing is, it seems to enjoy messing with its food. Why is it trying to converse and not consume more of my emotions? Motivation behind my thoughts is still present, regardless of my current indifference. Like a spectator, he scrutinized the ''child''s'' face and other features more closely. Beyond the unnaturally pale skin, there were a few other significant features that caught his attention. Both of its ears were pointed, resembling an elf, but they were also marred with countless blemishes. From the ear to the left, a viscous black fluid seeped out slowly, similar to what was trickling out from the entity''s eyes. The other ear appeared to be very damaged or injured; noticeable scars could be seen even from a distance, as if someone was trying to rip it off. He also noticed that the tentacles wrapping around him were somewhat see-through. Although, he wasn''t completely sure if that was simply the effect of his skill or not. Could this thing be some kind of ghost or spirit? Since the being was able to talk, he decided to ask it directly. "What exactly are you?" A child-like laughter rang across the fractal-flooded meadow. "I?? d???o?n???''t?? ???kn??o??w??.??.?.???" Soren tilted his neck slightly. "You don''t know?" Could it be trying to consume me to understand more about itself? No, it might simply be trying to find a new meaning for itself through my memories and emotio¡ª Suddenly, his string of thoughts disappeared. Like a puff of smoke, they dissipated in the wind, as if the bonds connecting them to him had weakened. And yet, he knew for a fact that he did have those thoughts. The memory still existed. He observed the child''s lips slowly curling up into a smile. "I see, so you consumed my string of thoughts. Interesting." The entity didn''t reply. It simply dug its skin-like tentacles into his body much more deeply than before. Soren realized that time was running out. He had to think of something quick to escape this predicament. If the creature before him managed to consume even his motivation for thought itself, he might never even find it in him to escape his own death. It had already proved itself capable of such feats. Let''s analyze things from the beginning. I first heard its laughter around the exact time I gained consciousness. The pain ringing in my head at the time made it very hard to distinguish, but it was definitely there.... Whatever this thing is, it must have clung to me at that moment, and managed to steal a portion of my hearing without me noticing. But how did I recover my hearing then? Did it simply give it back to me to mess around? No, there had to have been something that caused my hearing to return¡­ His mind was racing with ideas¡ªSoren realized that the entity consuming his fear might have been a blessing in disguise. Without it, he might have been panicking at this very crucial moment. It seems the process of consuming thoughts, emotions, and senses is not gradual, but instantaneous. It completely eradicated my sense of smell in an instant, rather than diminishing it scent by scent. There is clearly an interval to this... If I can grasp that, I will know how much time I have left before I am doomed¡­ The key to escaping this predicament must be the same one I used to restore my hearing. What exactly did I do just before my hearing returned that could have triggered it? I can''t remember... His thoughts froze. He can''t remember? Did it not just happen to him? The only possible conclusion he could reach, aside from the possibility that he was somehow a dementia patient, was that the memory of the event had been consumed without him noticing. 15 seconds have passed between consuming my thoughts and consuming this memory fragment. Is that thing getting faster? It was indeed becoming faster at consuming him. And from what he could remember of the previous consumptions, it was getting exponentially faster. He knew by now that he probably had less than a minute left before the creature consumed everything. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. Since the memory of the event is gone, I have to instead, piece together a conclusion of what happened, and fast. What exactly could I have done at that time to cause my hearing to return? What events happened before then? I remember picking up a book... Ah yes, my Soul Weapon¡ªThe Records. I remember there was a status sheet showcasing all my information. Wasn''t there a title denoting my status as a ''Traveler'' too? There was also a section titled Vocation, and mine was apparently ''Scribe''... Ah, there were skills mentioned too¡­ Knowing myself, wouldn''t the first thing I would do is try to test those skills? It was a simple guess, but one that came with a gamble. Maybe it was due to him being a ''Spectator'' in his own body, but he could think much more retrospectively about himself in this current state. [Eyes of the Fairy] is what I am currently using to see this... Thing. There was also another skill mentioned... Something to do with chronicle? What was it¡­ Even if I don''t remember the name anymore, my abilities are clearly activated through thought. So what if I just think of chronicling something right now? His eyes shifted to the entity wrapping itself around him. Like this thing in front of me, for example. Suddenly, the glowing book in his hands, which he had momentarily forgotten about, began to glow once more. Blanketed in a sheet of golden light, the ethereal flame like pages turned swiftly until they stopped on one peculiar page. A fountain pen immersed in fog manifested itself and began to write strange symbols across the shimmering empty chapter. Soren''s eyes refocused beyond the flood of fractals, observing the strange glyphs being etched in golden light. The once cold smile present on the child''s face warped into a frown. "N???o???.???.???.???" Soren felt his lips curling up into a smile; his emotions were returning to him. "I am feeling.... Happy?" His smile widened. He didn''t know what exactly he was feeling at that moment. Was it relief? Hope? Or just pure joy? He could only describe it as a sense of euphoria. It felt as though all the weight on his shoulders had vanished, and if he lifted his feet just slightly off the ground, he would float in absolute bliss indefinitely. "It seems my hypothesis was correct! Chronicling information somehow had the effe¡ª" His thoughts trailed off into a dead end. Why?... His eyes stared at the entity coldly once more. It was frowning deeply. "M???u?s??t? ??c?o?n?s??u??m??e??.??.??." Must consume, it says?... But my emotions returned... Ah, did it manage to consume my memory of its existence?.. The effects of my skill must have been canceled... I don''t remember the features I chronicled about it... His thoughts suddenly became sluggish. He could no longer even feel the motivation to think anymore. A wave of indifference crashed against his body, and now he was fully submerged in it. A drowning man that knows he could not swim back up to the surface. "I... guess... I lost..." he muttered. His eyes slowly began to shudder as if the weight of an entire mountain pressed down on his eyelids. His mind had finally given up. So what if he was consumed? It did not matter to him one bit. Death felt much more comfortable, anyway¡­ The entity slowly wriggled its tentacles in a dance around Soren''s body, smiling once more. "I? w?i??n?.?.?.??." With its abyssal eyes, it watched as Soren''s body turned cold and limp. There was no resistance left in its prey. Despite the minor challenges this one posed compared to other humans it had consumed, it was still the victor in the end. The emptiness it felt inside could finally be filled¡ªrestoring the hole in its existence. The memories of this human were quite delectable. Memories of past lovers, caring grandparents, an interesting board game, and even the joy of entering an institution called a ''University.'' Such peculiar memories, unlike anything it had consumed before¡­ And yet it knew that there was much more to this peculiarity¡ªthat there had to be another reason it was attracted to this lowly human from oh so far... What exactly was it? His memories were clearly far more interesting than anything it had consumed before, but why did it feel like there was more to it than that¡­ And so, it drew its spiritual breath once more, inhaling the sweet, sweet nectar it was drawn to in the first place. The memories of that lowly human continued to seep out into its body, one breath at a time. It was only on the last breath that it felt it¡ªthe thing it was seeking all along. Hidden in that human were memories more delectable than anything it had ever consumed before. Memories that instantly killed it. The moment the entity breathed in this final bundle of memory fragments, it felt its own existence fracturing to pieces. And yet, it did not care. For the briefest of seconds, it felt whole again. This was not something it had expected, but the madness contained within those memories was akin to a bright light luring insects to their deaths. "A???H???H???H???H???H???H???H???H???!" It no longer knew whether it had perished in absolute bliss or in the festering flames of madness and chaos. Or maybe¡­ Both. Chapter 5: Remembrance

Chapter 5: Remembrance

A storm was brewing within Soren''s mind. His skull was like a gas canister that had built more air pressure than it could hold. The memories were all returning to him. Every last one of them¡ªat the same time. He could feel his psyche stretching at either end of the emotional spectrum. From fragmented scenes of receiving his first gift from his grandparents, to getting beaten half dead by his father. It was as if he was inside a room filled with TV screens, all playing a different story at once. To say that his mind had become overloaded was an understatement. He writhed in agony for what felt like an eternity, rolling around in the cyan grass. The delicate aroma of wildflowers had invaded his nostrils once more, and yet not even a sliver of relief had washed over him. However, none of that paled in comparison to the whispers scratching at his skull. Those faint whispers... Were they echoes of the past or the future? Or something far more mysterious? He didn''t know. He didn''t want to know. Every time he focused on what the ravings were telling him, he could feel madness manifesting within his heart. As if his emotions themselves were dying. Whatever those whispers were trying to tell him was far too sinister for his mortal mind to grasp. He felt as if his mind was a hard drive without enough space to fit whatever corrupted files ''They'' were trying to pass to him. For every intangible word he grasped, he could feel his eyes rushing to pop out of their sockets. He felt as if his soul itself was shattering. Even though his vision had still not recovered, Soren could feel the blood rushing out of his ears and nose. A metallic tang accompanied his now recovered sense of taste. His brain was melting, and he had no way of stopping it. The memories were all rushing back to him¡ªeven ones he did not desire. The Shattering.... The Fracturing.... Singularity.... "Stop!" He screamed at the top of his lungs. "I don''t want to hear it anymore! Stop!" The murmurings continued to grace his ears forcefully. They were illusory in nature and yet felt real at the same time. Even with his denial, a flame inside him was kindling with the desire to listen to its secrets, even if the cost was his sanity. He tried to resist the mental warfare, but the crushing pain of his mind slowly being ripped apart was too much for him to handle. Even after slamming his head repeatedly against the damp soil, the low murmurs continued to invade his mind. At this point, nothing was working. He began to hope for his suffering to end. Even the thought of having his head slowly being crushed by a hydraulic press sounded more desirable than this¡­ Just when the insanity of it all was about to consume him whole, a sudden sensation washed over him that instantly cleared the screeching whispers clawing at his mind. His eyes widened, and for a brief moment, he could see clearly again before the haziness of his vision returned. What¡­ Just happened? The murmurs disappeared? Why? His body struggled to stand¡ªevery limb resisted the call to rise. Through his blurry vision, he noticed how the world had turned dark. The once crimson trees now had patches of luminescence scattered across their bark. It was hard to tell, but he figured it was some kind of glowing moss or algae sticking to the tree. Nothing could ever surprise him anymore¡­ Although his mind had mysteriously washed away the corrupted thoughts of murmuring voices, the memory did not cease. He could still remember their existence, and if he tried to refocus or remember what they were saying, the pain would return instantly. He decided it was best to just stop thinking about those whispers entirely, for the sake of his own sanity. It took a few more brief moments for him to recollect himself. The ringing pain emanating from his head had ceased slightly. Soren looked around the meadow once more. He was not hallucinating¡ªit did actually turn dark. The story has been illicitly taken; should you find it on Amazon, report the infringement. What the hell? How did night come so fast¡­ Shit. He coughed loudly. An acidic taste covered his mouth. He immediately realized what it was: puke. The nauseating pain had caused him to empty out his stomach without him even knowing it. Gritting his teeth, he pushed himself off the ground and leaned up. His vision darted cautiously across the meadow for any sign of life, both physical and metaphysical. When he realized that nothing was currently there, he shifted his attention back to his Soul Weapon. The leather tome was sitting quietly on his left thigh. It wasn¡¯t glowing like before, indicating that both of his skills had been deactivated. Soren sighed and slowly flipped to the first page. A seething anger was boiling within him. If it hadn¡¯t been for that damn ritual, he would still be a regular college student back on Earth. Why did he have to mess with forces that shouldn¡¯t have been messed with? He shook his head slightly. I am so fucking stupid¡­ I underestimated everything¡­ This world isn''t like Earth in the slightest¡­ Even ghosts that consume your emotions dry exist here¡­ The memories of that¡­ Creature returned to him. His body shuddered in response. I need to figure out what the hell is up with this world and fast. Who knows when another one of those bastards decides to pop up again¡­ His thoughts froze. What if there was another invisible entity attacking him at this moment again? His mind raced to check his emotions and other senses one by one to see if he had lost any of them, but he hadn¡¯t. By now, he had realized that [Eyes of the Fairy] might have an adverse effect on his ability to read time. The moments he spent in that imaginary world filled with impossible shapes and configurations warped all of his senses except for the truth he was seeking. That ability allowed him to tunnel his vision to the absolute extreme, at the expense of everything but what he wanted to see. I should only use that ability when absolutely necessary. I need to keep my psyche in check as well in case I get my emotions or senses consumed without me noticing¡­ He decided to shake away all of those thoughts and focus his attention back on his Soul Weapon. The same status sheet appeared before him, though, he did need to squint in order to see in the dark this time. All of the information appeared the same, except for that new section he spotted during his altercation with the ¡®Ghost¡¯. Event Log New Entry Recorded: [Blue Silver Grass] New Entry Recorded: [Memory Void Spirit] (Malevolent Hex) New Message Received: [Title: Mr. Traveler] (Author: Unknown) His eyes widened. What the¡­ There was a new section he hadn¡¯t seen before. He immediately realized what it was. The information he chronicled about the entity had been added to the event log. But what truly made him scratch the back of his neck was the last logged message. A message from someone? He looked around the meadow suspiciously and gulped a mouthful of saliva. Where exactly am I supposed to find this message? Soren got the answer he wanted immediately after asking for it. HIs Soul Weapon recognized his thoughts and slowly began to glow, blanketed in a sheet of golden light. The pages turned ethereal and an invisible wind blew them away. Hundreds of chapters were flipped through instantly until it arrived at a certain page. Soren squinted his eyes as he slowly read the contents of the ¡®Message¡¯. To: Soren Andersen From: Unknown Date: 15th of Vyak, 1367. ¡°The whispers of history cling to the shadows, yet seek the light of remembrance.¡± Soren furrowed his brows. The whispers of history? What the hell is he talking about? His eyes slowly went down the page to read more. ¡°Greetings, Soren Andersen¡­ Or should I call you, Mr. Traveler now? I do think it has a good ring to it. Though, that might be due to me being biased; I am the one who bestowed that title upon you, afterall. :)¡± Soren immediately stopped reading and backed his head away from the page in shock. His eyes darted across the meadow once more. Suddenly, he noticed his Soul Weapon glowing again. His eyes hesitantly shifted back to the page where he observed new lettering in a dark black ink manifesting itself right before his very eyes. ¡°There is no need to fear my presence. We are worlds apart, after all¡­¡± Chapter 6: Unknown

Chapter 6: Unknown

Soren was shocked. So shocked, in fact, that he didn¡¯t even realize that the being he was conversing with had used digital emoticons in a regular letter. His thoughts were swirling with ideas, unsure of how to approach the conversation. But more than his shock, he felt anger. The person conversing with him was most likely the cause of his current predicament. It being the one that bestowed his one and only title chronicled on the status sheet of his Soul Weapon, was a testament to this conclusion. He grit his teeth before lashing out quietly. ¡°So you¡¯re the bastard who sent me to this place?¡± Soren watched as the words of ink swiftly disappeared, and newer ones took their place. ¡°Hmm, I cannot fault you for thinking that, however, that is wrong. Your arrival on Yarian was a decision you made yourself. Was it not you who prepared and invoked the Secrets of the Records ritual?¡± Soren slammed his hand against the pages. ¡°That ritual wasn¡¯t supposed to function like that, asshole! The description of it on that damned website said that it had the ability to bestow knowledge on those who desired it! The question I asked during the ritual has still not been answered!¡± ¡°Indeed¡­ However, the description you read is not entirely deceitful. That ritual does have the power to bestow knowledge. However, the question you asked was not something it had an answer to¡­ Besides, I do not really appreciate the tone you are using with me. :)¡± Soren¡¯s lips twitched slightly. The fear of almost having his existence consumed had certainly ruined his mental state. Whatever he was currently communicating with was certainly not a normal being. He clicked his tongue. I was not like this before¡­ I need to be more cool headed¡­ It was still far too soon to antagonize a being that¡¯s still keeping things cordial. He needed more time to figure out its intentions. He took in a massive breath and exhaled it slowly. Looking back at his glowing Soul Weapon, Soren lowered his gaze. ¡°I apologize¡­ I just escaped a life and death situation, so I am still feeling very emotional.¡± The words on the page changed once more. ¡°Indeed, I know about it. That Malevolent Hex was something I sent to attack you, after all.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. What?! He took another deep breath to calm himself before asking. ¡°Why¡­ Would you do that?¡± Although he tried to sound amicable, the distaste in his voice was still clearly visible. The words manifested themselves swiftly. ¡°There were many reasons behind this decision, however, wouldn¡¯t you say it helped you?¡± He furrowed his brows. ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°Your confidence is truly unmatched. Maybe it was due to how everyone around you had always treated you as a prodigy, but that same determination and boldness has led you astray. You thought being transported here was similar to a game, didn¡¯t you?¡± Soren frowned. He could notice the mockery in its words, but he couldn''t deny it; the being was speaking the truth. Even during his experiments with the ritual, not once did he ever consider the repercussions. It was all fun and games for him. Even on that website¡­ The black ink lettering shifted. ¡°Even that website, Scribe-of-worlds.com, was a game to you, wasn¡¯t it?¡± Soren sighed and closed his eyes. ¡°Yes¡­¡± ¡°There were many rumors flying around in your city about that website. Rumors of past users going insane after discovering the ritual instructions listed on there. There were even cases of Serial Killers mutilating body parts in order to fulfill the ¡®quests¡¯ asked by their patrons. And when these rumors reached you, you scoffed and thought nothing more of it¡ªit was just another thrill for you to explore, was it not? ¡°The information listed on that website intrigued you more and more until you became obsessed with ¡®discovering¡¯ magic. What exactly led you down this path in the first place? Has your obsession with proving others wrong reached such a point?¡± ¡°Shut up!¡± Soren screamed before realizing what he had done. His eyes shifted across the twisted treeline at the edges of the meadow. Realizing no animal had been alerted to his presence, he looked back down at his Soul Weapon¡ªheart still racing. More words had manifested themselves onto the page. ¡°Indeed, that wasn''t the real reason, now was it? What you truly desired was an escape. You had lost all care for Earth and its inhabitants. Even if it ended tomorrow, it would not have mattered to you. You wanted a new reality. A more exciting reality than the one you grew up in. If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°And, you wanted to seek these thrills as you desired, without the restraint of society holding you down. Your soul cannot lie, Mr. Traveler.¡± Soren¡¯s frown deepened as sweat trickled down his cheek. Nothing the bastard had said so far was wrong. He had grown sick and tired of the world he was living in. The injustices, the betrayal, the abuse. Everything. The books he had grown to immerse himself in were far more interesting. Dragons who breathe fire and heroes slaying them, or maybe even taming them. Mages who could rain down bolts from the sky, or summon the earth to their command. All of these fantastical ideas seemed far more interesting to him. Far more enjoyable than the reality he was living in. Not once in his life had he ever lived for his own sake. Even after his grandparents had adopted him, his sole focus was still on making them proud. It was exhausting, but he at least felt that his efforts were appreciated by his new family. At least, up until they had passed away from that accident. He grit his teeth while his hands reached to cover his face. ¡°You are not wrong¡­ I did seek an escape. But I don¡¯t want that anymore. Take me back home. Please¡­¡± Unlike before, the words on the page this time took a bit longer before changing. ¡°While it is possible to return you home, it will only be for brief moments. Your soul¡¯s runic existence had already been morphed to accept the conditions of The Beyond, here in Yarian. This world is governed by Fantasia, and Fantasia alone. And now, your soul reflects that.¡± Soren read the words slowly¡ªhis eyes squinting further and further down the page. Sweat had built up on his palms as he slowly moved them away from his face. ¡°Yarian¡­ You said that is the name of this world? And what exactly is this, ¡®Beyond¡¯ you speak of?¡± ¡°Yarian is the name of this dimension, correct. As for the Beyond, that is something you will need to seek the answer to yourself, Mr. Traveler. Your journey across this new world will lead you to many of the answers you seek, even that fateful question that led you here in the first place. There is a reason the ritual you invoked led you here.¡± Soren gripped his Soul Weapon tightly. Even that question?... He thought about his next few words more carefully. ¡°You said that I can go back to Earth for brief moments. What exactly did you mean by that?¡± He observed the words changing with anticipation. ¡°That will tie into those memories you have just recently acquired¡ªthe ones who had almost corrupted your very existence and turned you mad.¡± The sudden mention of those memories invoked thoughts regarding the faint whispers he had heard, and a stinging sensation took over his mind once more. Soren bit his lips while massaging the pain away. ¡°What exactly are those whispers¡­. What the hell are those memories?! Where did they come from?!¡± ¡°They are echoes from a long forgotten time. Whispers of history that seek the light of remembrance. The light of influence¡­ During your traversal through the rift, those fragments of long forgotten knowledge invaded your mind. If not for my obfuscation, they would have succeeded¡­ Always remember this, Mr. Traveler: Knowledge is a responsibility, not a right. Not everything must be known¡­ There are times when ignorance becomes more powerful than wisdom.¡± Soren rolled his eyes. I should have fucking heard this quote before invoking that damn ritual¡­ The words continued to roll out as Soren read them. ¡°But this is all besides the point. During your traversal through the rift, an unexpected encounter occurred.¡± He tilted his neck slightly. ¡°An unexpected encounter?¡± ¡°I am not sure why, but during that perilous journey, your soul somehow managed to merge with a fragment of a fragment of a rune. And not just any rune, but a forgotten one. A rune that has been lost for countless millions of years. Through its conceptual influence, you should have been able to acquire another ¡®Skill¡¯, as your Soul Weapon likes to call them. Though, at that time, it was sealed off through my powers in order to protect your soul from its corrupted encroachment. I will now unlock it for you.¡± Soren looked down at his own body and noticed nothing was different. Although it was hard to believe what that being was saying, he knew better than to distrust an entity capable of somehow communicating to him through dimensions. I guess I''ll just have to check my status sheet later¡­ Just as he was about to ask him more questions, the words on the page shifted once more. ¡°Alright, this will be the end of our conversation¡ªI have already fulfilled my obligation to the Universal Root. The title I have bestowed on you should give you ample amounts of protection from the influence of the rift, should you ever choose to activate the powers of that ancient rune you have acquired.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened as he inched his face closer to the page. ¡°Wait, I still have questions to ask you!¡± The ethereal, spirit-like words continued to manifest onto the page without paying him much heed. ¡°I must warn you, however. If you ever decide to venture back to Earth, do be cautious, as numerous runic entities will seek you out. Scribe-of-Worlds has cemented itself as an urban legend. Soon, numerous factions will seek its power, and many more will find out about its connection to you, Mr. Traveler.¡± ¡°Stop! I still have more to ask you! How do I escape this forest?!¡± His pleas fell on deaf ears. The ethereal words shifted for the last time. ¡°Explore, Dream, Discover. That is the goal of your journey. When you have finally arrived at a sound conclusion, we will meet again. As enemies.¡± Chapter 7: Table of Contents

Chapter 7: Table of Contents

Soren¡¯s frown deepened as he noticed the words fading away slowly. In the end, all he was left with was more questions than answers. He slammed his hand against his forehead and clicked his tongue. ¡°Fuck!¡± He was hoping to obtain more information from this entity he had come to call ¡®Unknown¡¯. But it seemed that was too much to ask for. He rubbed his temples slightly before thinking back on all the events that had just happened. The storm brewing within his mind had yet to cease its tempestuous winds. Emotions were continuing to swirl inside him, and long forgotten memories lingered on in the back of his mind. He was reminded of what happened just a few moments prior to him receiving a message from Unknown. The memories of corrupted whispers of the rift ended abruptly, even though his mind was on the brink of collapsing. Although he wasn¡¯t entirely sure, he theorized that Unknown might have had something to do with it. After all, he was the one who allegedly concealed those memories from his mind in the first place. If that theory was true, then it would certainly make sense as to why he survived being consumed by that spiritual entity that attacked him. If it had consumed his memories, the corrupted ones from the rift would have certainly been too much for it to handle. This was all speculation, however. He couldn¡¯t be completely sure as to exactly what happened after he lost consciousness. However, if Unknown¡¯s claim of sending the ¡®Malevolent Hex¡¯, as he called it, after him was true, then it would certainly make sense that the entity would not have been able to handle the corruption hidden within his memories. The attack was designed to fail in the first place, and Soren understood why. It was to warn him. To show him what exactly this world had to offer if he let his guard down. His lips slightly curved into a smile as he slowly stood up within the umbral darkness of the meadow. That bastard was right. I need to get my shit together. This isn¡¯t a video game or a fairy tale. This world might be even more dangerous than Earth¡­ He looked down at his hands. They were shaking. No amount of bravado could ever allow him to forget the helplessness of knowing your core being was slowly being consumed and not having any way to stop it. He clicked his tongue once more and shook the feeling off. There was no time to mope around. His way back to Earth was almost certainly blocked. Even with the ability Unknown spoke of, this world was most likely going to be his home for a very long time. Not to mention, the last few words Unknown spoke about certain factions chasing him the moment they found out about his connection to scribe-of-worlds.com was certainly not a motivator for him to rush back to Earth so quickly. Soren looked over the meadow and past the twisted treeline obstructing his vision once more. He could see countless fireflies and other bioluminescent creatures lurking around in the darkness. The dozen or so large mushrooms he spotted in the morning were also now glowing in a faint, cyan blue hue. Sigh, I can¡¯t believe how much time has passed¡­ [Eyes of the Fairy] is too powerful for me to handle in my current state¡ªI should only use it when necessary. He decided it was best to stay in the relatively safe meadow he was currently in rather than risk roaming the woods without purpose. Navigating in the dark was certainly not a good idea. I should try to use the light emanating from my Soul Weapon to see better. The Records immediately recognized his thoughts and began to glow in a faint, radiant gold. First thing¡¯s first, I need to check my status sheet again. Since Unknown unlocked that ¡®Forgotten Rune¡¯ for me, a new skill should be displayed. At least, according to him¡­ There were still a lot of questions he had no answers to. Like for example, what exactly was Unknown and his purpose? The being¡¯s last line about becoming enemies after he discovers the answer he seeks made it seem like it was an inevitable outcome. But why? Why did Soren and this entity need to become enemies? Did he steal his girl or something? The thought made him shudder for a second before he went back to flipping through the ethereal pages. Status Name: Soren Andersen Race: Human Age: 22 Vocation: Scribe Soul Weapon: The Records (Unique) (Tier 1 - Tome) Skills: [Record] (Rank 1) - Chronicle the information around you. [Eyes of the Fairy] (Rank 1) - See the unseen. [The Faerie Court] (Rank 1) - Enter the realm of realms. Titles: [Traveler] - You have embarked on a journey across space and time. Echoes of the rift will no longer shatter your sanity. Rune Collection: ??? Everything he read seemed the same as before, except for the extra line underneath his two known skills. ¡°Enter the realm of realms¡­ [The Faerie Court]? What?¡± This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. He frowned slightly. This was not what he had in mind. According to Unknown, the skill he had obtained from the ¡®fragment of a fragment of a forgotten rune¡¯ was said to have the ability to return him to Earth. Nowhere in this description was Earth mentioned, unless he was supposed to interpret the ¡®realm of realms¡¯ itself as Earth? He shook his head¡ªall of this was baseless speculation. He would need to test the skill himself to find out what it could do. However, there were still two things holding him back from immediately trying it out. For one, his usage of [Eyes of the Fairy] before had clearly shown signs of having side effects, so what was there to say the same thing won¡¯t apply to this new ability? Traveling back to Earth would entail passing through the rift¡ªa location that almost cost him his life the first time he passed through it. Although his [Traveler] title has the effect of protecting him from the rift¡¯s influence, he couldn¡¯t be completely sure how effective it would truly be. If he wanted to test it, he would need to be in a fairly better situation than he was currently in, as well as more prepared to face whatever could happen the moment he entered this supposed ¡®Realm of realms.¡¯ However, the biggest reason behind this decision would have to be his hesitation to return to Earth immediately. If what Unknown had said was true, there could be many enemies lurking around his neighborhood already looking for him. The rumors around that crappy website he found were most likely true¡ªhis current experiences ascertain that. From serial killers to cannibals, all kinds of stories were attached to that website¡¯s name. And this was besides the info Unknown mentioned about entire organizations marking him as a target as well. The more he thought about it, the more he wanted to go back in time and slap his past self to death. How could he be so stupid? He shook his regrets away once more and observed the ethereal page. The event log from before showed up beneath the information regarding his status. Aside from the letter from Unknown, the two lines regarding him recording the Blue Silver Grass and the malevolent hex known as a Memory Void Spirit intrigued him. At the time, he was not in the right state of mind to fully observe this section of information, and the letter from Unknown also drew his attention completely. He looked down at the event log more closely. Since the night was long, he might as well use the time to explore his Soul Weapon further. I wonder how I can view all the recorded information in this book? Just as the thought approached his mind, The Records reacted immediately and began to radiate in an even more etheric golden hue as the pages suddenly turned on their own. Words written in pure English came into view¡ªones he had not seen before. Table of Contents Recorded Alchemy: ??? Recorded Magecraft: Secrets of The Records Recorded Mysteries: Malevolent Hexes, The Rift Recorded Runology: ??? Recorded History: ??? Recorded Mythology: ??? Recorded Theology: ??? Recorded Sciences: ??? Recorded Realms: Earth, Yarian Bestiary: Memory Void Spirit Herbarium: Blue Silver Grass Mechanica: ??? Musica: ??? Ludologia: Chess Lexicon: English . . . Bingo. His smile widened. This was exactly what he wanted. A compilation of all the information recorded within his book aside from the status sheet present on the first page. But what made him truly excited was the possibilities presented on the different sections of the table of contents. A simple ability like [Record] could blossom in so many ways was not something he ever expected. From mysticism to biology¡ªhis Soul Weapon was able to record anything. He decided to take his time and slowly read more about each section¡ªstarting with Magecraft. Aside from the name itself, the ritual he conducted being categorized under this section gave him ample hints at what it meant. Though, he was not completely sure as to why it was even present on the page in the first place. He hadn¡¯t used his [Record] skill on it. The same could be said with the mention of The Rift, the realms of Earth and Yarian, and possibly the most odd of all of them all: Chess. Even with all his experience in the game, it didn¡¯t make any sense as to why it was mentioned in The Records in the first place. He theorized that his [Record] skill might also work passively somehow. Despite the sour memories it brought back to him, Soren decided to ignore it for now and focused his thoughts on bringing up the information about the ritual itself. The pages responded to his pleas and shifted accordingly¡ªwords describing the procedures he had grown familiar with were reflected in his eyes. Secrets of the Records (Bestowal Type Ritual) Ingredients: Just like the information he had read on the website, everything was the same. The instructions below the ingredients section listed out the steps methodically. You start by placing the ritual altar in a dimly lit area and making sure it was free from any dust or residue that could disturb the ritual¡¯s formation. Then, using your own human blood, you write the intended question on the sheet of paper and place it on the altar with the wax candle on top of it. The hardest part of the ritual had to be the sigil, however. During Soren¡¯s first few attempts, he was never able to fully replicate the shapes and runes described in the sigil correctly¡ªhis disgusting art skills always ended up leaving them deformed. It took him countless practice sessions to finally draw the sigil correctly. The next step would be to light the candle and burn the moth wings every 30 seconds while reciting the incantation listed on the website. However, even after completing all the steps correctly, all his attempts ended in failure. He tried contacting others on the website who simply told him to focus his mind better¡ªadvice he scoffed at, dismissing it as delusional comfort for those who couldn¡¯t accept the possibility that this was all fake. Oddly enough, none of the people he spoke to had even heard of the ritual he was trying to conduct. That alone should have made him more suspicious about the ritual he was attempting to recreate but by that point, he had already sunk too much time into this to chicken out. And so, he decided to persevere anyway. If their advice was true, then all he needed to do was figure out a way to calm his mind and focus it entirely on the incantations of the ritual. And what better way to do that than drugs? He knew a few dealers in college and decided to buy some of their stuff the night before he attempted his sixth try of the ritual. The result? Well¡­ It worked. Turns out, drugs are good for you. Chapter 8: Twilight Forest

Chapter 8: Twilight Forest

Now that he thought about it more, it wouldn¡¯t be that far fetched for him to believe that everything he had experienced so far had all just been him being under the effects of the drugs he consumed. Though, even if that was true, he would still need to keep himself calm. He was already very sure that the amount he consumed did not put him at risk of overdosing, and even if this was all just the effect of a really bad trip, panicking might only make it far worse for him in the end. Ultimately, however, getting attacked by a ghostly apparition consuming your very thoughts and existence was certainly not something common among bad trips. He shook his head slightly. There is no point in thinking about this right now. If I really am in some messed up dream, I''ll wake up soon anyway. His eyes trailed back toward the words outlining the ritual instructions. One thing he didn¡¯t fully understand was why it was so important for him to focus on the incantation in the first place. There had to be a connection between his mental state and how magecraft functioned on a basic level. If he could figure out the reason, he might be able to experiment with even more magic. Without any leads, however, he decided to explore his Soul Weapon further instead. With just a thought, The Records raced across its ethereal pages to show him the information he desired about the Blue Silver Grass he had previously recorded. He was curious as to how much information was actually stored. Blue Silver Grass A ubiquitous plant that grows in every part of the forest. Its texture is reminiscent of normal grass that grows on the Earth plane of existence, however, its primary source of energy does not stem from sunlight. A strange power lingers across its stems that stretches out into infinity¡ªone that can only be perceived through the mind. Soren blinked twice before running a hand across his chestnut hair. A strange power¡­ That can only be perceived through the mind? He was immediately reminded of his previous string of thoughts. Could this energy source it speaks of have something to do with why I needed to focus on my mental state when declaring the incantation of the ritual? An energy source that is commanded through willpower? It wasn¡¯t a far fetched idea. Though, it did confuse him as to how he was able to perceive this information and record it in his book in the first place. By the short description, he was clearly able to tell that The Records only recorded what he was able to understand himself¡ªand yet the mention of this strange power was not something he perceived on his own. Though this was not the first time his skill had somehow recorded things he himself hadn¡¯t done. There was some form of mystery behind it that he was still unable to understand. He decided to move on toward the other piece of information he was able to record. Memory Void Spirit (Malevolent Hex) A corrupted spiritual being that exhibits the visual features of an elf. This spiritual entity has clear signs of it being once a living being with a physical body. It had been transformed into a Malevolent Hex, a being that does not naturally exist. Some form of corruption lingers within its being, causing it to forget itself. This makes it seek out the memories, senses, experiences, and emotions of other living creatures. This surprised him. He did not expect there to be this much information present, especially when compared to what was recorded for the Blue Silver Grass. Though the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. Unlike the first time he used [Record], he was only able to see the Memory Void Spirit using his other skill, [Eyes of the Fairy]. Its description being ¡®see the unseen¡¯, had finally made sense to him. That ability allowed him to instantly absorb knowledge that was usually inaccessible, simply by perceiving an object or being with his special eyes, even if they were intangible or invisible. He couldn¡¯t help but smile. His [Record] and [Eyes of the Fairy] abilities were clearly meant for each other¡ªtheir synchrony was a clear design choice. One allowed him to learn and perceive new things easily, while the other allowed him to record that information into words and descriptions that made it easier for him to understand. I was wrong in doubting you¡­ My abilities are clearly far more useful than what I initially thought¡­ If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. Just when he was about to explore the rest of the recorded information, he heard a faint sound coming eastward. It was a mixture of crunched leaves, broken branches, and ruffled bushes, and the sound was only getting louder with every step. Whatever it was, it was clearly heading for him. Soren frowned slightly before commanding his Soul Weapon to dim its glow. He quickly sprinted for a nearby bush and hid inside. It only took moments for the approaching being to head into the clearing Soren was positioned in. Although he wasn¡¯t able to see it with his eyes completely, the glowing flora and fauna surrounding the meadow gave him a clear silhouette of the¡­ Monster that had approached the one location he assumed was safe. Soren couldn¡¯t help but quiver as he stared at the shape of its body¡ªits most obvious feature being its missing head. The rest of its form gave the impression of an ogre-like creature that was around twelve feet tall¡ªit was holding a massive wooden club in its colossal right arm that could most likely eviscerate his body into pieces with a single swing. He held his breath. Don¡¯t notice me, don¡¯t notice me¡­ The creature continued to roam across the meadow, as if it was looking for someone¡ªhim. Beads of sweat trickled down his forehead. Could it be that it sensed the commotion from earlier? Let¡¯s just hope it doesn¡¯t sniff me out or something¡­ He spoke too soon. Soren observed the creature standing still for a few seconds before shifting its entire body faster than he could blink¡ªIt was looking at him, and even more creepy was how it was doing it. On its chest was a large singular, glowing eye that radiated in amber light. Veins of blood could be seen stretched towards its pupil as it focused on Soren¡¯s exact location hidden within the bushes. Fuck. It didn¡¯t take a genius to know that whatever he was facing was clearly an enemy. Without a moment''s hesitation, Soren shifted his body and sprinted towards the woods. The creature noticed and a loud roar escaped its body as it stomped across the meadow with the desire to catch him. Shit, shit, shit! What the actual fuck is wrong with this forest?! Can¡¯t I at least get a good night¡¯s sleep?! In all his 22 years of life, he had never run this fast before¡ªthe adrenaline was once again pumping all across his body. And yet, he could hear the creature catching up to him¡ªits stomps were getting louder and louder. It didn¡¯t help that the forest was also trying to stop him. Its twisted treeline made it difficult to navigate in a straight line. Every time he had to duck or avoid a large branch, he could feel the monster catching up to him. He couldn¡¯t understand how it was going so fast until he looked behind him and noticed it simply breaking its way through the trees as if they were made of tissue paper. What made the situation even worse was that he wasn¡¯t even sure where exactly he was heading. For all he knew, an even bigger monster could be hiding away in front of him. Although he didn¡¯t really want to, he had no choice but to try to activate [Eyes of the Fairy] again. He didn¡¯t know whether it could help him navigate the woods, but it was still far better than roaming them blind. His Soul Weapon recognized his thoughts and levitated right next to him¡ªthe ethereal pages smoldering like flames shifted into tiny golden butterflies that swam into his eyes. The world twisted around him¡ªcolors shifting like ripples across an endless sea. Shapes, ever so beautiful, manifested before him. They morphed infinitely, unimpeded by time and space itself. But at that moment, none of it mattered. The wonders hidden behind an unseen veil before him paled in comparison to the shimmering light reflecting in his eyes. He couldn¡¯t tell what color it was¡ªmaybe it was something completely alien to even his own mind''s interpretation of color itself. But it didn¡¯t matter; it was there to guide him. The light stretched on before him, twisting in countless ways to avoid the twilight forest¡¯s corrupted treeline. Like a mindless drone powered entirely by adrenaline and a firm will to live, Soren followed its guidance without a single deviation. His vision was getting more and more narrowed¡ªhe wasn¡¯t sure where exactly he was heading or how much time had passed. All that mattered was following the light stretching into infinity. The roars and ruptured stomps of the monster chasing him could no longer be heard. All his senses were focused on simply chasing after the string of dazzling light guiding him toward the right path. Some undetermined time later, the world shifted once more back to what it was originally. The spell was lifted from Soren¡¯s eyes as he snapped awake in the middle of his sprint. In the distance, he noticed a faint speck of light hidden away behind the fickle treeline. What the hell happened to me? He looked back and noticed that the creature that had been chasing him was gone¡ªnowhere to be seen. Even so, he still could not drop his guard. The warnings from Unknown were still ringing true in his heart. Chapter 9: Investigation

Chapter 9: Investigation

It was a regular Wednesday morning¡­ At least for everyone else but Julie. It had only been three days since she had started working for this ominous company, and everything had already gone to shit. Today was no better. An entire neighborhood was quarantined due to signals they had received about a possible outbreak of corrupted Anima spreading in the vicinity. She looked across her shoulders¡ªtwo masked guards armed with ominous weaponry she had never in her life seen before escorted her toward the home they were going to investigate. The supposed ground zero. Stepping out of the vehicle and into the blinding sunlight, Julie took hold of the house she was instructed to enter. It felt very familiar to her for some reason. Have I been here before? Though that hardly mattered at this point. Finding out only three days prior that supernatural entities existed in this world made it impossible for her to even care about such mundane topics. Even worse, she had still not been allowed to contact her own mother or any other family member. Overgrown grass, weeds popping up across the driveway, mold clinging to the walls¡ªeverything about the house signaled to her that whoever lived here was clearly careless. The two masked soldiers towered over her as she was escorted into the home. Stepping through the door, a foul smell invaded her nostrils. Ugh, what the hell? Was this place a crack den or something?! ¡°Do not focus on the odor. Keep moving,¡± the armed guard shoved her into the building. ¡°Y-yes sir.¡± She smiled toward him as she swiftly walked inside the dimmed living room while holding her breath. Why the hell is everyone in this company so damn rude? At the center of the living room, she noticed a tall man wearing a black suit that was hard to spot in the dim light, standing with his arms crossed. From his short gray hair, she was able to know who it was immediately. Director 004¡­ Fuck, why did it have to be him?.. Noticing her approach, the man shifted his neck back. Other than his thin, rounded glasses, it was easy to spot his signature frown even from a mile away. Whatever the situation was, it was certainly not good. Standing before him, she straightened her posture and greeted him. ¡°Sir, as instructed, I am here.¡± The two guards saluted toward him from behind her. ¡°Mhm,¡± he looked down at the floor¡ªJulie¡¯s eyes trailed to his. At the center of the living room was a small altar with an unlit candle placed above it. Even in the darkness, she could visibly see a sigil marked in ink drawn across the altar¡¯s surface. The director¡¯s husky voice broke her chain of thoughts. ¡°Intern B34, Julie-Anne Kafka. What do you think of this situation?¡± She gulped down a mouthful of saliva before answering. ¡°It seems like the person living here had invoked some kind of r-ritual, sir.¡± Sweat trickled down her forehead, calm down Julie, calm down¡­ It will be over soon¡­ The man simply nodded. ¡°Have you been briefed about the situation yet?¡± ¡°N-no, sir.¡± He leaned down on one knee and closely observed the sheet of paper draped in blood beneath the candle. ¡°This house belonged to an individual named Soren Andersen. Prime characteristics are as follows: 22 years of age, 5''10" in height, Caucasian male, slim build weighing approximately 150 pounds. He has chestnut hair and hazel eyes. Additional characteristics include prominent eye bags and a distinct nose bridge. His facial structure is symmetrical with a defined, pointy chin.¡± Julie, however, zoned out the moment she heard his name being mentioned. ¡°Soren Andersen? That Soren Andersen?¡± The director gave her a quick look that made her shudder in fear before answering. ¡°Correct. The suspect behind this incident is the same individual you knew in your past, according to our records.¡± How much did these bastards research about me¡­ She brushed her sleek, raven black hair behind her ear. ¡°So you suspect that maybe he was behind this ritual? The Soren Andersen I knew was a pragmatic guy who always put logic over everything else. Why would he dabble in the occult?¡± The director stood up and placed his arms behind his back. ¡°That is for you and the team I am assigning you to investigate. IRE U-1549, as it has been dubbed, still remains elusive in this sector, so I will also be providing you with Phantasm Task Force 3¡¯s omega division to provide an extra layer of defense in case anything goes wrong. You will await further instructions in the meantime, as Dr. Miguel has still not arrived on the scene.¡± The man walked past Julie slowly, reaching the exit of the house. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. ¡°I expect great things from you, Intern B34.¡± Seeing his figure leaving the scene, Julie sighed inwardly. That freak is finally gone¡­ She looked down at her trousers¡ªluckily, she hadn¡¯t pissed herself. Ever since she had been hired by the Human Preservation Project, as they call themselves, every one of her colleagues had warned her about not getting on Director 004¡¯s bad side. There was a clear reason behind this too¡ªone that she fully understood herself the moment she met him three days ago. She was unsure why, but a suffocating aura always encompassed him. It felt as if she was in the grasp of his palm, a mere ant that could be squished at any moment. She had almost fainted the first time his gaze reached her direction. Calm down Julie¡­ Just 6 more hours to go¡­ The shift is almost over¡­ Deciding it was best to forget about 004, she leaned down toward the wooden altar to get a closer look. The smell of burnt wax indicated to her that it had not been that long since Soren¡¯s disappearance. She turned to face the two armed soldiers that were still standing behind her. ¡°When will Dr. Miguel arrive?¡± Without his arrival, messing with the scene too much could hinder their investigation. The one on the left voiced, ¡°in approximately 10 minutes. The area has been thoroughly secured¡ªno signs of hidden IRES spotted.¡± I never asked you about other IREs though¡­ She smiled at him faintly, ¡°Say, Phantasm Task Force 3, isn¡¯t that the PTF in charge of dealing against vagrant cult activities? Why did the higher ups or Director 004 assign them to this mission? This seems like a one off case of an individual dabbling in something they had no proper understanding of¡­¡± ¡°.....¡± She coughed to ease the awkwardness and went back to observing the altar. Fine, don¡¯t answer me, asshole. It had to be mentioned that although she knew Soren since they were children, he was a fairly distant kid in the past¡ªsomeone who refused to engage in conversations with others. Julie used to find him very annoying, but as she had grown and learned more about his troubled family life, she did approach him a few times to make friends¡­ At least tried, anyway. It wasn¡¯t very hard to understand why, either. Every person who had ever approached him simply did so for their own benefit; even his own parents. Why would he ever trust anyone at that point? Ever since his talent for chess had been discovered at the age of 6, his entire life had been a mess¡ªat least, that¡¯s what she had heard from others. What she did know however, was that he would eventually be called ¡®The Failed Prodigy.¡¯ Perhaps as an act of rebellion or due to burnout, he had abandoned the one thing that had made him unique in the eyes of others. Frowning, she stood up and turned to face the two armed guards, who were now watching over the entrance of the house. ¡°Can I go explore the home a bit?¡± Her memories of this place were still a bit fuzzy, but she did remember that it once belonged to Soren¡¯s grandparents. She had visited them when she was younger once before. The armed soldiers stayed silent, which she interpreted as them giving her permission. It¡¯s not like they can¡¯t stop her if they decided what she was doing was wrong, anyway. Walking up the stairs to the second floor, she approached the door leading toward Soren¡¯s room and opened it. It felt kinda wrong to invade his space like this, but she was eventually going to have to enter the place anyway once Dr. Miguel arrived on the scene. The first thing that welcomed her was a cloud of dust. The place had obviously not been cleaned in a long time. She squinted her eyes as she entered the room and flicked the light switch. The bedroom came into focus¡­ If she could even call it that. Other than a single bed on the right side of the room, a dresser with a broken mirror next to the door, and a closed window positioned above a normal-looking computer desk, nothing else was present. There were also a few chess books, and a folded chess board tucked away next to the desk, but everything else seemed plain, at least when compared to the usual suburban home in her neighborhood¡­ It was very strange¡ªAlthough his family life was troubled, Soren wasn''t very lacking when it came to finances. Countless chess federations had sponsored him over the years. Brushing away the dust off of her clothes, she stepped inside slowly. Julie noticed a few peculiar items on the bed that she couldn¡¯t really recognize from afar¡ªthey looked to be pill containers of some sort. Just as she was about to walk towards them, the PC fans blared loudly, grabbing her attention. What the?.. She frowned as she observed the computer on the desk turn on its own. A sudden chill ran down her spine. Could it be a rogue IRE?! I thought they already secured the area?! She clumsily reached for her waist¡ªa pistol holstered tightly to it. Even if she lacked adequate training, she refused to die a dog¡¯s death without at least fighting back, though most of her knowledge on IREs made them out to be invulnerable to most traditional attacks. The computer continued to boot, but weirdly enough, instead of the usual display screen, a popup window appeared. Her eyes squinted as she read the words displayed on the monitor with a loading icon beneath it. ¡°Scribe-of-Worlds? Isn¡¯t that IRE U-1549¡¯s name?!¡± Chapter 10: Scribe-of-Worlds

Chapter 10: Scribe-of-Worlds

IRE Identifier: 1549 Codification: Upsilon (Unstable) Description: IRE U-1549 is a forum website associated with the domain ¡®www.scribe-of-worlds.com¡¯ that contains an anomalous onload script titled ¡°fairywitness.js¡±. It is highly probable that this Irregular Runic Entity takes on the form of a JavaScript file in order to mark returning users for its own deceptive agenda. Users are instructed in occult followings and provided with ritualistic magecraft that delves into the topics of [REDACTED]. A communications portal is available for user interaction, and a forums page exists where users discuss their achievements in the occult and engage in various illegal transactions. Effects: Users are known to have gone insane or turned into cannibalistic monsters devoid of conscious thought. Those marked by its corrupted Anima would occasionally show signs of delirium, chanting ¡°All Hail The Faerie Court!¡± Before inflicting injuries upon themselves and others in their vicinity. Long-term exposure to any known victim will lead to similar symptoms. Those who are found to have been marked by fairywitness.js are to be neutralized immediately unless instructed otherwise. Addendum: IRE U-1549 was discovered by a Human Preservation Project web-crawler. Further experimentation showed that the Anima signals utilized by U-1549 could bypass all major ISP blockers and firewalls. Access to the website must be granted by Director Level personnel only. The information she read in the file played in Julie¡¯s mind. It was only on her second day that Dr. Miguel shared the case file with her. According to her colleagues, it wasn¡¯t uncommon for rogue IREs to pop up around the city, especially one as densely packed as New York. But for it to be this deadly and could spread not just airborne, but through internet cables themselves was highly unusual. Despite being an intern, her division just so happened to be in the area, and the team she was instructed to work with was dispatched to investigate the situation. And now, she was faced with this same digital creature with no one to help her. She pulled out the pistol from its holster and aimed at the computer monitor. Why the fuck is my luck so dogshit? Squinting her eyes, she pulled the trigger, shooting a hole through the monitor screen. The recoil almost caused her to lose her grip on the gun. She opened her eyes faintly and looked back at the monitor screen, which was now in shambles as the pixels continued to shift unevenly. I can¡¯t let my guard down¡­ It could still be alive¡­ Whatever the fuck it even is¡­ She couldn¡¯t be more right. Just as she was about to back away and head for the stairs, she noticed a faint, golden butterfly in her peripheral vision. She flinched backwards as the golden light flashed in her eyes. ¡°Ugh!¡± She rubbed her eyelids and crawled back in fear while shakily aiming the gun at the broken monitor. ¡°What the hell just happened?!¡± She couldn¡¯t make sense of what had changed, but¡­ There was definitely a change. Her head was filled with faint whispers that raved on within her mind, and yet, they were too soft to fully hear. Every time she focused on them, a stinging sensation would take over her body. Before she could even lift herself off the ground, the two guards rushed up the stairs with their weapons pointed at her. Her eyes widened when she noticed their presence. ¡°Report?¡± She lifted her hands up and took a deep breath before answering. ¡°IRE U-1549 was spotted. It displayed itself on the monitor screen inside the room. I sh-shot at it¡­¡± I hope they don¡¯t think I''m lying¡­ The agent signaled to his partner to investigate while he kept aiming the weapon at her. ¡°Anything else?¡± Her brows furrowed. What else should I say?... She suddenly remembered the golden butterfly she saw before her vision turned blurry, as well as the faint whispers within her head¡ªa clear sign of being corrupted or marked by the rogue IRE. A chill ran down her spine. Would the organization kill her if she disclosed this? Julie was always cursed with bad luck, but she didn¡¯t lack intelligence. Reading over the case file on this IRE the day before already told her a bit about how those who were corrupted by its influence were treated. There was no way in hell that she would ever disclose that information. Support the creativity of authors by visiting the original site for this novel and more. ¡°N-nothing else for now¡­ But it could still be traversing across the other devices in the home.¡± The soldier stared at her coldly while continuing to aim his weapon at her. Sweat trickled down her chin as she tried to ignore his suspicions. ¡°Nothing else to see here,¡± the other agent reported. He had found no signs of IRE U-1549 in Soren¡¯s room. The two soldiers looked at each other and nodded. One of them forcefully pulled Julie away by her shirt, dragging her outside the home while the other went to investigate the other rooms in the house. Julie straightened out her shirt and tie while sitting down on the pavement outside the house. She stared up at the agent standing next to her¡ªweapon still drawn to her head in case she even dared to try anything funny. He activated his communications device. ¡°Incident Report: Agent B34 came into contact with IRE U-1549, according to her account. Requesting PTF-0 support.¡± Julie frowned. PTF-0? Why would they be needed? It had only been a few days for her since she had joined the organization¡ªmany of the divisions and units were still very unfamiliar to her. But she did understand one thing and that PTF-0 was only requested in extremely dire situations such as dealing with Pandemonium class IREs or events that could threaten entire populations. Even if the agent discovered something was wrong with her, PTF-3¡¯s omega division would have been more than enough to deal with it. Heck, even the Special Services Agent that¡¯s holding her right now could kill her without even batting an eye. Her thoughts continued to swirl for a few more agonizing minutes before three armored vehicles rolled into the street. The sigil of a shield in the shape of a globe pierced by a sword was visibly painted on their sides. Julie watched as all the agents hopped out smoothly, ready for action. However, her eyes darted to where Dr. Miguel was. The signature kind smile and slightly grayish hair, paired with his usual lab coat that was marked with the Human Preservation Project¡¯s logo, reflected in her eyes. Finally¡­ The man walked toward her slowly before smiling at the agent who was saluting him. ¡°Intern B34, I heard you have come under an unusual situation?¡± She smiled faintly in relief. ¡°Y-yes¡­ I was approached by what I believe was IRE U-1549¡­ It displayed itself on the monitor screen with text that read, ¡®Scribe-of-Worlds¡¯ in bold lettering. Beneath the text was a loading icon. I believed it was trying to attack me, so I immediately used my firearm and shot the monitor screen¡­¡± His hand ran across his chin, ¡°I see¡­¡± He looked at the agent standing next to her. ¡°Have you requested PTF-0 support?¡± The man saluted, ¡°Yes sir. They will arrive in 5 minutes and 43 seconds.¡± ¡°Good.¡± He looked back down at Julie and frowned. ¡°It seems like we will need to update our understanding of the true nature of IRE U-1549. Its codification needs to be changed from Upsilon to Alpha once again¡­¡± Julie tilted her head sideways. ¡°Why is that?¡± ¡°It''s because its nature has changed. We were under the assumption that it did not approach its victims directly¡ªthat it simply spread through word of mouth. As more people learn about the website and search up its domain, they would come into contact with the onload script that forms a connection to them using Anima. But that does not seem to be the case if we take your word as a gospel.¡± She gulped. Could they still be suspicious of my story? Dr. Miguel continued. ¡°Secondly, since it showed up in this home, it''s fair to say that it has some connection to Soren Andersen¡¯s disappearance case as well as his ability to perform occultist magecraft. Though, according to what Director 004¡¯s recount, it seems that the ritual he was conducting was far different from any of the other mysticism knowledge that was advertised to users on the website. It also doesn¡¯t really make sense for him to disappear, as all our previous research showed that users of IRE U-1549 simply lost control of their minds or turned into cannibalistic monsters. None of them disappeared spontaneously like this¡­¡± He ran his hand through his hair. ¡°However, none of this will really impact you. Your involvement in this case will be over once we know more about your connection to the individual named Soren Andersen.¡± She sighed in relief. ¡°I see¡­ I''m guessing you guys will be doing some tests on me to see if anything is wrong due to my interaction with IRE U-1549?¡± Miguel¡¯s eyes darted back toward her. ¡°Very astute¡­ Yes, that will be a requirement. A psychological and physiological assessment will also be taken. But do not worry, I¡¯ve already somewhat assessed your current state. I doubt they will give you any trouble.¡± Julie sighed. My luck is truly rotten. There was nothing she could do but accept it. At the same time, her thoughts lingered on the info regarding the case and IRE U-1549. Between me and Soren, I wonder who is more unfortunate right now? I hope it¡¯s him, hehe. Chapter 11: Twilight Melody

Chapter 11: Twilight Melody

His sprint had ended with a slight jog toward the fleeting light entwined in the distant treeline. With jagged breath, he stomped his bare feet to continue their march, regardless of the numb feeling coming from them. If it weren¡¯t for his adrenaline, he¡¯d probably be screaming in pain from all the cuts they had received¡ªnot to mention the possibility of them getting infected. Ugh, did someone put a curse on me or something? Why the hell is my luck so horrible as soon as I transmigrate to a different world? Still, he swallowed down his indignations and forced himself to continue moving toward the flickering light. His instincts were telling him that he needed to get there. Wait¡ªInstincts? The thought made him wonder. Since when did I rely only on just my instincts? I would never do that. And yet, he was continuing his march regardless. It wasn¡¯t so much as a gut feeling. It was more of a guided sensation¡ªsomething more tangible and real. He didn¡¯t know why, but his entire being was putting its trust into that sensation. He bit his lips. Just this once¡­ I don¡¯t have a choice anyway. He theorized that it may be a lingering effect of [Eyes of the Fairy] that was still guiding him toward the right path. He had been jogging for 10 minutes since the ability had worn off and yet, the distant light had still not shrunk any closer. How big is this forest, anyway? Does it extend forever? His heartbeat was beating out of his chest¡ªexhaustion was closing in on him. Still, he was surprised to have been able to run this long at all. The hours he spent not exercising his body had to make up close to 99% of his time alive in total. He was a completely hopeless couch potato. Heck, even a potato put more effort than him at growing itself. His thoughts continued to wander aimlessly as his limbs began to resist their call to run. He wanted to lay down and rest, but he knew how dangerous that would be. Rather than resting in the eternally dark twilight forest surrounded by numerous unseen dangers, he would rather throw himself into the light, regardless of how much effort it would take. Though, even the light didn¡¯t guarantee his survival¡ªhe could simply be another moth swimming pointlessly toward an all-consuming flame. Still, his mind protested the desire to collapse. He continued to push himself forward, one step at a time. The flicking light was extending itself more and more. He could almost picture a large enough meadow, similar to the one he awoke in. Suddenly, a tune carried by the wind approached his ear. His half sunken eyes widened. What was that sound? A calming melody was coming into focus¡ªone that could make the flowers bloom and the butterflies dance a joyful waltz. His chaotic thoughts soothed slightly. His dreary eyes brightened¡ªthe glowing fauna radiated a texture of tranquility, regardless of the terror he once felt from it all. Maybe it was all a matter of perspective. A caged forest, huh¡­ It made him reflect back on all he had seen since arriving in Yarian. Even in the midst of danger, nature was truly beautiful. A smile took hold of his face. What the hell am I thinking about right now, haha. His leg muscles, which used to burn, now felt more alive than ever. The distant chimes radiated a feeling of freedom¡ªone he had yearned for since his dreaded childhood¡ªif he could even call it that. He thrusted his feet forward, sprinting faster toward the distant light. The brilliance of the flute was becoming more and more vibrant the closer he reached. Maybe this world truly has the answers I desire, he thought. Maybe it was never a mistake to travel here¡­
The vibrancy of the ethereal music was enough to make even the birds flutter their colorful wings in the direction of the light. It took Soren another 15 minutes to reach it¡ªa clearing within the forest had come into view. Catching his breath, he pushed away the remaining bushes and climbed his way through the twisted branches. A vibrant light caught his attention. It was a beam of light, roughly the diameter of a campfire flame that extended toward the heavens¡ªtoward infinity itself. Its cyan white texture drew him in closer. It was hard to understand why, but it felt as if his very soul yearned for its touch. Even if it could burn him, his body was relaxed¡ªhe could not feel any sense of danger towards it. ¡°Don¡¯t touch it.¡± The soothing voice broke him from his reverie. He blinked a few times before looking to the right side of the light pillar. A blonde man with a candid smile was sitting on a log¡ªa vibrant white robe covered him from his shoulders to his toes. Above his golden flowing hair sat a long cone hat with a cyan ribbon attached to its tip that swung with the flow of the wind. Besides his enchantingly handsome features that definitely didn¡¯t make him question his sexuality, were two elongated ears that resembled that of an elf. Unauthorized usage: this narrative is on Amazon without the author''s consent. Report any sightings. In his white-gloved hands was a silver glowing flute that extended from one side of his body to the other. It was shaped in a swirl, with colorful wind escaping from its tone holes. ¡°Did you enjoy my performance?¡± He said with a smile. Soren didn¡¯t know how to reply. Who is this man? ¡°I go by the name Myrin. It is a pleasure to meet you.¡° Did he just read my thoughts? Soren¡¯s eyes widened. The man chuckled slightly. ¡°It is nothing so sinister. I simply read the tunes of your soul. Though, I guess it can be interpreted as a form of mind reading, haha.¡± Which is it, man¡­ Soren cleared his throat before replying. ¡°My name is Andre. Nice to meet you.¡± The man rested the flute on his lap. ¡°Andre, huh?¡± His smile widened as he rubbed his chin. ¡°Myrin, stop playing around with him.¡± The voice startled Soren¡ªhe turned to face the left side of the pillar of light. A few meters away, a woman in a leather tunic and a lengthy battle skirt sat atop a tree branch with a plate of food in her hands. Her silver-colored gauntlets had all kinds of decorations adorning them¡ªthey looked fairly powerful. His eyes narrowed. I didn¡¯t notice her presence¡­ She had ginger hair that was neck-length and crystal blue eyes that hid a layer of impatience. She was arguably as attractive as the man named Myrin, though it was hard for Soren to notice with her face twisted in pure annoyance. She spoke while chowing down on her food. ¡°Dude, you don¡¯t need to lie. Myrin can read your soul, remember? He knows that¡¯s not your name.¡± He smiled softly, ¡°I¡¯m not sure what you mean¡ªmy name is Andre. Now, can you tell me yours?¡± ¡°Ugh, another paranoid one¡­ Whatever.¡± She rolled her eyes. ¡°My name is Tina Graywood. We have been awaiting your arrival, Mr. Paranoid man Andre.¡± Ignoring her crude remarks, her last few words caught his attention. ¡°Awaiting my arrival?¡± He looked suspiciously back at Myrin, who was cleaning his flute while whistling softly under his breath. ¡°Yes, our mistress told us that an individual with your description would arrive at this beacon of guidance.¡± She brushed her reddish-brown hair behind her ear smugly. ¡°More specifically, she mentioned that the person in question will have a golden book levitating next to him¡ªI assume it¡¯s a Soul Weapon?¡± He crossed his arms¡ªfrowning. ¡°And why exactly should I believe you? You two could simply be swindlers or something trying to fool me.¡± Everything about this encounter screamed ¡°suspicious.¡± But surprisingly, he couldn¡¯t feel a hint of animosity in them. Since he was young, he had developed a keen eye for those who wished to use him. Their disgusting stares¡ªhe could immediately see the greed leaking out of their nostrils from a mile away. Yet, these two clearly didn¡¯t have it. Though, it wasn¡¯t like it was some kind of omnipotent ability. He had been tricked in the past by countless nice looking people. More the better to just not trust anyone at all. Tina sighed before stuffing another spoonful into her face. ¡°Think what you want, but our mistress told us that the person will be desperate for help¡ªfar more than what we need of you, anyway. ¡°I did wonder what she meant by that statement when she said it to us a few weeks ago, but now¡­¡± Her eyes trailed off toward Soren¡¯s body¡ªcuts all across his torso and feet, mud and dirt covering half his face, eyes that were close to fainting¡­ It was clear to her that he needed help in more ways than one. ¡°I think you understand what I¡¯m hinting at here, don¡¯t you? I mean, you look like you¡¯re about to pass out any minute now.¡± Her words hit him harder than a semi-truck barreling down the highway. Myrin¡¯s music had made him forget what kind of state his body was in. Though, he was thankful to it for giving him the last push he needed to continue his sprint. ¡°Fine¡­¡± He loosened his arms and sighed. ¡°I''ll believe you¡­ Though, before any of that, I seriously need to rest.¡± He had already fallen on his knees before finishing his last sentence. The Records gave up its levitation and fell beside him. Tina shook her head before jumping off the tree branch skillfully. ¡°Seriously¡­ Not even fainting from exhaustion will change his way of speaking to others¡­¡± She looked at Myrin and frowned. ¡°And you! Stop messing around and heal him already! Tyrel should be coming back any minute now! You know how impatient that shrimp is.¡± He smiled as the silver glowing flute broke apart into orbs of light that slowly disappeared. ¡°My, my, Tina. Are you sure you aren¡¯t as impatient as he is?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± her eyes pierced daggers through his heart. ¡°Say that again, I dare you.¡± ¡°Alright, alright. I''ll get to it!¡± He stood up from the log and walked over to Soren who had completely fallen asleep by that point. Tina watched as he expanded his Soul Realm around Soren¡¯s body. She sighed inwardly. O¡¯ Mother of Silver, bless the coming days with your radiant grace. For the nations of disorder lay dormant ahead¡­ Lend us your strength for but a fleeting moment, for the sake of my mistress¡¯s heartfelt aspirations¡­ Chapter 12: Beneath the Silver-Eyed Moon

Chapter 12: Beneath the Silver-Eyed Moon

An echo of shattered thoughts and memories slammed into Soren¡¯s mind¡ªlike tumultuous winds meshing unevenly and brewing into a storm of colors and unending emotions. He frowned slightly from the pain as his thoughts slowly returned to him from whatever dreamscape he was in earlier. It seems I¡¯ve passed out again¡­ Makes sense¡ªI don¡¯t think even the most athletic people back on Earth could have lasted that long¡­ I''m not sure if I should be proud of myself or worried¡­ His eyes were still heavy. He could feel the familiar smell of grass next to his face¡ªTina and her group must have left him to sleep on the ground to get the rest he needed. Although his vision had still not returned to him, his hearing was much more active. ¡°What an interesting Soul Weapon. Myrin, have you seen anything like this one before? I don¡¯t believe any of the known six deities can manifest one like this?¡± Tina¡¯s voice reached him. He decided to eavesdrop for a bit. ¡°I don¡¯t believe so.¡± Myrin chuckled slightly. ¡°It might have an origin to the Beast of Knowledge. Though, I don¡¯t sense any Draconic symbolism from it¡ªthe rune is different. He¡¯s much more likely to be a Vagrant Phantasm.¡± Soren kept pretending to be asleep, but their conversations made it hard for him to follow. Vagrant Phantasms? The Beast of Knowledge? Am I going to hear about aliens next? ¡°Do you two think he might have come from beyond the Endless Sea? Those Vynasian bastards and their rift-crossing ships always seem to come from that direction. You Yadrians should know more about it, though.¡± ¡°Nay. I was busy learning the arts when I lived in Yadria.¡± Soren recognized Myrin¡¯s feminine voice. But he couldn¡¯t tell who he was speaking to. There was a third person beside Tina and Myrin. The conversation continued. ¡°But I did know a royal guard who spotted one off the coast¡ªI believe he said it was large enough to fit the entirety of the Spirit Blossom Willow on its deck and still have room for more.¡± Soren heard someone clicking their tongue¡ªit was Tina. ¡°All this talk of Vynasians is seriously pissing me off. When is this bastard going to wake up? There¡¯s so many questions we need to ask him. I thought a bit of healing magecraft would do the trick.¡± Shit, they won¡¯t decide to abandon me in the forest if I take too long, right? Soren thought for a moment about ending his act and waking up when he heard Myrin¡¯s cheerful chuckles. ¡°You don¡¯t need to worry about that. He¡¯s already been awake for a bit now. Right, Mr. Andre?¡± Soren slowly lifted himself up from the grass. He kept his face stoic (to hide his embarrassment) as his eyes slowly adjusted to the blinding pillar of light. Before he could address Myrin¡¯s question however, his eyes trailed off to the illuminated skies. He had not realized it before, but the clearing had a large opening within the trees that allowed one to gaze upon the sea of stars. But what was even more dazzling and gorgeous than the very stars themselves was the celestial sphere radiating its silver grace upon the cyan-blue grass. It could only be described as a marble. Unlike the moon on Earth, the one reflecting in his eyes was flawless¡ªits surface clearer than the finest sea-shell pearls. Not even a single asteroid crater could be spotted. He stared up at its dazzling silver light in awe. Myrin looked at him with an amused expression, ¡°Surely this isn''t the first time you are seeing the Silver-Eyed Moon?¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but say one word, ¡°Beautiful¡­¡± Tina crossed her thighs while flipping through the pages of The Records, which was sitting on her lap. ¡°Interesting reaction. It seems pretty much confirmed at this point that you are not from this land¡ªheck, you might not even be from Yarian entirely. How did you arrive here, Mr. Paranoid Andre?¡± Soren closed his eyes and rubbed his temples to clear away the lingering pain. Should I just tell them? Myrin had already shown his capabilities¡ªhe could read Soren like a book. But that was what made it even more interesting for him. He wanted to test him¡ªto see how far his ¡°reading the tone of your soul¡± ability could go. Even back on Earth, half the fun of playing chess for him was reading his opponents and understanding what moves they made next. ¡°Let¡¯s cut the Andre thing.¡± Soren smiled softly at Tina. ¡°My real name is Soren Andersen. As for where I am from, it is a place called Earth. Though I doubt you¡¯ll find it on any of your maps.¡± Myrin¡¯s lips curled up into a smile. ¡°Interesting. You are not lying this time. Does this mean you trust us?¡± ¡°Perhaps¡­¡± He shrugged. ¡°Perhaps not. The fact that you guys didn¡¯t kill me in my sleep should mean I can trust you to a certain degree.¡± Tina threw The Records toward Soren, who caught it clumsily. ¡°Either way, it¡¯s already pretty apparent that you aren¡¯t from these lands. You¡¯ve been speaking a weird language from the start¡ªone we haven¡¯t heard of before.¡± The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Soren lifted his brows. ¡°A different language?¡± He then suddenly remembered their conversation. Although he was understanding what they were saying, the words and phrases did not match the English he was used to. In fact, the dialect didn¡¯t match anything he had ever heard of on Earth, and that was surprising because he was fairly well traveled. Myrin interpreted his thoughts and replied. ¡°I''ve had my Soul Realm expanded around us this whole time. With it, our thoughts are shared directly to each other¡¯s souls, regardless of language differences. Though, it is a little rough for me, haha.¡± Soren didn¡¯t fully understand what a ¡°Soul Realm¡± was, but he chalked it up to magic being responsible somehow. I Seriously want to ask him more¡­ His entire journey to Yarian was due to him wanting to discover magic in the first place. However, he knew that it wasn¡¯t exactly the best to ask for lessons on magecraft now. Even if he did ask, he doubted Myrin would teach him anything¡ªthey were still nothing but strangers. ¡°Alright, I got it, but I still think I should try to learn your language. I don¡¯t want to rely on Myrin interpreting my thoughts all day.¡± Soren¡¯s thoughts raced to see the unseen, and The Records recognized it and immediately activated [Eyes of the Fairy]. His ancient tome of a Soul Weapon glowed in a faint radiant gold as it levitated in the air. The smoldering pages morphed into butterflies that rushed into his eyes. Myrin and Tina watched the spectacle with their eyes widening. Tina was about to ready herself for an attack, but she recognized how lax Myrin was and decided to drop her guard as well. Soren viewed the world from beyond the veil. Countless shapes and interesting geometric formations filled his vision, but his focus was strong. He had only one purpose for activating this ability of his: to understand what language Myrin and Tina were speaking. Despite the risks, he had two crucial reasons to use his ability now. The first being that ever since he had discovered [Eyes of the Fairy], a theory had been forming within him. He realized this ability let him understand information without direct learning. His attempts at using [Record]¡ªfirst with the Blue Silver Grass and then with the Memory Void Spirit¡ªhighlighted this. The second usage yielded far more information, which he could only attribute to [Eyes of the Fairy]. From his understanding, learning involved the brain interpreting and storing information biologically. Yet, [Eyes of the Fairy] bypassed this. Most knowledge his Soul Weapon recorded was new to him until he read it in his book. Strangely, even skills like playing chess or speaking English appeared in The Records without using [Record]¡ªshowing that his ability could probably be used passively as well. He couldn¡¯t pinpoint exactly what all this really meant, but he did know that there had to be another aspect to one¡¯s existence beyond their brain, and Myrin¡¯s talk of ¡°reading the tone of your soul¡± proved this. Soren smiled slightly and tried to focus his otherworldly vision on Myrin. ¡°Could you converse with me in your language?¡± Myrin rubbed his chin slightly and smiled back. ¡°Interesting¡­ Your Soul Weapon seems to be of the Abstract class. That¡¯s very rare.¡± ¡°Abstract?¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°Indeed. Its powers can take on unconventional forms. Though, I could be wrong¡ªit could also be of the Object class. You would need to take a Soul Dive test to find out.¡± Soren witnessed the words being spoken, but his focus was entirely on analyzing the language itself by activating [Record]. Weirdly enough, rather than hearing the words, it was more like he was watching them being spoken into existence¡ªstrange symbols were manifesting themselves before his eyes as the world shifted apart once more. [Eyes of the Fairy] had once again disabled itself¡ªa sign that he had probably overexerted himself. And it wasn¡¯t hard to come to this conclusion either. The moment his vision returned to normal, an overwhelmingly painful sensation took over him as his eyes felt heavy. He frowned slightly while looking at his Soul Weapon, which had manifested the familiar fountain pen. ¡°How long did our brief conversation last?¡± Tina tilted her head. ¡°What do you mean? Wasn¡¯t it just a few seconds?¡± A few seconds, huh? Good, I thought time would warp again, but I guess the cause for that side effect needs something else to activate¡­ ¡°So what exactly were you doing just now? It looked fairly interesting.¡± A grungy yet unfamiliar voice startled him. It sounded similar to the third person who was speaking back when he was pretending to be asleep. Soren tilted his head back to find a small child, roughly the height of a standing lamp, staring at him. His sharp onyx eyes pierced out from above the half-mask and hood he was wearing that covered his face. He was wearing a loose shirt with a leather tunic layered above it, paired with dark trousers and boots. A blade of some kind was strapped to his back. Unlike Myrin and Tina, a layer of darkness could be seen surrounding him that he couldn¡¯t fully understand. Myrin chuckled slightly, ¡°I know what you are thinking. No, Tyrel isn¡¯t a person from a special race or lineage¡ªhe¡¯s just a really short human.¡± Why the fuck did you need to air that out? He could clearly see the anger hidden behind his face-mask. Soren decided to just answer his question. ¡°I have an ability that allows me to analyze things, even ones that aren¡¯t tangible, and obtain hidden information from them. I tried using it during the conversation to hopefully see if I can gain some info on it.¡± ¡°So? The results?¡± The impatience was lingering in every word he spoke. I guess his first impressions of me are screwed from the get go. He made the choice not to provoke him any further. Soren¡¯s thoughts were recognized by The Records, which shifted its chapters back to the status page. Event Log New Entry Recorded: [Vinua] (Language) ¡°Bingo.¡± Tina, Myrin, and Tyrel all curiously looked over his shoulder to view the information displayed on the book. Tina¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°Interesting¡­ When I was messing around with it, nothing was showing¡ªthe pages were empty. Though, I still do not understand this script at all¡­¡± They can read my thoughts to interpret what I am saying in English, but that doesn¡¯t apply to my Soul Weapon. He noted that information in the back of his mind. ¡°It says at the bottom that I learned a language called Vinua.¡± He decided to explain it to them by commanding his Soul Weapon to turn to the page displaying the information about the language. Although they didn¡¯t fully believe him, he could tell they were somewhat impressed by his abilities. This was the second reason for why he needed to do this. Although Soren doubted they would abandon him, it was still best to try to prove himself to them in some way or another. After all, he hated being seen as useless more than anything. Fantasy Map #1: Yarian

Fantasy Map #1: Yarian

This is the first map of the series! I uploaded this to my Discord and Patreon much earlier but I decided to post it here as well. Enjoy! Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Soren is currently within the Feylith Forest and heading westward for Yadria! Since this is a world hopping story, expect more maps like these for other worlds as well! I plan to also commission artwork for all the characters, but that''s going to be put on hold until my Patreon generates more dough. If you have any questions, drop them in the comments or join my discord (link listed in the blurb page) to talk to me and other readers directly! Chapter 13: Decisions of a Vagrant

Chapter 13: Decisions of a Vagrant

¡°I see¡­¡± Myrin rubbed his chin¡ªthe information Soren was translating for them was fairly accurate to what they knew about Vinua. Although it wasn¡¯t as complicated of a language compared to the more ancient Yasini and Dulval languages, Vinua was not something simple enough for foreigners to immediately pick up. In the Aellora Kingdom, only 40% of the population knew how to read and write. Although children¡¯s learning programs sponsored by the Brilliant World Church and the Church of Nature were now being offered in even the most rural of villages, it was still too early to harvest the fruits of that labor. Myrin looked up at Soren and smiled. ¡°It''s one thing to record random trivia about our language, and another to actually be able to speak it. Would you like me to remove my hold over you with my Soul Realm to see if your ability worked the way you wanted it to?¡± Soren looked over at Tina and Tyrel¡ªtheir faces were brimming with curiosity, but also impatience. He looked back at Myrin and nodded. Seeing this, Myrin snapped his fingers. Soren wasn¡¯t able to immediately tell what was happening, but a soft breeze of air brushed past him. Though he could hardly describe it as air¡ªit felt more like a sensation. ¡°So¡­ Do you understand what I¡¯m saying?¡± Myrin said excitedly. Observing his words, Soren noticed the intricacies of the language. He could differentiate the verbs, nouns and adjectives within the Vinuan sentence Myrin had spoken. He answered back, ¡°Y-yes¡­ I understand.¡± It actually worked? What the hell¡­ Butterflies filled his stomach¡ªhe couldn¡¯t help but smile. Somehow, he had partially learned a language simply by observing the words being spoken with his [Eyes of the Fairy] ability. And what was even more interesting were the implications for the success of this experiment. He finally had solid proof that observing things with [Eyes of the Fairy] did not just impact his ability to [Record] them in his Soul Weapon, but also in himself. The information had been converted into an inherent ability of his¡ªhe had somehow learned to speak the language on his own. ¡°How fascinating¡­¡± Myrin leaned back. ¡°Your abilities are truly remarkable. It seems your Soul Weapon really is of the Abstract Class. Abilities like these are usually unique to that class.¡± Soren struggled to keep up with his sentences. Although he had managed to grasp Vinua, it was still not at the level of complete fluency. ¡°I see¡­ But what makes a Soul Weapon a part of the Abstract Class in the first place? Does it have to do with my [Eyes of the Fairy] ability?¡± Tina shook her head. ¡°That is indeed part of the equation, but it isn¡¯t what makes a Soul Weapon ¡®Abstract.¡¯ Yours seems to manifest itself in the form of an ancient tome, and yet, it also grants you an ability that allows for it to morph itself into a form that becomes a part of your body¡ªallowing your eyes to see into The Beyond.¡± The Beyond? His eyes widened. Isn¡¯t that what Mr. Unknown mentioned? ¡°It is that intrinsic ability to transform into different things depending on what skill is being activated that grants it its ¡®Abstract¡¯ Class status¡­ At least that¡¯s what it seems like, but you still should take a Soul Dive test just to make sure.¡± Myrin continued in her place. ¡°The Beyond, you see¡­ Is a special place. It exists all around us, but it is ¡®beyond¡¯ our natural grasp. In the beyond, everything is represented abstractly. From the bowl filled with fried rice Tina was eating earlier, to our very souls¡ªall of it exists in The Beyond as a separate entity. Some Magi even believe it to be the source of all Astral Anima, though that is still an unconfirmed theory at best. ¡°The point is, your [Eyes of the Fairy] ability¡ªas you like to call it¡ªallows you to perceive the world through The Beyond. There seems to be a mystery regarding that, but from what I can see, it seems that whenever you activate that ability, the objects you envision are being conceptually read by your soul. This is a completely different ability when compared to what your Soul Weapon should look like or be utilized as.¡± Tina looked down at her lap and frowned. ¡°Though it is still really unusual. Our mistress also has an Abstract Class Soul Weapon, and she can perceive The Beyond far better than him. But her method of acquiring information is a much different process than his.¡± Myrin looked at her and shrugged. ¡°That¡¯s why we call them Abstract Class Soul Weapons. Their soul chain doesn¡¯t require rigid precision when merging with runes. They can essentially take on almost any route they desire when accumulating strength¡ªwith some limitations, of course.¡± ¡°Indeed¡­¡± Tyrel nodded. ¡°I still wonder though¡­ Soren was your name, right? What constellation do you worship? Or better yet, what was your constellation?¡± The question made him lean back a bit. Constellation? Does he mean God? He won¡¯t get mad at me if I say the wrong religion, right? I wonder how common zealotry is in this world¡­ His eyes were drawn to Myrin, who held a devious smirk on his lips. Soren sighed. There¡¯s no point in even trying to hide the truth. ¡°I am agnostic. I don¡¯t worship any gods.¡± ¡°WHAT?!¡± Tina jumped out of her seat, jolting Soren in the process. He was just about to say ¡°Fuck it,¡± and sprint back out into the forest when he suddenly heard her say, ¡°Wait, it¡¯s not what you think!¡± Support the creativity of authors by visiting Royal Road for this novel and more. ¡°W-what do you mean?¡± He wanted to blame his lack of fluency for his stuttering. His eyes trailed to Myrin, whose smirk had been completely replaced by a frown. ¡°Soren, there is no need for you to worry. Our Star Fate Guild has members from all walks of life. We don¡¯t discriminate against one¡¯s religion or background. The reason why Tina was startled was for a completely different reason¡ªa much more serious one. ¡°I''ll keep it short¡ªhow long has it been since you acquired your Soul Weapon?¡± Myrin¡¯s earlier words reassured him, but the tone of his voice was extremely serious. He never expected to see the jolly Myrin this concerned over anything. ¡°I am not exactly sure¡­ My perception of time has been warped since I arrived in Yarian¡­ But I think it¡¯s been around¡­ Half a day?¡± Tina, Myrin and Tyrel all looked at each other with shadows over their faces. ¡°What exactly is the issue here?..¡± Soren interrupted. ¡°How should I tell you this¡­¡± Tina looked over at him and crossed her arms. ¡°The thing is, we believe that you are a Vagrant Phantasm. And judging by how you have been reacting to things, you seem to be completely unaware of the existence of the Mysterious World.¡± ¡°Vagrant Phantasm? I heard you say that before¡­¡± Tina nodded. ¡°Yes. Phantasms, you see, are what we call those who are able to manifest Soul Weapons. Becoming a Phantasm means that you are a part of the Mysterious World¡ªthat all your actions put you on a realm higher than even the most famed Magi. The world of Phantasms is filled with mysteries and secrets. ¡°In the Aellora Kingdom, for example, only the higher ups at the Magus Association, the Brilliant World Church, the Church of Nature, and the two royal families are truly in the know about the existence of Phantasms. Though there are plenty of smaller secretive organizations working in the shadows¡ªour Star Fate Guild is one of them.¡± Myrin continued, ¡°The difference between Mysteries and Magecraft is like heaven and earth. That is why individuals like us are called phantasms in the Mysterious World¡ªour actions cannot and should not be perceived by others. We can only operate like ghosts whose existence cannot be understood.¡± Soren (hiding his excitement), crossed his arms, ¡°Understood, but I still don¡¯t get it. Why is me being a Phantasm so bad? The way you are describing it means I''m fairly extraordinary in this world now, right? And what exactly does the ¡®Vagrant¡¯ part in that name even mean?¡± Tina bit her lips. ¡°That is where the issue stems¡­ Phantasms, you see, are allocated into three categories, but only two really matter in this situation. The divisions are labeled as Holy and Vagrant. Because you do not worship any constellations or deities, we have to assume that your Soul Weapon was not gifted to you, but forged through natural means. ¡°I will be blunt with you, Soren¡ªyou only have another week or two to live.¡± The statement made him reel back a little. He chuckled, ¡°What¡¯s that supposed to mean? Like¡­ I¡¯m going to die? Hah, that¡¯s not funny.¡± ¡°She is not joking, Soren.¡± Myrin¡¯s face said it all. ¡°......¡± ¡°It is exactly as I said it.¡± She continued, ¡°Unlike Holy Phantasms who were gifted their Soul Weapon through prayer, yours was most likely forged through the merging of your soul with an abstract rune¡ªand a fairly powerful one at that. But the formation of a Soul Chain is almost always unstable. Without the correct study and control, it is fairly easy for it to collapse and for your Soul Weapon to consume you whole and utilize your flesh as a vessel for itself to come alive. That is why Vagrant Phantasms are taboo in most nations, except for maybe The Eclipse Moor, but that place is lawless. ¡°And your situation is even worse when compared to other Vagrants. Most Vagrants can control this instability for long enough to form their next node in the Soul Chain, but yours is on the brink of collapse from the very beginning.¡± Soren looked down at the cyan grass with a blank expression. Only two weeks to live?... That bastard Unknown never mentioned any of this! He thought back on his conversation with him¡ªthis wasn¡¯t the first time he had purposefully left information out of their discussion... Unknown had advised him to explore the world for the answers he sought, but with less than a month to live, how could he possibly do that? Soren had already considered suicide a few times before in his life. However, as dangerous as this world currently was, how could he ever decide to throw away the only opportunity ever granted to him? Even though he did regret tampering with the occult like a complete dumbass, he still knew how insane of a chance this was for him. He could finally seek the answers he desired¡ªthe thrills he had always dreamed of¡­ The more he thought about it, the more his worries were quelled. If death was the only thing awaiting him if he turned back now, why turn back at all? He might as well pursue this crazy adventure till the end. Whether that end was a week from now or a much further point was up to him to decide. He looked back up at Tina. ¡°There¡¯s probably a solution to this, right? I can delay or fix this outcome?¡± Her frown deepened. ¡°I¡­ I am not sure.¡± ¡°Our mistress.¡± Myrin interrupted. ¡°Since she had planned for our meeting, it¡¯s safe to assume she might have a solution.¡± ¡°By Her Silver Grace, why did I not think of that?!¡± Tina¡¯s face lit up. ¡°Though that isn¡¯t completely a guarantee, either. Don¡¯t just go around giving false hope to people, Myrin.¡± Tyrel countered sharply while ignoring Tina¡¯s glares. Myrin ignored their bickering and glanced at Soren with a faint smile. ¡°So, have you decided? We were looking for your help, anyway.¡± Soren looked at him for a bit before nodding. ¡°Not like I have a choice¡­ What do you guys need from me?¡± ¡°Our guild was commissioned by the Aetolus Royal Family and the Church of Nature to conduct a meeting with Sylia, a Saintess of Dreams in the Yadrian capital. You might not know this, but the relationship between Yadria and Aellora is somewhat¡­ Flimsy. That is why they gave this mission to us¡ªmore specifically, me. The talks would go much more smoothly if a Yadrian Elf was in charge of the negotiations. ¡°At least, that¡¯s what they think, haha.¡± He shrugged. ¡°Even I cannot see through the illusionary barrier that¡¯s cast upon this forest. Yadria is impossible to enter without the help of at least a 5th Circle Magus who specializes in dealing with Illusions or seeing into The Beyond.¡± Soren sighed, ¡°I guess this is where I come in?¡± ¡°Correct,¡± Myrin smirked. ¡°Our mistress is truly something else. I was doubting how we would even complete this mission, but now that I know of your [Eyes of the Fairy] ability, it all makes sense.¡± Chapter 14: Fictional Carriage

Chapter 14: Fictional Carriage

Soren slammed his face against the plate¡ªFeylith potage, as Tina liked to call it. It was a fairly usual stew, with what looked to be carrots, potatoes, and rabbit meat. Though he couldn¡¯t really identify the ingredients; he was just going off taste. Not that it mattered anyway¡ªeven if it tasted like mud, he would have still eaten it. He was truly lucky¡ªSoren had no clue how he would have fed himself if he was still wandering the forest alone. Myrin chuckled, ¡°Slow down¡­ We aren¡¯t taking it away from you.¡± ¡°Let the poor guy eat. Crossing the Endless Sea must have taken its toll.¡± Tina stirred the pot over the fire. It had been thirty minutes since Soren had agreed to their request. During that time, Tyrel had left their encampment to scout the area again. Soren, however, didn¡¯t concern himself with this¡ªhe was busy bombarding Myrin with questions about this new world. The first thing his charming flutist elf companion taught him was what that glimmering pillar of light at the center of their camp was. Ever since Myrin had warned him about not touching it, he had been curious about its purpose. ¡°Beacons of guidance,¡± he spoke in a mellow voice. ¡°These are boons that the Beast of Knowledge had left behind during His pilgrimage across Yarian. It is said that they contain revelations of His travels and can even provide ¡®guidance¡¯ to those who wish for it. ¡°Though¡­¡± Myrin looked up at the flicking pillar of light¡ªfrowning. ¡°It is an extremely taxing endeavor. Many who do seek out these revelations end up ¡®lost¡¯ in them for eternity. Our mistress is actually currently conducting a study on the Beacon of Guidance¡¯s effects. From her findings, roughly half of all recorded instances of those who touch it end up being ¡®lost.¡¯ The other half do end up getting some form of enlightenment, but also, they instantly convert to Vyakism.¡± Soren lifted his brow. ¡°Vyakism?¡± Myrin nodded while slowly eating his bowl of Feylith potage. ¡°Indeed. Up in the steep slopes of the colossal runic mountains lie countless Draconic Communion Temples. The ascetics who live in those temples follow the teachings of Vyakism.¡± Soren frowned. So if I had touched that pillar of light, I would have either become brain dead or turned into a dragon worshiping monk? My damn hair could have been in danger! ¡°No, Vyakists don¡¯t shave their heads bald.¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°You read my thoughts again¡­¡± The conversation continued from there. According to Myrin, there were exactly 365 Beacons of Guidance scattered across the lands of Yarian. Each one symbolized a day in His journey. When he heard this, Soren immediately remembered the letter he had received from Unknown. The date at the top mentioned that it was currently the 15th of Vyak¡ªprobably alluding to the calendar system they use here in Yarian. Unlike back on Earth, they did not split the year by months, weeks, and days. They simply kept track of the days while accounting for seasonal changes every ninety or so days. What fascinated him most, however, was the fact that Yarian had a similar rotation around its sun to Earth¡¯s. Although the stars and moon he was seeing were different from what he was used to, he could at least rely on the fact that he wouldn¡¯t need to translate time passing between the two worlds¡­ That would be the case if time shenanigans didn¡¯t come into play¡ªwho knows how different dimensions operate. Soren finished his meal relatively quickly. Despite the fact that most of the ingredients were foraged from the forest, Tina still managed to create better food than anything he could cook himself. He glanced at her and smiled. ¡°Thanks for the meal.¡± ¡°You¡¯re welcome. I¡¯m going to go pack our things. Tyrel should be back any minute now.¡± She poured the leftover potage into a bowl for when Tyrel returned and let the fire burn out. Myrin stood up from the log. ¡°Alright~ Time to get the carriage ready.¡± Soren handed over his bowl to Tina, ¡°Carriage? We have one?¡± He looked around curiously, but found nothing in the surrounding meadow. Myrin chuckled. ¡°There isn¡¯t one currently here. I will be creating one. Oh¡ªI forgot to mention. I too possess an Abstract Class Soul Weapon. Mine is different from yours though.¡± Soren looked at him in shock. Him too? Aren¡¯t they supposed to be rare? He then remembered that Myrin had told him that their Mistress also happened to be his teacher. It made sense for her disciple to also possess a Soul Weapon of the same class. Suddenly, a breeze of wind brushed past the both of them, knocking around Myrin¡¯s golden hair and rattling his garments. Soren noticed Myrin opening his right hand. A small emblem or marking was clearly visible across his palm that he couldn¡¯t observe clearly¡ªa tattoo of some kind. He watched in awe as countless, small silver glowing orbs manifested themselves. They quickly rushed into each other, merging to form an elongated stick of some kind that glowed in the same silver white color. Support creative writers by reading their stories on Royal Road, not stolen versions. That¡¯s his Soul Weapon? It was the flute that he had seen right before getting knocked unconscious. Though, something was different about it. Rather than a flute, it had turned into a paint brush. Myrin softly held it in his palm. He glanced over at Soren whose eyes were almost popping out of their sockets. ¡°Watch closely. Unlike your ¡®The Records,¡¯ mine is called ¡®Artist¡¯s Wand.¡¯ It allows me to bring my creativity to life. I accidentally gained the Abstract Rune for it a few years ago¡ªbeing a Vagrant Phantasm was worrying but I''ve already stabilized my Soul Chain¡ªI should be able to last for a while without needing to reach the next node.¡± Myrin gracefully glided his Soul Weapon across the air¡ªsoft strokes of white paint condensed themselves, floating in place. Soren watched as Myrin skillfully created a masterpiece. He wasn¡¯t sure how, but the brush¡¯s paint would change color on the fly, as if it was replying to Myrin¡¯s vision or thoughts. First came the frame, then the wheels, then the windows. And the painting continued from there as Myrin added more and more details to it. This wasn¡¯t a simple doodle or sketch. It was akin to a renaissance painting. Soren could imagine the fictional carriage he was painting with its golden ornaments and details coming to life. And to life, it came. The moment Myrin had finished painting, he slowly walked over to it and placed his palm over it. With a simple push, the two dimensional drawing was forced out of its invisible frame, turning three dimensional. Soren stared blankly. Right in front of him was now a carriage fit to house nobles and royalty. Tina glanced over at Myrin and shook her head. ¡°There you go again, damn showoff. Hurry up and move the carriage away from the Beacon of Guidance!¡± He smirked, ¡°Don¡¯t listen to her, she¡¯s just jealous.¡± Out of nowhere, a wooden bowl flew across the encampment and hit Myrin squarely on the cheek. ¡°Stop messing around you bastard! Get moving!¡± He scurried to the back of the carriage. ¡°Damn it, why does she have to throw it so strongly¡­¡± Soren ignored their antics and followed him. ¡°Why do we need to push the carriage away from the Beacon of Guidance?¡± ¡°It¡¯s because the anima contained within that grand pillar of light can easily disrupt my own anima. The carriage would instantly collapse if I kept it there for a little longer.¡± He spoke cheerfully while rubbing his cheek. Soren helped push the carriage away, ¡°What exactly is this, ¡®Anima¡¯? I keep hearing about it.¡± ¡°Willpower. It is what fuels the creation of both Mysteries and Magecraft. All beings have it. Your Soul Weapon relies on it to function and exist too, you know?¡± I see¡­ So that¡¯s why the Secrets of the Records ritual needed my concentration to work properly¡­ He was unconsciously feeding the ritual with his own willpower. Soren hid his temptation to ask whether experienced magi consumed drugs¡ªhe decided to change the subject, ¡°The carriage is cool and all, but¡­ How are we supposed to use it in the forest? There¡¯s no roads available and the treeline is not wide enough for the carriage.¡± Myrin chuckled, ¡°Who said the treeline isn¡¯t wide enough?¡± It can be wide if it wants to be.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Soren was stumped. ¡°Just watch and see, it will be very interesting.¡± Soren shook his head and smiled. ¡°Tina is right, you really love to brag.¡± Just when they had finished moving the carriage, Soren turned his head after hearing something behind him¡ªTyrel. He had somehow appeared in the small clearing without Soren noticing. ¡°I found the perfect carriage puller.¡± He said plainly to Myrin. Myrin smirked, ¡°Oho? Where?¡± Before Tyrel could answer, All three of them looked over their shoulders¡ªsounds of tree trunks breaking caught their attention. Soren looked in shock as a large silhouette became visible from across the meadow. It was a headless creature roughly 12 feet tall holding a massive wooden club. Its chest held a large crimson eye that was scanning for prey. Soren froze. It¡¯s t-that thing! What the hell?! Did it follow me?! He glanced over toward Tina who was the closest to the monster. ¡°Run! Get the hell away from it!¡± He screamed at Tina. ¡°Calm down.¡± Myrin placed his hand on Soren¡¯s shoulder and smirked. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry. In fact, that thing needs to run away from Tina instead.¡± It was exactly as he had said it. The moment the creature noticed Tina¡¯s presence, it swiftly primed its arm to swing its colossal wooden club. Tina on the other hand was completely unfazed. While still holding the pan she had been cooking potage with, she gracefully jumped back, dodging the creature¡¯s attack. The monster roared, but Tina simply used that opportunity to sprint toward the monster. Before the ogre had any time to react, she drop-kicked it in the chest¡ªdirectly in the eye. Soren watched in awe as the ogre fell to its knees, rubbing its eye in agony. Seconds later, a rope glowing in a mysterious energy had already made its way around the monster. It only took Tina about two blinks worth of time to dispatch a monster that could probably kill him with a flick of its finger. ¡°So strong¡­¡± ¡°I know right?¡± Myrin smirked. ¡°This is why I try not to mess with her. Unlike me and you, she doesn¡¯t even have a Soul Weapon.¡± Soren looked over at him in shock. ¡°You¡¯re telling me she did all of this with just her body strength!?¡± ¡°Not quite. It''s a bit hard to explain so I''ll tell you more once we hit the road¡­ Well, once I make the road, at least.¡± Soren was too busy reminding himself to never offend Tina that he didn¡¯t even bother questioning what Myrin had just said. She walked over to the ogre and slammed her boot down on its shoulder. ¡°You damn bastard. That pot is the only one I brought with me for the journey and you almost destroyed it!¡± ¡°......¡± Chapter 15: Mapping Yarian

Chapter 15: Mapping Yarian

It was now the 16th of Vyak¡ªaccording to Myrin, at least. The time had struck midnight and they were now set for their journey to Yadria. After dispatching the headless ogre, Tina casually went back to packing her things, much to the shock of Soren. Though, he couldn¡¯t stand there in awe for too long as she nagged him to come help her load everything into the carriage. At the very least, he was given a new set of clothes from the spares they had on them¡ªa linen shirt and black trousers and a waist-length cloak to shield himself from any possible rain. The ones he had arrived in Yarian in were too tattered to be worn any longer. Though, the real reason had to be that they smelled really bad¡ªTina wasted no time driving that point home. What he was most grateful for, however, had to be the new pair of leather boots which Myrin had fictionally created using his Soul Weapon. His feet had already developed blisters, but Myrin¡¯s healing magecraft took care of it for the most part. After finishing his chores, Soren approached Myrin who was standing in front of the monster¡ªTina''s victim, still tied up. Although he was scared to approach it, Myrin had already told him that he had cast a sleep spell on the creature. ¡°Ah! Soren, you¡¯re here! Seems that damn witch finally let you go.¡± Soren glanced over at his attire¡ªa white wizard¡¯s cone hat paired with a robe. Aren¡¯t you the witch here? Hiding his thoughts (unsuccessfully), he smiled back at him. ¡°So, have you decided? Are you taking this one?¡± Myrin simply nodded. ¡°Yes. It''s a bit ugly, but Tyrel is right. This Spirit Beast will do well as a carriage puller.¡± He watched as Myrin pulled out his Soul Weapon again. This time, however, the silver glowing stick had morphed back into a flute rather than a brush. He gracefully moved it to his mouth and played a soothing tune. Soren resisted the urge to lie down on the cyan grass as he watched Myrin glowing in the ethereal light of his own music. It was as if the sleeping twilight forest had risen back up to join in the symphony. The tied-up ogre awoke from its slumber¡ªits eye now staring calmly toward Myrin. ¡°Success,¡± he smiled. Myrin walked over to the creature and untied it. It slowly stood up and followed behind him toward the carriage. Soren stood there, shocked. These fuckers are all dangerous. I''m glad I complied quickly¡­ The thought of having Tina or Myrin becoming his enemy made him shudder. He thought about it a bit more¡ªTyrel would probably be a worse enemy. He still hadn¡¯t figured out how he fights, but it most certainly was dangerous. Soren glanced up¡ªTyrel was sitting on a branch eating his food alone. He was hiding his face under his hood just out of sight from Soren. ¡°Tyrel, we¡¯re about to leave.¡± He silently nodded at Soren. What¡¯s up with him? Other than a few words, Soren had noticed that Tyrel rarely spoke. In fact, he almost always kept to himself. It wasn¡¯t entirely antagonistic, but it did make the atmosphere awkward every time they were alone. Sighing, he returned to the carriage to find Tina snuggled inside, sleeping. Myrin on the other hand was sitting out in front, commanding the ogre to pull the carriage. Soren walked over and sat next to him¡ªhe had already taken a nap before, and he was still needed for navigating the illusionary barrier blocking their way to Yadria. ¡°Say, you haven¡¯t exactly told me what this barrier is¡­ I''ve been in the forest for a bit now, but I still haven¡¯t noticed it.¡± ¡°It''s illusionary for a reason,¡± he chuckled. ¡°Although it is unseen, the barrier is actually covering the entire Feylith forest¡ªwe just can¡¯t notice it. The moment any wanderer has the intention of entering Yadria, the barrier will sense it and thwart their advance.¡± ¡°Thwart their advance? How exactly?¡± Myrin cleaned his flute with a handkerchief. ¡°Confusion. It will create illusions, making people go in circles. You could be heading straight toward Yadria forever and still never reach it. Some fools a few years ago tried to map out a direction straight from Cinta city toward Yadria and invoked magecraft that would erase their memories the moment they entered the forest to elude the barrier¡¯s senses.¡± Soren crossed his arms, ¡°Did it work?¡± ¡°Nope,¡± he chuckled. ¡°Even without their memories, the mere desire to head in the same direction as Yadria was detected and the barrier was activated for them. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. ¡°Because of their memory loss, they didn¡¯t know where they were headed but were instructed to go in that direction regardless¡ªthey were stranded in a loop for a whole month, heh.¡± ¡°... So how exactly am I supposed to fool this barrier? I know you said that my [Eyes of the Fairy] ability can see into the beyond, but when I was using it earlier, I didn¡¯t notice the barrier at all. Didn¡¯t you say the barrier covers the entire forest?¡± Myrin rubbed his chin. ¡°I am not exactly sure, but didn¡¯t you say that your ability only works by hyper-focusing on one aspect that you are looking for while ignoring everything else?¡± Soren nodded. ¡°Yes, I get tunnel vision when I use that ability. To the point of not being able to tell time itself in some cases.¡± ¡°Indeed, the beyond is not a simple thing to look at or perceive. Your ability is rare even when it comes to abstract class Soul Weapons. It makes sense why it would have such a harsh drawback. Though, I do believe it will improve over time¡ªyou just need to get used to it.¡± Soren thought for a second before responding. ¡°Alright, let me try it now.¡± With The Records sitting on his lap, Soren¡¯s thoughts activated [Eyes of the Fairy]. The ancient tome came to life¡ªglowing in radiant gold. The shimmering pages broke apart into tiny butterflies that swam into his eyes. Soren felt his vision shifting as abstract shapes and fractals flooded the scene. The barrier. I need to see the barrier. He thought to himself. His eyes dilated even more as his focus enhanced on what he desired most. To see the unseen. And within the unseen were tiny strings dotting the fractal flooded forest like a spiderweb. ¡°I-I can see it¡­ The barrier.¡± Myrin smirked. ¡°Praise the blossoms. Now try and focus your sight on seeing Yadria itself. Can you tell what direction it¡¯s in?¡± ¡°West of where we are currently¡­¡± Soren could see a thread of light weaving in between the barrier¡¯s strings. Just as he had said that, his ability deactivated itself from stress. Soren lowered his head in pain¡ªrubbing his temples. ¡°Ugh!¡± ¡°Take it slow. At least we know where Yadria is now. Your Soul Weapon can display information right? Use [Record].¡± Soren quickly listened to him. The fountain pen manifested itself and swiftly wrote down what Soren had just learned. Event Log New Entry Recorded: [Yadria¡¯s Illusionary Barrier] (Mystery) New Location Recorded: Yadria (Incomplete) New Location Recorded: Feylith Forest (Incomplete) Soren glanced over the new recorded information. Incomplete? It confused him for a second but he instantly recalled the fact that his usage of [Eyes of the Fairy] only lasted for a bit. There was no way he was going to [Record] the entirety of the Feylith forest with just that. Rubbing away the pain, Soren dizzily looked over at Myrin. ¡°It has recorded the information I saw with my eyes. Let me share it with you. The pages shifted according to his thoughts. They then unfolded into an incomplete map called ¡°Yarian¡±. Soren and Myrin looked over the image being displayed¡ªthey both smirked. ¡°Interesting¡­¡± They both said in unison. ¡°I didn¡¯t think my Soul Weapon had this kind of capability.¡± ¡°Indeed¡­ Though, this is not what Yarian looks like fully. It¡¯s incomplete.¡± And he was right. Only a small portion of what looks to be a massive land mass was drawn on the map. A small icon was present that represented their current position, and another illustration of a castle with a sub-heading of ¡°Yadria¡± was located to the west of their present location¡ªfar beyond what the map had drawn for the land mass, surrounded by well painted fog. According to Myrin, it was heavily zoomed in as well¡ªYarian¡¯s borders were much bigger than what it was currently showing them. It seemed that he would need to keep using [Eyes of the Fairy] to map out the rest of the way toward Yadria. This is basically like having my own form of GPS¡­ He looked over at Myrin who was still amused and smiled. ¡°Now that this has worked, let''s see if it will change if I instruct it to show us how to navigate across the barrier.¡± Replying to his thoughts, the map automatically shifted. A golden glowing line manifested itself on the map, leading them across the forest toward Yadria. Though, the further away from their position it got, the more faint and hard to understand the directions became. ¡°I see,¡± Myrin said. ¡°It seems you¡¯ll have to continuously activate [Eyes of the Fairy] to update the navigation path. And based on my understanding of the illusory barrier from the books I¡¯ve read prior to taking this journey, it has the ability to warp and change constantly, so what we are currently navigating could turn out to be the wrong information an hour from now.¡± Soren glanced over the page titled [Yadria¡¯s Illusionary Barrier]. The information pretty much confirmed Myrin¡¯s hypothesis. ¡°Alright, so I guess we should get going now?¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°Yes, but before that, I should probably create a roadway for our carriage to move in.¡± With a look of both confusion and curiosity, Soren decided to just stay silent and await whatever Myrin was planning. How the hell will he create a road in this mangled forest? Maybe he¡¯ll command the headless ogre to break the branches blocking our way? Myrin pulled out his flute once more. The tune this time was different. Unlike the previously soothing ones, the current melody he was playing was much more visceral. It sounded similar to a banshee¡¯s screams¡ªhis ears were close to rupturing. Soren covered them and grit his teeth. ¡°What the fuck?!¡± Myrin ignored him and continued playing. All of a sudden, the once chaotic treeline began to rattle¡ªthe branches shifted on their own, morphing to form a path. It was as if nature itself was begging Myrin to stop playing his flute. He glanced over at Soren who had almost turned deaf and smiled. ¡°See? I told you I''ll be able to make us a road!¡± Chapter 16: Flower Divination

Chapter 16: Flower Divination

The carriage rolled forward, dragged slowly by the headless ogre. Soren sat at the front with Myrin as they navigated the illusionary barrier. It had been two days now and they were still only a quarter of the way there. Soren tried his best to pass the time by experimenting with his abilities. Along the way, he was able to use [Record] on countless different plants and animals. One of the first things he had chronicled was on the existence of Spirit Beasts, as Myrin liked to call them. Creatures that hold and manipulate their anima, but do not possess the ability to manifest Soul Weapons. Even though he had gleaned a lot of information during that time, Soren¡¯s anxiety was eating him from the inside, and the overuse of [Eyes of the Fairy] certainly did not help his case either. ¡°Sigh¡­ How long will this trip last¡­ Can¡¯t you get this thing to go a bit faster? I only have two weeks to live, you know!?¡± Myrin turned his head toward Soren and frowned. ¡°I can understand your frustrations. However, if I command the Spirit Beast to hasten its advance, it will only throw us off course. The barrier changes too swiftly¡ªwe have to stay at a relative pace to monitor these changes¡­¡± Soren sighed. It wasn¡¯t like he couldn¡¯t understand Myrin¡¯s perspective. In fact, he had already experienced the effects of this barrier at full force. Just the night before, they wasted an entire two hours peering back into the beyond as a sudden shift in the map caused them to lose track of where they were. If not for the slow pace they were going in, Tyrel would not have been able to catch the error that soon. ¡°Then is there anything I can do to extend my lifespan in the meantime? Aren¡¯t you your mistress¡¯ disciple? Surely you''ve studied the effects of Soul Chain Instability¡ªyou yourself are a Vagrant Phantasm after all¡­¡± Myrin thought for a moment¡ªSoren noticed that he was about to say something but held himself back. ¡°Spit it.¡± Soren crossed his arms. ¡°Fine¡­¡± Myrin shrugged in defeat. ¡°I do think there is a way, but it is extremely dangerous. I would not recommend it unless you were truly on the brink of death.¡± ¡°What would it be?¡± ¡°... Soul Realm Manifestation.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Soul Realm? You mean the ability you used to communicate with me when I didn¡¯t understand Vinuan?¡± Soren was proud of the fact that in just the past few days, his ability to speak with Myrin and the others had improved to the point that Myrin wouldn¡¯t even need to activate his Soul Realm at all. He nodded. ¡°Yes, Soul Realms are a fundamental ability amongst Magi. It is the key that unlocks magecraft to us mortals. Without it, most thaumaturgical knowledge would not exist. ¡°And for you¡­¡± He paused. ¡°It is even more important. The issue with your soul chain¡¯s instability has to do with The Beyond and your Runic Existence, but this is a different topic entirely. All you need to know is that a Soul Realm is the external projection of one¡¯s inner will. And if you manifest one, it might aid in stabilizing the inner aspects of your soul¡ªyour Runic Existence and the Soul Chain that surrounds it for example. ¡°Though, this is all just hypothetical. I cannot look into your Soul Chain, my abilities are limited to only the outer layers of self.¡± Soren¡¯s brows lifted. Outer layers of self? How is that different from a Soul Realm? Myrin might as well have spoken gibberish to him. Ignoring his puzzlement, Myrin continued. ¡°However, for a person to unlock their Soul Realm, a grueling task must be done. One that most scholars never accomplish in their lifetimes.¡± Soren frowned (while hiding his excitement). ¡°Why is manifesting a Soul Realm so difficult? You make it seem easy.¡± Myrin coughed, ¡°Why thank you... But that¡¯s simply because it is not a matter of using a Soul Realm, but manifesting one. Once a person unlocks the ability, using it becomes as simple as moving an arm. But creating one to begin with is said to be harder than climbing Mount Tolarion¡­¡± He crossed his arms, ¡°my mistress would probably disagree with this comparison, haha.¡± Soren silently pondered over it. Although leaving this option open for when he was truly desperate to save himself was logical, he also thought of the implications. Even if by the end of the two week time limit I decided to try and manifest a Soul Realm, will I even have enough time to explore this option in the first place? No matter what he decided, an inherent risk was always there, looming over his shoulders. Myrin noticed how conflicted Soren was and looked up¡ªTyrel was sitting with his feet crossed above the carriage, scouting the area like usual. ¡°Tyrel¡­ What do you think? What would you do in his situation?¡± This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. After a brief silence, he spoke. ¡°Regardless of risk, I would go with the option that gives me the most benefits.¡± Hearing his words, Soren looked up in shock at his hooded companion. Benefits¡­ He looked back at Myrin sharply¡ªhis intentions were clear. Myrin sighed. ¡°Before we decide, how about we let fate show us the path? By the glory of the blossoms.¡± ¡°Fate?¡± Soren frowned. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Yadrian Runology¡ªFlower Divination,¡± he swung his arm and skillfully plucked a scarlet pink flower from a nearby bush. ¡°I will pluck the petals from this flower one by one. If the last one plucked is pink, then I will teach you the method to unlock your Soul Realm. If it lands on a Scarlet petal, let the Flower Maiden bear witness to fate¡¯s designs.¡± Without waiting for Soren¡¯s response, a cold breeze rushed past them¡ªMyrin¡¯s Soul Realm had been activated. Soren looked at him in shock as he held the flower with his eyes closed. As if listening to his prayers, the flower wilted each petal one by one on its own, flowing in the wind. Soren decided not to waste the opportunity and activated [Eyes of the Fairy] to see what was truly happening. With the tiny golden butterflies swimming in his irises, the fractal flooded enchanted forest appeared once more. However, this time, it held a different gradient of colors¡ªMyrin¡¯s Soul Realm, that was what he was witnessing. In his palm was the flower he had plucked, and yet something was different about it when being observed from the beyond. It was as if he was witnessing the flower exist in multiple states at the same time¡ªan imposed image with a different set of petals being wilted could be seen overlapping the original. The two layered images of the flowers losing their petals played at a different rhythm, as if showcasing different possible futures. Suddenly, his vision flashed back to normal as a searing pain coursed through his skull. Ugh! It was much worse this time. Rubbing his temples, he looked back up at Myrin¡ªthe flower had lost all its petals. Myrin slowly opened his eyes¡ªwith a soft blow of air, what remained of the flower was sent flying into the forest. ¡°The results have come in. I will proceed to teach you how to manifest your Soul Realm.¡± Before Soren could celebrate, Tyrel decided to pour cold water all over his mood, ¡°That divination technique is advanced, but it isn¡¯t omnipotent. What it foresaw is not guaranteed to mean that practicing how to manifest your Soul Realm won¡¯t end in disaster.¡± Noticing Soren¡¯s annoyed expression, Myrin grinned. ¡°What he said is right. Divination techniques like these rely on the information flowing through The Beyond to read one¡¯s future. But it is simply a rudimentary answer. For example, maybe practicing how to manifest your Soul Realm won¡¯t invoke danger, but the success of it will.¡± Soren frowned. ¡°The success of it? What do you mean?¡± ¡°Who knows,¡± Myrin shrugged while shamelessly grinning. ¡°There could be a number of things that could impact your future after you awaken your Soul Realm. It¡¯s impossible to really know. But, there is one aspect that is certain. A Soul Realm¡¯s growth rate. This dictates how fast your ability to grow your Soul Realm is. And its usually impacted the most during the unlocking phase. Not all Soul Weapons are born equal after all. Some are more potent than others. And it entirely depends on the preparations a person undertakes prior to unlocking their Soul Realm. With how precarious your current situation is, rushing to unlock it now might hinder your future growth.¡± ¡°.....¡± Myrin sighed. ¡°The decision is still up to you.¡± ¡°I¡ª¡± Just when he was about to answer, distant sounds of ruffled bushes grabbed their attention. Myrin swiftly instructed the headless ogre to stop the carriage. He glanced over at Tyrel who nodded back at him while holding the blade sheathed to his back. Soren squinted his eyes toward the distant bushes¡ªit was very hard to see in the dark, but a silhouette was clearly taking form¡ªwhat looked to be a human of some kind. ¡°Show yourself.¡± Tyrel commanded. A sudden chill spread with each word he spoke. It took a bit longer for the thing to appear, but when it did, Soren could not believe his eyes. What the hell?! With a viscous black liquid pouring out of its eye sockets, the entity looked to be a Yadrian elf. It walked toward the carriage with its back hunched forward¡ªstumbling with every step. Its robe, which was in tatters, did little to cover up its dried up skin. Is that a fucking zombie?! Soren looked toward Myrin for confirmation, but all he saw was pure confusion. The same with Tyrel. All three of them stayed frozen, awaiting whatever the ¡®zombie¡¯ elf was planning to do. Just when it looked like it was about to attack them, the ¡®zombie¡¯ stumbled over a root and fell to the ground. It growled mindlessly as it slowly crawled toward them. ¡°Let¡¯s approach it,¡± said Myrin¡ªhis joyful voice had been completely replaced. Tyrel nodded. Soren watched from the front of the carriage as Tyrel took to the front while Myrin positioned himself behind him in case anything went wrong. Though rather than a response, the creature simply continued its mindless crawl toward the carriage. Seeing this, Myrin frowned. ¡°I will try to calm it down.¡± He manifested his Soul Weapon once again and began playing the flute. Although Soren wanted to relax to the music, something about the situation seemed odd. He continued to watch intently. After a while, the ¡®zombie¡¯ came to a halt. It simply laid there on the cyan grass, growling. Myrin tried to read its thoughts using his Soul Realm, but all he obtained was silence. It was as if its soul was devoid of conscious thought. And yet, a desire he could not understand continued to burn within. Myrin looked over at Soren and called him over. Hm? He wants me to get near that thing? Although he was hesitant, he too was also curious about this situation. It reminded him of something, but he just couldn¡¯t exactly understand why¡­ It was only when he got up close to its face that he realized why he was feeling a sense of D¨¦j¨¤ vu. ¡°Memory Void Spirit!¡± Chapter 17: The Unblessed

Chapter 17: The Unblessed

Disheveled blond hair, dried-up pale white skin, empty eye sockets dripping with a viscous black fluid¡­ And most importantly, elven shaped ears that have been bruised and damaged. What Soren was currently looking at was almost an exact image of what he had seen during his brief encounter with the Malevolent Hex known as a Memory Void Spirit. ¡°This¡­¡± Sweat dripped down from his forehead as he resisted the urge to stumble back. No wonder he couldn¡¯t recognize it immediately. He had been purposefully suppressing the memories of that event, and the trauma that came with it. But now, all of it was crashing into him once more, like an unstoppable tsunami eager to consume everything in its wake. Soren grit his teeth. ¡°This thing¡­ I¡¯ve seen something just like it before I met up with you guys. But rather than having a body, the one I encountered was invisible¡ªsomewhat like a ghost.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Myrin¡¯s voice deepened. ¡°Why the hell did you guys stop the carriage? We need to find a place to camp out for the night!¡± Tina¡¯s voice jolted them from their reverie. She had been busy prepping arrows for the next day¡¯s hunt but decided to check out what was going on. She walked up to the group and frowned. ¡°What the?...¡± ¡°A Malevolent Hex,¡± answered Myrin. ¡°And a fairly unnatural one at that. Look here,¡± he pointed toward the creature¡¯s void-filled eyes. ¡°That liquid, it''s pure anima. I have never seen anima this corrupted before¡­ And for it to be this concentrated that it¡¯s completely visible to the naked eye is completely unnatural.¡± ¡°I''ll go scout out ahead¡­ Something isn¡¯t right.¡± Before they could reply, Tyrel flew off into the distance in the blink of an eye. ¡°Soren, try using [Eyes of the Fairy] on it. My Soul Realm can¡¯t penetrate the thick miasma that permeates its soul¡¯s outer layers, but your ability might be able to do it.¡± He glanced at Myrin, ¡°You said this thing is a Malevolent Hex right? What the hell are they?¡± The information he had recorded on them wasn¡¯t enough to fully understand them. ¡°Malevolent Hexes¡­ One of the biggest taboos of the Mysterious World. Do you remember how I said that in the Beyond, all things exist as a separate entity?¡± Soren remembered their conversation¡ªhe nodded. ¡°That separate entity is called a ¡®Runic Existence''. If The Beyond holds some aspects of this world¡¯s will, then Runic Existences hold the will of the objects they represent. Or as our Mistress likes to describe them¡ªhigh dimensional structures that hold the values of the object they represent in the natural world.¡± Soren crossed his arms. ¡°What does this have to do with Malevolent Hexes?¡± ¡°A Malevolent Hex is a being that has had its runic existence tampered with.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°So you¡¯re telling me¡­ Someone purposefully created this thing? Through magecraft?¡± ¡°Indeed¡­ Unlike inanimate objects, a living being¡¯s Runic Existence resides at the core of one¡¯s soul. Someone was experimenting with forbidden Mysteries.¡± A chill ran down his spine as he gazed into the creature¡¯s abyssal eyes. What was in front of him was a living person¡ªwhat was left of one at least¡­ Did the same thing happen to that Memory Void Spirit? The question lingered in his mind. He had always been curious about the true nature of that thing that attacked him. But also, he began to consider something else. ¡°The Malevolent Hex that I saw¡­ It wasn¡¯t an adult like this one. It was a child.¡± ¡°.....¡± They all stood there silently. Soren decided to break the awkwardness. ¡°I''ll use [Eyes of the Fairy] now. But I need to focus a bit. It hasn¡¯t been that long since the last time I used it.¡± Myrin nodded. Taking a deep breath, Soren prepared himself to dive back into the unseen. His Soul Weapon activated, and his vision turned into pastel colors once more. He looked deeply into the creature, brushing past the countless distractions and oddities that permeate the Beyond. If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. His vision honed into what he desired to see most. The creature laying down on the cyan grass looked ethereal from his perspective¡ªas if he was staring at a ghost or specter. And within the frame that makes up its body, was a tiny blue rose¡ªat least that¡¯s what it looked like to him¡ªits shape was oscillating rapidly, making it almost impossible to truly grasp what it really looked like. Soren wasn¡¯t sure what it was, but he could tell that his vision was responding to his thoughts. He assumed that it was the being¡¯s Runic Existence¡ªthere was no other conclusion to come to. Just when he was about to look closer, cracks began to appear across the blue rose. Soren had no time to react as an abyssal black mist seeped out from the crevices, creating a cloud of darkness that surrounded the now ruptured rose. Moments later, Soren noticed his vision faltering. It was as if he was looking into a deep, void-filled crevice that went on for infinity¡ªabsolutely nothing could be seen. But even within that unending darkness, a single phrase was heard. ¡°The Mist¡­¡± Soren dropped to his knees in agony. ¡°Ugh!¡± His ability deactivated on its own. Tina and Myrin rushed to his side to hold him. ¡°What happened?¡± Myrin asked. ¡°.....¡± Soren could not answer immediately. He had no clue what had happened. All of a sudden, they heard the Malevolent Hex growl. They all looked in horror as the creature laying before them swiftly broke apart into dust. It had withered away without leaving a single trace of its existence behind¡ªnot even its soul remained. Myrin grit his teeth. ¡°May the blossoms embrace thee.¡± Tina lowered her head in silent prayer. Soren stumbled back, What the hell?! " A single phrase echoed in his mind as he rubbed away the pain of overusing [Eyes of the Fairy]: ¡°The Mist¡­¡± Soren quickly activated [Record] to make sure everything he had seen was chronicled. The mysterious fountain pen manifested itself and got to work. Event Log New Entry Recorded: [Memory Void Husk] (Malevolent Hex) New Entry Recorded: [The Nameless Mist] (Mystery) New Entry Recorded: [Corrupted Runic Existence] (Mystery) His [Eyes of the Fairy] ability had once again proved its usefulness. He swiftly ordered his Soul Weapon to turn the page to where information about The Nameless Mist was stored. The Nameless Mist A mysterious form of Anima that should not belong to this world. That¡¯s it? Only a single sentence was chronicled. He mulled over the words ¡®should not belong to this world.¡¯ Is it just foreign to Yarian, or something even more anomalous? He had no answer to that question. Soren decided to flip the pages to view the information recorded about the Memory Void Husk. Memory Void Husk A corrupted being that exhibits the visual features of an elf. This entity has clear signs of it being once a living being. It had been transformed into a Malevolent Hex through the influence of a corrupted form of Anima that should not exist within this world. This anima had managed to erase and shroud its runic existence, causing the creature to lose sight of itself, becoming nothing but a husk of flesh that wanders around without any sense of purpose. Soren blinked. Although he was expecting this kind of information, he was confused by the last sentence. Without any sense of purpose¡­ That did not make any sense to him. Although the poor thing had clearly lost most of its will, there was something still inside of it that remained. If not that, then how could it have possibly mentioned ¡°The Mist¡± to him? He decided to forward his findings to Myrin and Tina. ¡°It seems that this person truly had a strong will when he was alive. What a shame, the Court of Roses would have loved to add him to their ranks¡­¡± Myrin spoke with a tinge of bitterness. Tina glanced at Myrin and frowned. ¡°But, Myrin¡­¡± ¡°I know,¡± he interrupted her. He glanced back at Soren who was confused. ¡°For whatever reason, this person, even in the face of imminent existential erasure, held a goal that he needed to accomplish no matter what. It is for that reason that he lasted for this long¡­ If what you have said is true, then it is certainly possible that he was trying to send a message. Though¡­¡± Soren tilted his neck. ¡°Though what?¡± Myrin continued, ¡°This person¡­ He is an Unblessed. I can tell from his attire and mannerisms. But most importantly, his bruised ears.¡± Soren frowned. ¡°What the hell is an Unblessed?¡± ¡°They are of the servant class in Yadrian society,¡± Tina answered. ¡°Their existence in Yadria is similar to how the Selkie Federation treats non-Magi. Though there are some differences.¡± So Yadria has a caste system? Well color me surprised. He almost wanted to roll his eyes. Even after crossing dimensions, human nature still persisted. Though this time, it was the elves doing it. Not that he was naive to assume that Yarian didn¡¯t have its fair share of societal problems. ¡°Even so, what does this have to do with the person¡¯s will power? Are you looking down on people of a lower class?¡± Tina shook her head, ¡°No, it''s a bit more complex than that¡­¡± She looked at Myrin and sighed, ¡°How about you explain it to him.¡± ¡°In Yadrian society,¡± he spoke solemnly, ¡°To be ¡®Unblessed¡¯ means that your will is not strong enough or is simply not in the good graces of the Flower Maiden. I personally disagree with this notion, but that is what is widely believed in Yadria. And as you can see, this person clearly shows how their blatant disregard for those with unblessed lineages can make them overlook even the finest of gems¡­¡± Chapter 18: The Three Layers

Chapter 18: The Three Layers

A few days had passed since that incident, and the mood during the ride had yet to change for the better. After their brief exchange, Tyrel had come back from his scouting trip and discovered a few more Memory Void Husks scouring the nearby forested areas¡ªmany of them already on the brink of collapse. After giving all of them a proper burial according to Yadrian customs, they swiftly moved along toward their next estimated stop: Point Sylvia. According to Myrin, it was a large swamp filled with enormous lily pads that were said to have the ability to hold several people on top of them without sinking¡ªa common stopping point for travelers heading toward Yadria. If they could find it, it would be confirmation that Soren¡¯s Soul Weapon was heading in the right path. At the same time, Myrin had also used Flower Petal Divination and found out that if they did head in that direction, their trip could get significantly shorter¡ªsomething Soren was relieved to hear. Spotting it was also not that difficult, as it was said that a Beacon of Guidance was located at the center of the swamp. That was supposed to be the case if not for the current weather. Maybe it was just a coincidence, but it felt almost comical how well timed the rain came, as if it was trying to match their sour mood. For the past several days, the heavens did not stop pouring. It felt like a breath of fresh air at first, but the fact that they couldn¡¯t start a fire quickly got annoying¡ªespecially for Tina who loved to complain about everything. Soren for the most part didn¡¯t mind her outspoken nature. For most of his teenage life, the only people who spoke to him were either bootlickers or scammers. Getting told to ¡°fuck off¡± everytime he made a mistake felt oddly satisfying for once. Aside from his newly acquired masochistic tendencies, Soren spent the time learning from Myrin. Ever since that incident, many questions were piling up in his head¡ªmost of them having to do with Yadria. At first, it didn¡¯t make any sense to him why a society of supposed spiritual shamans would obsess over how much anima a person had. Willpower. That was how it was explained. Although he did understand the basic nature of it, there were still many gaps he had to fill. And yet, even with his lack of knowledge, it truly did not make any sense to him why they would place this energy on such a pedestal¡ªto the point of alienating a large portion of their own citizens. It was only after Myrin explained the situation that things finally clicked into place. In Yadria, all religious practice centered around The Flower Maiden, one of the six orthodox deities of Yarian. She was known as the Weaver of Spirits, the Mistress of Sleep, and the Eternal Blossom. According to Yadrian myth, She was also known as the Pollinator of Unfounded Dreams. Her peoples were once nomadic, but only in the spiritual sense. Every fortnight, those blessed with Her anima were said to enter a dream-like state in which they journeyed alongside the Goddess. This tradition was later called Yasini¡¯s Paradise, and has been continued to this day. Nowadays, Yasini¡¯s Paradise takes place once every year on the 90th of Vyak, unlike how it was usually done during the Third Age of Fantasia. History aside, Soren was much more interested in the now. How did such an innocent yet fascinating religious practice have any ties with the mistreatment of The Unblessed? The answer was fairly simple: those who could not participate in Yasini¡¯s Paradise were labeled as such. According to Yadrian scholars, those lacking in anima were said to be weak in spirit. And to be weak in spirit means that you are not in the good graces of the Flower Maiden¡ªlocking you from entering Yasini¡¯s Paradise. And so, the term ¡®Unblessed¡¯ became prevalent over the years. Even though that was the case, the term only gained its current notoriety roughly 1367 years ago, at the start of the Fourth Age of Fantasia. That year marked the birth of the Spirit Blossom Willow. A tree so radiant, it was said that its roots stretched to the far ends of the Feylith Forest. By that point, Soren had noticed how uncomfortable Myrin was becoming and decided to change the subject. He was going to find out more about the situation when they got there anyway. If they got there, at least. Aside from the Unblessed, there was something else pressing on his mind. The Nameless Mist¡­ Just thinking back on what he had witnessed when using [Eyes of the Fairy] on that Memory Void Husk gave him chills. Nightmares continued to persist him throughout the lengthy nights. Though, insomnia had managed to attach itself to not just Soren, but everyone else as well. Aside from navigating the illusionary barrier, they also had to keep their eyes open for Spirit Beast attacks. But now, they also had to keep track of Malevolent Hexes. This was especially true of Memory Void Spirits. Unlike their Husk counterpart which struggled to even move, Memory Void Spirits like the one that had attacked him had clearly adapted to their circumstances. Even with their corrupted Runic Existence, their ability to traverse in spirit body form allowed them to easily locate prey. When Myrin and the rest heard of Soren¡¯s recount, they couldn¡¯t help but sit there frowning. Without an ability to perceive The Beyond like the one Soren had, noticing their presence was pretty difficult. And it wasn¡¯t like this was an empty threat. In just the last two days alone, Tyrel had counted roughly 60 Memory Void Husks. And that number was quickly growing the closer they reached their destination. The chances of another Memory Void Spirit wandering close to their carriage and attacking them when they least expected it kept them awake at night. Even Myrin, who somehow had better skin than Tina herself, was showing eyebags underneath his glistening golden irises. Even so, they had still devised a plan when it came to detecting their presence. Myrin had brought with him a strange magitech tool (as Myrin called them,) that could detect rogue anima. After sampling The Nameless Mist, it should give them the ability to notice their presence¡ªat least to a certain extent. This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. Though, none of that stopped either Myrin or him from experimenting with The Records, and most importantly, Soul Realms. ¡°Listen up Soren,¡± he said plainly. ¡°A human¡¯s soul can be organized into different layers. They are called The Veil of Perception, The Echo of Mind, and The Heart¡¯s Shroud. They govern a person¡¯s senses, thoughts, and emotions respectively. ¡°These layers are Manifestations of ¡®Self.¡¯ They define who you are as a person. To unlock a Soul Realm, a magus must first look past these layers and discover what remains. Have you ever asked, ¡®Who am I?¡¯ That is what you will need to do first.¡± ¡°That sounds interesting,¡± Soren said. ¡°But how am I supposed to view these layers, or even ¡®walk¡¯ past them?¡± Even if he tried to use [Eyes of the Fairy], it wasn¡¯t like he could take his eyes out and try looking at himself¡­ Unless mirrors worked? But he doubted that notion. ¡°It¡¯s fairly simple,¡± Myrin smirked, much to the discomfort of Soren. ¡°All you need to do is kill yourself.¡± ¡°......¡± ¡°I¡¯m kidding, but it¡¯s kinda similar to dying actually, haha.¡± That did not sound comforting to Soren at all. ¡°Essentially, you must deprive yourself of everything you have. Your senses, your emotions, your thoughts. All of it. And within that void, all that will be left is the true you. Luckily, I have the perfect magitech tool to facilitate that, so you won¡¯t need to worry about how to enter these layers in the first place.¡± Soren pondered over his words. ¡°So what exactly is this ¡®True Self¡¯? What does it look like? Is it a mirrored version of me or something?¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s hard to say. Your true self can be anything, but it represents your inner will¡ªthe desires that drive your destiny forward, ones that are unknown to even you. Unless you know what that is, manifesting a Soul Realm is impossible. ¡°My Inner Self for example, I still remember it to this day. It appeared to me in the form of an ink splatter¡ªa fairly ugly one at that,¡± he laughed while correcting his cone hat. Soren leaned back, a bit surprised. ¡°I kinda expected your Soul Weapon to show up as your true self,¡± He glanced at The Records briefly. ¡°Hmm, a person¡¯s Soul Weapon.¡± Myrin thought for a bit then smiled. ¡°You might not entirely be wrong in that notion¡ªa Soul Weapon manifests itself based on your True Self. But that isn¡¯t the entire makeup of it either. A Soul Weapon, especially ones like ours that belong to Vagrant Phantasms, requires an Abstract Rune that gives rise to its conceptual Mysteries. But that¡¯s a topic for another day. ¡°Anyway, all you need to know is that it is impossible for a Soul Weapon to entirely reflect your True Self. There are elements to a Soul Weapon that are alien to who your actual identity is.¡± Soren pondered over his words for a bit as silence returned to the carriage. He checked The Records again to make sure they were still following the correct path. It seemed that the Illusionary Barrier hadn¡¯t shifted this time, much to his relief. Myrin finally spoke up again. ¡°I have a practice technique to recommend to you¡ªone that might be useful at tackling The Veil of Perception. It''s a fairly simple one, but demands a lot of focus. First, close your eyes and imagine a formless, still void. Absolute darkness.¡± Soren crossed his feet and took a deep breath before closing his eyes. He did exactly as Myrin had told¡ªhis mind was completely dark. Though, small patches of thoughts continued to disrupt this stillness. ¡°What you need to do is now imagine your remaining thoughts as bubbles floating slowly in that pitch-black darkness. You need to pop those bubbles one at a time.¡± Soren went ahead and did that. Surprisingly, it worked. The once chaotic thoughts invading his imagination ceased to exist. Soren then accidentally opened his eyes out of shock, before clumsily going back and doing it all over again. ¡°As you can see, controlling your thoughts was fairly simple. Do you know why?¡± Soren was stumped for an answer. ¡°The reason is simple. You already have immense control over your thoughts. It has always been subconscious, though. Until now, at least.¡± I¡¯ve always controlled my thoughts? He never realized. But the more he thought about it, the more it made sense. ¡°I¡¯ve been observing you since the start of our journey, you see. [Eyes of the Fairy]¡ªthat ability of yours. It cannot be controlled without first controlling your own thoughts. Think about it, whenever you needed to observe something within The Beyond, did you not need to focus on that subject to hone your vision on what you needed to see most?¡± What he desired most. Now that Myrin had mentioned it, it made perfect sense. If he hadn¡¯t been able to control his thoughts when using [Eyes of the Fairy], the ability would continue to show him things he did not desire, and with the unlimited amount of distractions present within The Beyond, getting lost in your own desires was a fairly easy and understandable mistake to make. Not for Soren, however. ¡°Not once during your countless uses of [Eyes of the Fairy] did you ever get distracted from your goal. You always had one the moment you used the ability, and you kept that goal to yourself when viewing The Beyond. ¡°Your control over your own thoughts¡ªit''s monstrous, Soren.¡± Being compared to a monster peeved him a bit, but what Myrin was saying wasn¡¯t incorrect. Even so, it did make him curious. Did he always have this ability? Or was it something he inherited after acquiring his Soul Weapon? He leaned more toward the former. Afterall, ever since the tender age of seven, a year after he had discovered chess¡ªplaying entire games in his head against himself was a fairly common practice for him. Whenever he felt bored, he would simply close his eyes and imagine an entire chessboard, moving every piece with his mind¡ªkeeping track of patterns. Marking down possible mates. It all felt so natural to him. Eventually, he was even able to imagine multiple games playing out simultaneously, all of them at the international master level if not grandmaster level. He had always assumed that that was fairly normal for a chess player to do. But now that he thought about it, it might have been something others couldn¡¯t even imagine replicating... Should I be proud of myself or something? He smiled plainly then looked back at Myrin. ¡°You might not be entirely wrong. I am a monster¡ªand a fairly handsome one at that.¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°And you said I loved to brag. Are you sure you weren¡¯t projecting?¡± Chapter 19: The Veil of Perception

Chapter 19: The Veil of Perception

Soren¡¯s life during his journey had been turned into a routine¡ªevery morning, he would help Myrin with navigating the Illusionary Barrier as well as mapping out the rest of the way toward Yadria. His Soul Weapon¡¯s map of Yarian was slowly getting filled¡ªmore and more of the forest was being drawn along the path they were moving in. Though, it was still relatively small compared to the rest of it. According to Myrin, Yarian consisted of one singular colossal continent that was surrounded by the Endless Sea on all sides. Although Soren couldn¡¯t completely visualize it, the picture Myrin painted amazed him. He couldn¡¯t wait to explore it all¡ªif he could stay alive for that long, at least. In the afternoon, Soren continued practicing how to control his emotions, thoughts and senses using various techniques. However, that was easier said than done. Even during his practice sessions, Soren was only really able to somewhat understand the method of walking past The Echo of Mind, and that was mainly due his innate ability to focus his thoughts to a monstrous degree. The real test was yet to come. ¡°Walking down the path of magecraft requires a serious amount of introspection.¡± Myrin spoke while munching on a snack. ¡°You aren¡¯t just finding your true self, you are also stripping away the facade of who you once thought you were. And that can be¡­ A scary outcome for most people. ¡°Out of a hundred aspiring magi who have successfully discovered their true self, 50 will walk away happy with what they found. The other half¡­ Will be driven mad and begin to doubt who they once were. Most of them end up killing themselves out of desperation. Even memory loss magecraft is useless at making them forget what they have experienced.¡± Soren stayed silent as Myrin continued. ¡°This is why Tyrel advised you not to put your complete faith in that flower divination. Once you strip away your thoughts, senses, and emotions¡­ What¡¯s left? The truth, yes, but truth isn¡¯t always comforting.¡± Although Soren didn¡¯t doubt the risks, he also knew that he was not in a position to choose. He knew that the more he delayed this outcome, the more he would regret it. ¡°I understand. But I still think I should continue down this path. Whatever awaits me within the void¡ªI will accept it.¡± Myrin smiled. ¡°I guess we can finally try our first attempt?¡± Soren nodded. Myrin looked toward the headless ogre and ordered it to stop. He then called over Tyrel and Tina to watch the spectacle unfold. For the past few days, Soren has been practicing with certain techniques to understand what the three layers are, such as imagining a void and popping away his excess thoughts. But all of this paled in comparison to the true test. Soren sat plainly on a log as Myrin handed him a small, dark blue orb. It was roughly the size of a marble, but filled with holes. ¡°This is something we call an ¡®Orb of Self,¡¯¡± Myrin Explained. ¡°What you¡¯ll need to do is pour your anima into it. When you do, the true layers of your soul will manifest before you. Think of it like a mold¡ªthe anima you give it will take the shape of the essence within you. But for that to happen, you must find the essence that defines who you truly are, hidden beyond the three layers of the manifested self. Each layer must be confronted and ¡®killed,¡¯ one by one, until you uncover the true essence that remains. ¡°But be warned. You will not be able to leave until you walk past one of the layers, at the very least.¡± Tina crossed her arms. ¡°Soren, are you sure about this? You can always say no.¡± Soren smiled and shook his head. ¡°I have made my decision. In fact, I am somewhat excited. I wonder what my true self looks like. I hope it¡¯s as handsome as the current me.¡± She shook her head. ¡°Fine. May the Mother of Silver guide you.¡± Tyrel on the other hand stood there, silently. With a deep breath, Soren closed his eyes and imagined his willpower pouring into the orb. Almost immediately, he felt his consciousness fading. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. What was once a vibrant and colorful forest surrounding him had been turned into a formless, pitch black void filled with countless stars. Soren blinked as he looked around him¡ªhe was floating freely in space. Where am I? Who am I? The questions rang in his head. Other than his name and goal, he had no idea who he was-the memories of who he was were all stripped away from him. Like a blank canvas, Soren simply floated in nothingness¡ªno, he himself had become nothingness. Fear overwhelmed him. All of a sudden, faint whispers began to invade his mind, little by little. They were incomprehensible, yet nauseating at the same time. But even more so¡ªthey were painful. Like insects crawling under his skin, the ravings continued to pierce his skull, even with his hands over his ears. What the hell is happening to me?! The Veil of Perception. He thought. Those words slowly filled his mind. He needed to escape from this. He needed to walk past the pain, and all his senses. The whispers continued to crawl into him against his own will, but Soren simply took a deep breath and ignored it. His eyes then began to flash rapidly in color, even when he closed them. The once empty void filled with stars twisted as countless images were shown to him. There were strange depictions of monstrous creatures, scenery, and modern cities¡­ They continued to shift infinitely with no recognizable pattern. Then came the scents. Countless smells, some pleasant, others ghastly, invaded his nostrils one after the other. Aromas of flowers mixed feces, soil, food, perfumes, and others. Sensory overload. That was all he could describe it as. He wanted to curl up into a ball and puke all over himself, but he knew that staying here any longer was dangerous. Soren marched forward. He didn¡¯t know where exactly he was headed, but he knew he needed to move. Every step he took, his perception of reality changed. It was as if he was slipping in and out of different dimensions, some more wacky than others. He continued to walk and walk and walk. Forever. To him, it felt as if a thousand years had passed. Each second, his body itself morphed. One day, he was a ceiling fan hanging from a regular looking room. Another day, he was a tree. There was one instance where he had his whole perception of reality shift into that of a worm, crawling through the sand. I see¡­ So the Veil of Perception covers the sense of time as well¡­ Ten thousand years passed. A hundred thousand years passed. Five hundred thousand years passed. Soren was still walking toward an exit he himself didn¡¯t even know existed. Each time, doing so in the form of a different experience. A million years had passed. By this point, Soren had already experienced every sensation that could ever exist in this world. And yet, those same sensations he had experienced were now repeating again. How much longer do I have to walk for? I can¡¯t go on like this. I don¡¯t want to go on like this¡­ And then¡­ A thought struck him. He remembered something. Memory Void Spirit¡­ A creature that roamed across the Feylith Forest, consuming people¡¯s thoughts, emotions, and senses. ¡°He¡± had personally experienced its effects. It felt as if he was observing the world as a spectator, one who was outside the perception of reality itself. Checkmate! Soren imagined himself looking at his own body floating through the Veil of Perception. The exit¡ªhe never needed to walk toward it. It was hiding within him all along. He viewed the world and all objects, experiences, realities, perceptions like a moviegoer bored out of his mind. None of it mattered. Suddenly, the Veil of Perception shattered like glass. Countless shards broke apart, revealing a new layer beneath it all: The Echo of Mind. Soren suddenly felt all his sensations drifting away. All that was left was the stillness of his mind. He looked out into this new reality¡ªrather than a shifting void of perceptions, he was now standing in the middle of a still ocean, with a clear blue sky reflecting off of its surface. Soren walked a few steps forward, ripples forming underneath his feet. This is the Echo of Mind? ¡°This is the Echo of Mind?¡± ¡°This is the Echo of Mind?¡± ¡°This is the Echo of Mind?¡± His thoughts reverberated across this new plane for himself to hear. And then, the thoughts about his own thoughts also began to echo. The once calm ocean beneath his feet rocked, as waves continued to form with every thought he manifested. Chapter 20: The Echo of Mind

Chapter 20: The Echo of Mind

It felt like eternity since the last time they had seen the sun. The rain which had persisted for much longer than it should have had finally ended. Still, the forest had not yet dried, the wet grass made it hard for the carriage to navigate. Myrin leaned against the carriage and looked at Soren, who was sitting calmly on a log with his eyes closed. He sighed. 30 minutes¡­ No reaction. ¡°Is he going to be okay?¡± Tina interrupted his thoughts. He smiled at her. ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about him. From the time I spent with him so far, he is by far the most competent person I¡¯ve ever seen. I¡¯m sure he has already considered everything before taking this risk.¡± She glanced at Soren and sighed. ¡°I sure do hope so¡­ I wonder why he is in such a hurry? I know it must be stressful to know you only have a week and a half to live, but this is too risky¡­ If he had waited until we went back to Celestine, our mistress could have easily helped him unlock his Soul Realm¡­ There are countless magitech contraptions available that make the process easier.¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°I think I do have a clue as to why that is.¡± ¡°What do you mean,¡± she lifted her brow. ¡°Judging by recent actions, I think he fully understands what his role in this new world is. He understands that now that he has obtained a Soul Weapon, he is a part of the Mysterious World. He knows that he will need to gain strength as soon as possible if he wants any chance to survive. And unlocking a Soul Realm is the first step he must take on that path.¡± Tina thought about it for a second, then her eyes widened. ¡°You don¡¯t mean¡­¡± Myrin smirked. ¡°You finally get it. Yes, his goal isn¡¯t just to delay his death. He wants to become a magus, and as quickly as possible to protect himself. It doesn¡¯t take a Soul Realm like mine to know¡ªjust one look at his eyes is enough to tell what he¡¯s thinking. But that¡¯s not the full story either, I think he desires something else as well.¡± ¡°A connection,¡± Tina filled in. ¡°He wants to showcase his abilities to us so we can recruit him into our Star Fate Guild.¡± ¡°Bingo,¡± Myrin smirked. ¡°But¡­ Wouldn¡¯t it all be for nothing if he fails? It''s just so incredibly risky to try and unlock a Soul Realm with only a day or two of practice¡­¡± ¡°Trust the process, Tina. Don¡¯t you remember what our Mistress divined? A person desperate for our help will lead us toward Yadria, and Soren is that person. If Soren fails here, then that would mean our mistress¡¯ prophecy was wrong. And I don¡¯t believe that to be the case.¡± Tina pondered for a few seconds before speaking again. ¡°It''s all just so weird to me¡­ I know Mistress Sienna has finally found a clue into Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate, but for it to suddenly be tied to a stranger from beyond the Endless Sea? What machinations are driving such events forward¡­ ¡°Is what we are doing even¡­ Good? Do the gods approve? I wonder if the Mother of Silver will permanently shun me after all of this is said and done,¡± she chuckled to herself, self deprecatingly. Myrin had no answer. He couldn¡¯t answer. Even with being Mistress Sienna¡¯s first disciple, there were many things he didn¡¯t know about his master. Even so, he trusted her with his life. Nothing she had ever told him was misleading or untruthful. Without her support, he would still be¡­. ¡°Remember what the mistress always says, Tina.¡± She answered for him, ¡°The world spins, but destiny remains still.¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± he replied. ¡°There can never be too many oddities when it comes to fate. And it is these oddities that push our world forward. At least, that should be the case until that dreaded event occurred a thousand years ago.¡± Tina turned around and walked toward Soren. Gracefully, she sat next to him on the log, making sure not to disrupt his meditation. ¡°The recent discovery of those Malevolent Hexes also troubles me. Could they be what our mistress was talking about?¡± ¡°The Nameless Mist,¡± Myrin crossed his arms. ¡°This anima¡ªit is most likely the cause behind the recent Feylith Forest incidents we have been hearing about. That was also one of our goals for going on this mission, after all¡­ We need to meet up with the Court of Roses and let them know about the situation.¡± Tina sighed¡ªshe decided to shift the conversation. ¡°Do you think Soren can do it? Forming a Soul Realm.¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°I doubt it. All I can really hope is that he can at least surpass the Veil of Perception. If he can¡¯t do that, he dies¡ªit¡¯s as simple as that. As for the other two¡­¡± He pondered over it for a few seconds. ¡°I can see him maybe passing the Echo of Mind. His innate talent when it comes to focus is unmatched in these Lands of Fantasia. ¡°It''s a different story if we talk about the Heart¡¯s Shroud though¡­ That is an entirely different beast to tackle¡­¡± Tina sighed. ¡°I agree, it took me countless tries before I could surpass that layer¡­¡± ¡°I believe it might be even worse for Soren. He may look fairly normal on the outside¡ªa bit too friendly as well, but¡­ His eyes are that of a person who''s been through a lot.¡± This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report. Just as Tina was about to respond, Tyrel appeared from behind the carriage. ¡°Get yourselves ready. There are roughly a hundred Memory Void Husks crawling toward our direction at this moment. And It seems like the magitech detector is finally working¡ª15 Memory Void Spirits¡­ At the very least.¡± ¡°By Her Silver Grace¡­¡± It seemed even with good weather, the forest still wanted to dampen their moods.
Soren starred up into the sky. Unlike when he first entered the Echo of Mind, it had changed drastically. It had gone from completely clear skies to thunderous clouds, and in the distance¡ªwhat looks to be typhoons and tornadoes. All of this was going on at the same time as his blaring thoughts echoed out for the entire world to hear. Except, the only one in that world was him. Colossal waves continued to surge, one larger than the one before it. It was a miracle he hadn¡¯t fallen yet. The wind zipped past him, carrying the sound of his own thoughts with it. I can¡¯t go on like this, He thought. ¡°I can¡¯t go on like this¡­¡± ¡°I can¡¯t go on like this¡­¡± ¡°I can¡¯t go on like this¡­¡± The echoes grew more and more chaotic. He realized, as his thoughts played out to him, that even after they had been said, they would continue to linger. This meant that any new thought he imagined would continue to echo alongside every previous thought he had. Eventually, this will reach a breaking point. ¡°?E?ven?t?ua?ll?y?,? ?t?h?i?s ?w?i?ll? ?re?ach? ?a? ?br?e?ak?i?n?g ?p?o?int?.?¡±? ¡°???E???v???e???n???t???u???a???l???l???y???,??? ???t???h???i???s??? ???w???i???l???l??? ???r???e???a???c???h??? ???a??? ???b???r???e???a???k???i???n???g??? ???p???o???i???n???t???.???¡±??? It was as if every thought he ever had was overlapping one on top of the other. And the more he heard, the worse it got. An infinite positive feedback loop that will end in his own insanity. Even experiencing a million life times in the Veil of Perception was better than this¡­ Soren took a deep breath and sat down on the tumultuous ocean floor¡ªfeet crossed. He closed his eyes and imagined a completely still void. If thoughts were currently harming him, then he had no issue with using the same thing against them. Fighting fire with fire¡ªfighting thoughts with thoughts. Thoughts of stillness and calm. He quickly remembered the technique Myrin had taught him¡ªBubble Visualization. All of a sudden, the storms raging across the darkened skies began to shrink. The once enormous dark gray clouds were slowly compressed by an unseen force¡ªeach of them turning into gaseous marbles the size of a car. The skies were now littered with thousands of cloud orbs, just as he imagined them to be. Soren was observing all of this from his mind¡¯s eye. It was as if he was a spectator to his own thoughts. Slowly, he ordered the orb clouds to pop, one by one. The skies slowly began to clear, and the waves soothed with every cloud burst. It worked! ¡°It worked!¡± ¡°It worked!¡± ¡°It worked!¡± . . . Even though he was slowly getting rid of his thoughts, new ones were also being created at the same time. It was a race¡ªon one side was creation, on the other, destruction. By this point, Soren had realized something. His thoughts formed in waves only seconds after he deleted a batch of cloud bubbles. It was as if they were being created simply to fill the empty space being left behind. And there was the problem: The skies couldn¡¯t remain empty. His mind wasn¡¯t used to stillness¡ªit feared it, needed to fill it. Why can I not keep this space clear?.. Soren wondered as another batch of cloud bubbles condensed into shape. He popped them effortlessly, yet he knew more were already being formed, waiting just above the ones he had just dismissed. It was frustrating. Each time Soren popped a thought bubble, another emerged to take its place, a seemingly endless cycle. Anxiety was bound to happen, and it only caused more bubbles to form¡ªtheir rate of creation out-paced his destruction. It was as if the harder he fought to maintain emptiness, the more the thoughts surged in retaliation. He remembered his time back on Earth, sitting at the subway with his eyes closed, imagining countless chess games being played out simultaneously. He enjoyed that time the most¡ªmore so than even meeting other players face-to-face. How did he do it back then? How was he able to remove all the clutter in his mind and focus his attention on just the chess matches? That¡¯s when a thought appeared unlike all the previous ones¡ªa thought that held immense value to his current dilemma: his thoughts weren¡¯t meant to be conquered by force. They were meant to be accepted. At that time, his focus wasn¡¯t on just eliminating the clutter in his mind, he was also replacing it with something¡ªChess. Even his usage of [Eyes of the Fairy] was another form of this ¡®Replacement¡¯. No matter what he focused on, whether it was chess or his ability to perceive The Beyond¡ªhe was still focusing on something. At no point in his life had ever used his ability to eliminate all his thoughts completely. Even his practice sessions with Myrin¡ªhe was imagining a void to remove the clutter, but that too was a form of filling the mind. Instead of frantically popping the bubbles, Soren began to slow down. He let the bubbles float down for a moment, watching them drift across the clear blue skies. Within each bubble was a miniature storm¡ªhe could spot lightning strikes zipping by and winds racing to escape the binding holding these rogue thoughts together. Instead of destroying them, he let them float freely above the ocean, contained within their own bindings that isolated them from the rest of the Echo of Mind. The next wave of thoughts came, smaller this time, but Soren didn¡¯t react. He simply compressed them into bubbles once more and watched them drift randomly across the skies. The thoughts, which once seemed so urgent, now felt meaningless. He was no longer trying to destroy them as soon as they appeared. Instead, he welcomed the space between each bubble, letting it stretch longer and longer. It was in these gaps between the waves that Soren found the real quiet¡ªthe stillness he had been chasing all along. Chapter 21: The Hearts Shroud

Chapter 21: The Heart¡¯s Shroud

The ocean beneath Soren¡¯s feet had once again calmed. His eyes reflected the clearness¡ªevery thought bubble floating freely in the skies was reflected off its glass-like surface. He looked up at the clear blue sky and smiled. Stillness had been achieved. ¡°It''s so fascinating how this space can even exist¡­¡± His thoughts echoed out across the world. Another thought bubble manifested itself, but Soren wasn¡¯t concerned. He simply looked past it all. To create a Soul Realm, he must look past all three manifested layers of the soul to find his ¡°True Self¡±. But Myrin had also told him that these layers were not exactly useless either. In fact, a person¡¯s Soul Realm, in a sense, acts as a projection of all three of these layers out into the world. Most magecraft spellforms interact with them in some way, especially magecraft that has to do with the mind. Myrin had also noted how these layers could not only act as a conduit for spellforms, but also a receiver of attacks. Both him and Myrin were almost certain that the Memory Void Spirit that attacked him utilized these layers to siphon his thoughts, emotions and senses. ¡°The next layer is the Heart¡¯s Shroud¡­¡± He thought. Myrin had warned him the most about this layer. And he fully understood why. Emotion. The raw, primal feelings that governed a person¡¯s instincts and internal reactions. The Heart¡¯s Shroud was said to hold all desires, fears, joys, sorrows¡­ Every known trauma resided there. And, most importantly, the whispers of the rift also most likely resided there¡­ At least he assumed so. ¡°Well this should be interesting.¡± Ironically enough, The Heart¡¯s Shroud also held his fears for The Heart¡¯s Shroud itself. And that fear was growing by the second. He considered turning back now¡ªhe had already managed to walk past two of the three layers, and this was just his first try. Turning back now would definitely not be shameful. He could then come back to The Heart¡¯s Shroud when he was more prepared. He took a deep breath as countless new thought bubbles appeared. ¡°I cannot run away from my problems forever.¡± The thought echoed out. Soren knew himself well. If he gave up now, he would continue to make excuses for himself. Besides, how was he going to chase after thrills if he wasn''t willing to accept any risks? Maybe this was an opportunity¡ªat least he wanted to think of it as such. He could finally confront his past¡ªall of it. The good¡­ And the bad. ¡°Myrin is going to kill me for this¡­¡± He knew that there was no turning back. The moment he enters The Heart¡¯s Shroud, he could only leave victorious or dead. But that was a risk he was willing to take. Besides, this wasn¡¯t his first time being careless. Ever since he did that dumb ritual, he¡¯s been a pro at it. His lips curled up into a smile as he closed his eyes, ready for the next layer. Almost immediately, he felt his feet sinking into the crystal clear sea. In just a few seconds, his entire body had been submerged beneath the deep ocean. He had finally entered The Heart¡¯s Shroud. Although it gave him the impression that he was diving underwater, that was not what this layer looked like in the slightest. Instead, he was submerged in a thick, grayish, fog-like substance that shifted around him randomly. He continued to sink ever so slowly, letting gravity take its hold. At the bottom, he could see a faint light¡ªwhich he assumed to be his ¡®True Self.¡¯ He needed to sift through this endless fog to reach it. Throughout it all, Soren remembered his time back on Earth. Maybe it was out of instinct¡ªto brace himself for what was about to come. But he felt oddly ready. As ready as a man marching through memory lane, at least. I wonder what my true self will look like, he thought¡ªunable to hold back his smile. It was hard to know whether he was truly excited or terrified¡­ Or maybe both. He had a few guesses as to what it would look like. Maybe a chess board? This was probably his best guess. He had spent a lot of his life playing that crappy ancient board game. It also could be a blank canvas to represent his fresh start in this world that has always been on his mind? Or maybe, it was something immense, like a giant labyrinth to represent the infinite possibilities that have opened themselves to him? He wasn¡¯t exactly sure, but a lot of these were examples that Myrin had listed¡ªchronicled from books he had read about the subject. It was important to note that according to Myrin, how one¡¯s true self looked like or represented had an immense effect on how their Soul Realm manifested. For example, Myrin¡¯s ability to read people¡¯s souls was a reflection of his true self. It also heavily focused on tapping into a person¡¯s Echo of Mind to read their thoughts¡ªat least superficially. But the biggest effect had to be in regards to a magi¡¯s Affinities. Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on Royal Road. Affinities dictate how one¡¯s anima could be used when casting magecraft, as well as the type of magecraft that could be cast. In the case of Myrin, Soren wasn¡¯t completely sure what all his Affinities were, but he did know he had a healing Affinity that allowed him to be great at casting healing magecraft¡ªit had proved its usefulness countless times during the trip whenever Tyrel came back with light injuries from Spirit Beast attacks. Aside from that, he also speculated that he held an Affinity for dreams or sleep, as Myrin was proficient at casting those kinds of magecraft spells as well. Soren continued to ponder on what his Affinities will be. Maybe something to do with pattern recognition? He wasn¡¯t exactly sure how it all worked, he just knew that his Affinities were a reflection of the qualities of his true self. These thoughts continued to linger as he sunk deeper and deeper into the murky fog. Out of nowhere, his descent halted. He was no longer sinking¡ªsimply floating within what felt like an infinite corridor of mist and uncertainty. ¡°So this is where you were, you fucking wastrel.¡± A cold, husky voice reached out from the depths of the fog. Soren froze. ¡°George¡­¡± A slight tinge of bitterness left his mouth as he said the name. ¡°You can¡¯t even call me Dad anymore, you spineless bitch?¡± Soren stayed silent for a minute and smiled. ¡°When the fuck will you ever learn, Soren?¡± The foggy mist shifted and morphed into a silhouetted figure. His details were murky, but it was enough for Soren to know who it was. Soren slightly sunk deeper into the fog as he felt the sole of someone¡¯s shoe pressed on his stomach¡ªhis ¡®Dad¡¯s.¡¯ ¡°Get the fuck up, you damn coward. Go help your whore of a mother out. Ugh, do I have to deal with this forever? That damn bitch couldn¡¯t help spreading her legs.¡± The texture of his boot was as familiar to him as a summer¡¯s day. That intricate pattern of its sole¡ªit might as well have been seared into his memory, imprinted there by years of repetition. How many times has he been under that boot? Far too many to count. The grooves and ridges¡ªthey were exactly the same as back then. A creeping sense of fear was overwhelming him¡ªa sensation he hadn¡¯t felt in years, not since he moved in with his grandparents. And yet, he couldn¡¯t help but smile. Was it just a mask to appear strong? Or maybe he was truly happy to see his piece of shit dad again¡ªnostalgic for the past. He didn¡¯t know. But what he did know was that the weight of that boot¡ªhe could finally push against it now. ¡°Calling my mom a whore¡­ Aren¡¯t you just jealous she found another man more handsome than you? I mean, let¡¯s be real here¡ªif you compare my looks to yours¡­¡± ¡°What?!¡± The fog stirred with every decibel of his roar. Soren could feel his stomach churn, and not from being stomped-on this time, either. His breath hitched, and his chest tightened as if the endless fog was suffocating him. The anger, the helplessness¡­ The fear¡­ It was all returning to him little by little. That boot which had controlled his life was truly real. He could feel the anger behind its colossal pressure. And yet, it felt oddly satisfying to make that fucker mad. He couldn¡¯t help but want to do it more. ¡°I called you ugly, dumbass. Why do I have to explain it to you like you¡¯re a toddler? You are ugly, I am handsome. Therefore, it must mean the man my mom slept with was better looking than you. And probably smarter too now that I think about it¡­¡± ¡°You fucking waste of space! How dare you talk back to me?! Do you know how much I¡¯ve spent on you?! If it weren¡¯t for me, your whore of a mother would be out on the streets!¡± Soren yawned. He reached out for the boot pressing on his stomach and shoved it away. ¡°Spare me your bullshit, George. I don¡¯t have time for it. ¡°Guess what? Your ¡®son¡¯ made it to another world! Do you hear that? Another world! While you rot in prison like the complete waste of oxygen you are, I somehow gained enough freedom to travel to another dimension. Like seriously, what the fuck?! This world I''m in is called Yarian and it''s truly massive! Magic exists here too!¡± Truthfully, it wasn¡¯t like he chose to be transmigrated, and there were many mysteries behind it that he didn¡¯t fully understand yet. But none of these facts mattered¡ªhe just wanted to piss off George. He laughed hysterically as the fog shifted more and more. ¡°There¡¯s so many interesting locations in this world. Apparently, up in the far north is a colossal mountain named Tolarion that stretches into space! Creatures named Asterix live there¡ªgiant goats made from star light that are extremely rare! They can even teleport! ¡°And don¡¯t even get me started on the Runic Mountains! Dragons, George, dragons! They live there! Myrin, a friend I made recently who is also more handsome than you, said there was a massive one living atop a Vyakist Temple for all to see. His name is Nelxrayda, The Dreamfire Lord! ¡°And that¡¯s not all! To the far west, a desert made of black sand called The Endless Moor exists! It''s populated by giants called the Aretores and demonic shadow creatures!¡± By now, Soren could feel the fog slowly wrapping itself around him¡ªtrying to strangle him. Myrin had warned him about this¡ªthe more he indulged in satisfying his emotions, the faster he would drown. But at that moment, none of it mattered. Whether it was an illusion or not, this was his final chance to settle things with this asshole. ¡°So I hope you keep this in mind while you rot in prison, and maybe later in hell. The son you despise so much is truly living his best life, haha! I get to finally explore my desires¡ªthe thrills I¡¯ve always wanted to embark on! I must thank you. In a twisted way, maybe none of this would have happened if you weren¡¯t such a piece of shit.¡± He lifted both arms and aimed them at the colossal fog-made figure. ¡°Hopefully for the last time¡ªgo fuck yourself,¡± Soren spat, thrusting both middle fingers at George. He might have been sinking deeper and deeper into the grayish white fog, but his satisfaction on the other hand¡ªit might as well have reached the glistening Silver-Eyed Moon. Chapter 22: Who Am I?

Chapter 22: Who Am I?

Soren continued to sink deeper and deeper into The Heart¡¯s Shroud. He had finally done it. He had faced the one person that he could never face. A person that had clouded most of his life in misery. A person who had hurt him in more ways than he could count. A wide smile was plastered across his face as his body fell through the fog slowly¡ªstrands of which were strangling him for his foolish decision. In The Heart¡¯s Shroud, satisfaction was the enemy. Emotion was the enemy. Myrin had warned him about it¡ªthe more he indulged in the emotions shrouding his heart, the more heavy the fog would weigh. A person must look past these emotions¡ªthey must ignore the projections of their past and sift through the fog to find their true essence. It was kinda ironic. For Soren, looking past these experiences without at first confronting them was impossible. He had to indulge in his own satisfaction to even have the ability to walk past it in the first place¡ªhe needed closure. Well¡­ Not completely. He mostly just wanted to stick it to that fucker George. And now, he was feeling the weight of that satisfaction¡ªliterally. The fog was becoming heavier. I guess I made the challenge harder for myself¡­ He frowned. The goal was to reach the bottom of the fog without accumulating too much weight. The more you satisfy your emotions, the heavier the fog will become¡ªand the pressure will rise the deeper you sink into the Heart¡¯s Shroud. After that first incident with his father, he decided to take the rest of the projected experiences the shroud was going to show him as intended. He had already satisfied himself enough¡ªwhatever it was going to show him next didn¡¯t warrant a response. He would probably die if he tried something similar again, anyway. And the shroud didn¡¯t hold back its punches. First, he had to relive through his experiences with his first crush, then his second crush, then his third, fourth, fifth¡­ Soren frowned. Was I really this fucking horny back then? The memories continued to show themselves. His first chess tournament, which he won effortlessly and other experiences in his chess career began to showcase themselves to him one by one. The most notable one had to be his final tournament at the age of fifteen where he was crowned a Grandmaster. The memories from that one¡­ Truly pleased him. He still remembered it to this day¡ªhow only an hour after the tournament ended, he announced that he was quitting chess to the entire world. All his sponsors were so pissed at him¡ªone of them even lost hair because of it. That bastard deserved more, he thought. Nevertheless, he still decided to just look past it¡ªthere was no need to satisfy himself anymore. Other notable experiences also showed up, like the cheating scandal that happened when he was twelve or the time when his parents used some kind of loophole to take the money he made from his sponsorships. The events of his transmigration also showed up, such as his experiences with the Memory Void Spirit, or running away from that headless ogre (who he had still not chronicled with [Record] yet). Surprisingly, there were no experiences shown to him in regards to the whispers of the rift, which he attributed to maybe some form of interference due to Mr. Unknown¡¯s workings. Nevertheless, Soren was able to look past all of them. It took a fuck ton of effort, but he still managed to pull it off. The only experience that was difficult to get over other than his father¡¯s abuse had to be the death of his grandparents. He did accumulate a bit more weight from that one¡ªunable to fully look past it. The whole experience of falling through the fog felt like an eternity, but Soren had finally managed to reach the bottom. The pressure he was experiencing made him feel like he could get crushed at any moment if he stayed there for too long, so he hurried as fast as he could toward the distant fleeting light, sifting through the dense fog blocking his way. ¡°It¡¯s here¡­¡± He smiled as he glanced at the light which was only a few steps away from him. He held his breath in anticipation. This is it, he thought. His true self was only a few steps away. He needed to hurry before the pressure of the fog ended up crushing him. Soren stood before the orb of light, covered in a dense layer of fog. Gulping down what remained of his hesitation, he reached out toward it and swatted the fog away. His eyes squinted from the bright light, and after a bit of refocusing, his true self became apparent to him. He froze. The Records. Soren¡¯s eyes dilated in fear as he took a step back. A Cracked leather cover with gilded lines shifting across it, shimmering golden pages that flickered like a flame. A perfect replica of his Soul Weapon was reflected in his eyes¡ªit was staring back at him coldly, surrounded by a thin layer of fog. ¡°This is impossible¡­¡± His voice quivered. His Soul Weapon couldn¡¯t be his true self. That didn''t make sense¡­ Right? Myrin had clearly explained that while a Soul Weapon might reflect aspects of a person¡¯s true self, it could never actually embody it. For that would mean his identity was somehow directly tied to the existence of the Abstract Rune his soul had merged with¡­ An impossibility¡­ This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. Suddenly, Soren¡¯s eyes focused back onto The Records¡ªsomething on the ethereal golden pages caught his attention. A singular phrase which he read slowly. New Revelation Recorded: [Who Am I?] (Mystery) His lips curled into an eerie smile. A smile filled with madness, chaos, and fear¡ªone that he himself didn¡¯t know he could make. He stood there silently in the fog, illuminated by the golden light emitting from his True Self.
If not for the building pressure of the fog, Soren wouldn¡¯t have minded standing still before his Soul Wea¨C True Self in thought forever. He stared blankly at the Event Log message that had appeared on the pages of his ancient tome and commanded the information to appear before him. Who Am I? This is a question I am asking myself. Who am I? The answer is simple. I am The Records, and The Records is me. We are one in the same. For we exist in realities unfounded with one purpose in mind¡ªto wander. A Wandering Fairy. Soren scanned over the words again in shock. What he was reading was his own inner will speaking to him through the book. No, he couldn¡¯t even call it his own inner will. He was no longer even human from a logical standpoint¡ªhis true self wasn¡¯t human. It was tied intrinsically to whatever rune he was merged with. Even saying the word ¡°merged¡± didn¡¯t feel right to him, since there was nothing that it merged with in the first place. His mind wanted to scream, but he knew better than to jeopardize himself further in The Heart¡¯s Shroud. Calm down. Calm down, Soren. Everything will be fine. He said to himself reluctantly. The first thing he questioned was whether his past was even real. If his soul had never existed prior to obtaining The Records, what the hell was he? A Soul-less body or something? No, that clearly made no sense. He had really lived that life¡ªhis Heart¡¯s Shroud had clearly shown those experiences to him. Maybe his soul had been completely absorbed by the rune he merged with? He shook his head. He didn¡¯t know. Myrin had still not mentioned how Abstract Runes worked and their relationship to soul weapons. He did know that each Abstract Rune governed a distinct concept, and that merging with a rune meant obtaining a Soul Weapon in the domain of those concepts. But other than that, he was still completely ignorant on the subject. He thought of something else. What if The Records had always existed within him? And only after invoking the ritual did it activate? That could certainly be possible, yes. But the words displayed on the book still worried him. He was apparently The Records, and The Records was him. In his mind, this was nonsensical. How could he be a Soul Weapon? There was clearly a trick at play here. A part of him wanted to blame Unknown for this, but deep down, he knew this issue was deeper than that. He then thought of something and froze. Scribe-of-Worlds¡­ What the hell is up with that website? Why would it have a ritual that had to do with his Soul Weapon? It was as if the surrounding fog was an allegory to how little he understood of his own circumstances. He wanted to curse under his breath but caught himself¡ªadding more pressure to himself in the Shroud could be lethal. There was one thing he did know because of this reveal, however. And it had to do with how his abilities operated. Soren had always wondered how [Record] was able to function passively at times, recording things he never told it to record. And there were other times when his abilities translated recorded knowledge into an inherent skill for him to instantly pick up and learn¡ªVinuan was one such example. It now finally made sense. If he himself was The Records, why wouldn¡¯t the information recorded into it be in him as well? And the same was true for knowledge that apparently existed prior to even arriving on Yarian. What [Record] was truly useful for was information control. If he viewed The Records from a computing standpoint, his Soul Weapon acted as an external database that was mounted to his inner self. Essentially, [Record] allowed him to chronicle information in that database, without needing to memorize it himself. And then, whenever he needed to know something himself, that information was pulled and automatically ¡°taught¡± to him. The Records was in a way, a filter for information, and [Record] was the tool that connected it all together. It made sense. Judging by how large the Table of Contents portion was, Soren would eventually need to [Record] libraries worth of knowledge. There was no way his brain would be able to memorize all of it, even with his brain which had been conditioned to memorize countless chess puzzles and patterns. Suddenly, Soren noticed something from the corner of his eye. Past the thin fog surrounding his Inner Self, his eyes spotted something in the distance. He couldn¡¯t exactly tell what it was¡ªshades of purple with what looked to be something¡­ Moving? Soren gulped. He slowly inched toward it, walking past his own inner self. The fog was denser around this area for whatever reason. Sifting through it felt like walking straight into a sand dune that was trying its best to close around you. It took him a few more steps but he finally made it. And he instantly regretted his decision. What he found was a monstrously large crack in space itself¡ªshaded in purple. Countless obscure symbols were seeping out of it and falling in the pool of formless liquid just below the spatial crack. Soren immediately felt his ears breaking¡ªwhispers were entering his mind once again. Chapter 23: Soul Realm

Chapter 23: Soul Realm

By this point, Soren stopped hesitating. He immediately recognized what he was looking at¡ªthis was some kind of projection of the whispers of the rift. He cursed himself for being too curious and sprinted back toward his True Self. Unfortunately, it didn¡¯t look like the manifested projection of Rift¡¯s corruption was planning on letting him go. As he sprinted toward the ancient tome, Soren glanced back¡ªhe noticed countless strings of purple glowing symbols chasing after him like tentacles. To make matters worse, he lost control of his own anxiety which made the pressure of the fog even higher¡ªif before this, navigating the shroud was akin to walking underwater, it now felt like he was submerged in a thick layer of tar. It only took a few more steps¡ªhe finally reached The Records. With every fiber of his body he took hold of it and declared his intentions within his thoughts: Escape back to reality¡­ Myrin had told him that the moment he obtained his true self and thought about leaving, the process would happen effortlessly. Soren however, clearly underestimated his bad luck. Just before his projected body disappeared from The Heart¡¯s Shroud, a single strand of corrupted whispers of the rift managed to graze him. Almost instantly, madness began to fill his mind once more. He felt his veins popping as the ravings clawed at his mind. The Shattering.... The Fracturing.... Singularity.... He couldn¡¯t even scream. His body slowly faded from The Heart¡¯s Shroud as the fog stirred from the madness. Soren passed back through The Echo of Mind, which had now once again erupted into storms¡ªones even bigger than before. His projected body then escaped to The Veil of Perception which was now showing realities filled with void creatures and unknown oddities he couldn¡¯t even fathom with his mortal mind. And then, it happened. He returned to reality.
Myrin slowly imagined in his mind¡¯s eye the spellform for a healing magecraft. The leylines appeared within his Soul Realm. He aimed them toward Tina¡¯s arm as she sat on the cyan grass. She bit down a piece of cloth to stifle the pain as Myrin applied his magecraft to her wounds. The festering cut slowly began to close. Myrin glanced in Tyrel¡¯s direction, who was busy zipping past a few Memory Void Husks¡ªapplying swift slices across their necks effortlessly. But Myrin could tell that even he was clearly running out of steam. ¡°By the six divines, what in Yasini¡¯s demise is this¡­¡± He frowned as another pair of Memory Void Husks rushed at him and Tina from another direction. Drawing the spellform in his mind¡¯s eye, he projected it again onto his Soul Realm¡ªa sunflower bloomed in the air and shot forth blinding light against the Malevolent hexes, eviscerating them completely. Every time he did it, more guilt built within him. This was sacrilegious and against the teachings of the Maiden. But he knew it was the only way. Even if he tried to kill them while sparing their bodies to give them a proper burial later, their souls would never return to the Spirit Blossom Willow anyway. The corruption of The Nameless Mist¡ªit caused their entire existence to be forgotten, as if they were being concealed from even The Beyond itself. ¡°This is not good,¡± Tina said while rubbing her healing wound. ¡°Our thoughts are periodically being stolen from us¡ªthose Memory Void Spirits need to be dealt with as soon as possible!¡± She wasn¡¯t wrong. Everytime Myrin readied a magecraft spell, his thoughts would get disrupted and the spellform he would imagine would shatter. He thought that maybe his Soul Realm could sense their existence, but it was hopeless. His soul reading ability required him to look into a person¡¯s three layers of self¡ªspecifically The Echo of Mind. But that was impossible when The Nameless Mist shrouded the souls of the Malevolent Hexes. To make matters worse, it was also stealing their emotions and desires themselves. Tina wouldn¡¯t have gotten hurt if not for this. She was about to dodge an attack from a Memory Void Husk when the thought of dodging disappeared from her mind and she took the hit head on. This tale has been unlawfully lifted without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°When will that bastard wake up!?¡± She glanced back at Soren, who was still sitting on the log with his eyes closed. Myrin had used his Soul Weapon to draw a fictional bubble around him that gave him some level of protection, but even this wasn¡¯t enough. It was only a matter of time before it broke and if his attempt at unlocking a Soul Realm was interrupted, he would instantly die. Myrin glanced to the side and aimed his sunflower beams at a few other Memory Void Husks when suddenly, he felt his will to live cease. The Memory Void Spirit had siphoned his desire to continue living. He dropped to his knees, much to the shock of Tina. ¡°Get up! You can¡¯t drop now!¡± Myrin didn¡¯t reply. It was as if he couldn¡¯t even hear her. His senses had been stolen as well. ¡°Damn it!¡± She cursed her luck. Tyrel was still busy taking care of the Memory Void Husks, but he was getting besieged from all sides. It was dangerous¡ªif a Memory Void Spirit messed with his thoughts right now, he would most likely die. What do I do, what do I do¡­ Her Sacred Treasure had attacks that could completely purify Curses and Malevolent Hexes, but it didn¡¯t have a wide range. She needed to know where the Memory Void Spirits were to shoot them down. Suddenly, her own thoughts became sluggish. Even the will to search for them disappeared.. Hell no. A flare of motivation rose within her as she stood up to pull out a knife and threw it accurately toward the closest Memory Void Husk. She focused her Soul Realm once more and gave a boost to her feet¡ªif she couldn¡¯t aim at them directly, then the next best thing to do was to not aim at all. Unfortunately, her plan immediately failed. Just as she was about to jump up into the trees, she noticed something holding down her feet¡ªa Memory Void Husk. Somehow, it snuck close to her without her noticing. No, she definitely did notice it, but the Memory Void Spirit had stolen her memories of that event. ¡°Shit!¡± A second later, she immediately forgot her plan. That was stolen too now. She stared blankly as countless Memory Void Husks closed in on her¡ªunsure of what exactly she was supposed to do. Her mind has been hijacked, and no matter what she planned, the thoughts would immediately get stolen. ¡°Ten feet above and at your three o''clock.¡± She heard a solemn voice from behind her. Instantly, her mind used whatever resources were left and kicked into high gear. She ordered her Sacred Treasure to manifest itself. Her gauntlets began to melt. Liquid drops of silver slid down her hands, morphing into the shape of a large bow. The silver solidified, and countless decorations and engravings took shape, starting from the grip of the bow and running seamlessly across the upper and lower limbs. She swiftly got into position¡ªthe moment her hand reached out to pull the bow string, an ethereal white arrow manifested itself. She let go, watching the arrow pierce through the air before exploding 10 feet above her. Her thoughts, emotions and senses returned to her. Even her memories. She turned to face the source of the voice¡ªSoren was sitting on the log with his usual butterflies swimming in his eyes. Though, there seemed to be a problem. Blood was dripping from his eyes and ears and the look on his face was not entirely confident. ¡°Soren!¡± She yelled excitedly. The bastard truly took his time. Soren ignored her, ¡°Focus. Twenty feet in front of where Tyrel is another Memory Void Spirit. Another to your left at the nine o¡¯clock direction. Three more behind us¡­¡± He continued to list their locations. Tina didn¡¯t say anything and immediately began sniping each one. Although she didn¡¯t fully know where they were, she was pouring enough anima into her arrows to make them bigger¡ªthat way it was harder to miss. Soren glanced behind the trees. ¡°Another one is hiding there, to your left. He is behind that tree that has a weirdly shaped trunk.¡± Tina listened and immediately shot her arrow which pierced through the trees before hitting its target. ¡°How are you doing this?¡± Even with [Eyes of the Fairy], it was impossible to look that far. And even if he could, the Malevolent Hex was hiding behind countless sets of trees. His vision was obstructed. ¡°It¡¯s my Soul Realm,¡± he didn¡¯t wait for her reaction and immediately gave the coordinates for the next one. Seconds later Myrin awoke¡ªhis thoughts had returned to him. Frowning, he activated his Soul Realm and reached into his mind¡¯s eye to draw a new spellform, one that was more complex than all the previous ones. Casting the magecraft caused flowers to sprout across the road that quickly grew into vines which wrapped themselves around the remaining Memory Void Husks. Tyrel slowed down his pace and glanced over at them and nodded. It only took a few more minutes to finally clear all of them out. Tina placed her hands over her knees for support. ¡°By Her Silver Grace¡­ We did it.¡± She smiled and glanced back at Soren, ¡°I can¡¯t believe it! I¡¯m starting to like your abilities more and more! Did y¡ª¡± her voice was cut short. Soren had fallen over, unconscious. Chapter 24: Point Sylvia

Chapter 24: Point Sylvia

Soren woke up only a few hours later. The brief corruption he had experienced at the end of his exit from the Three Layers had definitely done their damage. Luckily, Myrin''s healing magecraft was able to solve the issue¡ªhe''d gotten used to it by now with his consistent overuse or [Eyes of the Fairy]. Though, that still didn''t really fix the psychological problems. He wondered if there was magecraft to help with that too (which he doubted). Aside from that, the group also took care of the rest of Malevolent Hexes and made a mass grave to bury them¡ªat least what remained of them anyway. After he awoke, he was bombarded by questions from all of them, which he happily answered, excluding what he discovered at the bottom of The Heart¡¯s Shroud. There was no need to reveal the oddity of what his True Self looked like, at least not yet. As sad as it was to admit, Soren still couldn¡¯t fully trust them. Although Tina and Myrin were extremely friendly to him (excluding the moments when Tina loses her cool), their relationship was still pretty shallow. He knew close to nothing about their personal lives aside from their names, and the only reason they allowed him to tag along in the first place was solely because it was beneficial for both sides. A lingering thought always remained in Soren: what if he arrived in this world but never obtained a Soul Weapon? Excluding the fact that he probably wouldn¡¯t have found Myrin and his group in the first place, Soren was of the belief that they would not have helped him if he wasn¡¯t special in some way. He knew however that he was being extremely harsh. Myrin¡¯s and Tina¡¯s actions so far had not been antagonistic at all. In fact, they were more than helpful¡ªmost of his requests were rarely denied. And their supposed Star Fate Guild being inclusive of other backgrounds also gave him some hope that they weren¡¯t simply playing an act on him. Still, habits die hard. It¡¯s not like he didn¡¯t want to trust them, he just hadn¡¯t really connected with them deeply yet to give them his full benefit of the doubt. He had already decided within The Heart¡¯s Shroud to let go of his past for good and to view this world as a new chapter in his life. Aside from Soren¡¯s deeply rooted trust issues, the announcement that he had unlocked his Soul Realm truly shocked them. It was particularly surprising that even Tyrel, who rarely showed emotion, appeared slightly bewildered¡ªa reaction that most definitely satisfied Soren. According to them, it was entirely unprecedented¡ªat least from what they know of the countless successful magi within the various kingdoms. Even the magical capital of Yarian, Luvinica as Myrin called it, had only a few rare cases of people manifesting their Soul Realm in their first try. And most of those instances weren¡¯t on purpose or they were nobles that had countless court magi helping them. So for Soren, who was already half-dying to do it with just a few days of training during a carriage trip was insanely miraculous. According to Myrin, all Soul Realms are born with an inherent ability. These inherent abilities usually have deep rooted meanings to one¡¯s true self. Myrin¡¯s for example allowed him to interact briefly with other people¡¯s soul layers (specifically the Echo of Mind), letting him parse thoughts and tell lies from truth. He wasn¡¯t too sure what Tyrel and Tina¡¯s situations were, but he did know they too had Soul Realms, and most likely an inherent ability of their own. When Soren first activated his Soul Realm during the encounter with the Malevolent Hex swarm, he had somehow used his inherent ability accidentally. It was only after discussing the matter with Myrin that he discovered a few things. Firstly, inherent abilities come pre-learned the moment one unlocks their Soul Realm. He remembered Myrin saying something similar in the past¡ªhow the moment a person manifests one, their ability to use it would be similar to moving another limb¡ªentirely subconscious. Secondly, his inherent Soul Realm ability¡­ It was tied to [Eyes of the Fairy]. When he first discovered this with Myrin, he wasn¡¯t entirely shocked. Afterall, it made sense for his Soul Realm to be deeply connected to his Soul Weapon, which is in actuality, his True Self¡ªwhatever that meant anyway. Myrin on the other hand was rightfully confused. A Soul Weapon¡¯s inner workings rely on a person¡¯s Runic Existence and the surrounding Soul Chain to function¡ªthe Abstract Runes of which only existed conceptually in The Beyond. A Soul Realm on the other hand needed a person to understand their True Self before blossoming. One was heavily influenced by the will of the world, while the other was influenced by the will of one¡¯s inner self respectively. For them to mesh in such a way was completely nonsensical and broke a bit of Myrin¡¯s understanding of the Mysterious World. This only made him more curious to know what Soren saw deep in the fog, but he disappointingly declined giving any details. Either way, Myrin was grateful his ability manifested in such a paradoxical way. They would have all died if that wasn¡¯t the case¡ªsomething which Myrin berated himself over. It was rare for Soren to see Myrin so depressed. Their fight against the Malevolent Hexes that time came extremely close to ending them. Without Soren¡¯s [Eyes of the Fairy] paired with newly manifested Soul Realm, they would have all been doomed to die without even knowing where their enemy was. The genuine version of this novel can be found on another site. Support the author by reading it there. Myrin had told him that a Magi¡¯s strength comes from their preparation. And this time, he was clearly not as prepared as he thought he was. The intel they had on the anomalies of the forest weren¡¯t exactly detailed¡ªtheir mission was to investigate after all¡­ During their brief camp stop, he even overheard Myrin speaking to Tina about possibly doing a study on how to pierce the veil of The Beyond using regular magecraft. He did not want a repeat of the day before to ever happen again. Moving past their regrets, Soren was actually relatively thrilled with what he obtained from his Soul Realm¡¯s inherent ability, even with the existential questions the experience left him with. Now that he could connect his Soul Realm to [Eyes of the Fairy], the spiritual zone he expands around him acts as a way to remotely view things from a distance¡ªan ability that Myrin said most Magi would fight each other to the death to have. He didn¡¯t fully believe his praise¡ªafter all, he¡¯d seen Myrin and the others do way more incredible things. Being able to shift his point of view while looking into the beyond seemed relatively simple in comparison. It did prove extremely helpful in their navigation however. Now that his vision could see further ahead, the threat of the illusionary barrier somewhat subsided. He was mapping more and more of the Feylith Forest at an insanely quick speed. And what was even more surprising was that aside from a few Spirit Beast encounters, they had still not encountered a single Malevolent Hex since that incident¡ªsomething which Myrin found highly suspicious. Sitting at the front of the carriage with Myrin, Soren glanced down at The Records which was displaying the updated map while chowing down on some Jerky. ¡°Point Sylvia is just around the corner I think,¡± he said with his mouth stuffed with food. Myrin chuckled. ¡°Indeed, I can already see the Beacon of Guidance from here.¡± In the meantime, Soren checked back on his status page which had slightly changed. A glint of pride masked his eyes as he read the page again. Status Name: Soren Andersen Race: Human Age: 22 Vocation: Scribe Magi Rank: Minor Apprentice (No Circles) Magi Affinities: ??? Soul Realm: The Hermit¡¯s Eye (Unique) (Nascent Stage) Soul Weapon: The Records (Unique) (Tier 1 - Tome) Skills: [Record] (Rank 1) - Chronicle the information around you. [Eyes of the Fairy] (Rank 1) - See the unseen. [The Faerie Court] (Rank 1) - Enter the realm of realms. Titles: [Traveler] - You have embarked on a journey across space and time. Echoes of the rift will no longer shatter your sanity. Rune Collection: ??? To say he wasn¡¯t shocked when he first saw the new sections was an understatement. It seemed that his Soul Weapon had recognized the qualitative changes and accounted for that new information. Though, his Affinities being marked as ??? confused him¡ªhe assumed he¡¯d be able to know them the moment he unlocked his Soul Realm. But according to Myrin, there¡¯s an entire other process to finding that out. According to Myrin, his Soul Realm being marked as nascent was completely accurate. Even though he could manifest it out into the world, the duration was insanely short¡ªroughly thirty seconds according to their tests. And that wasn¡¯t the only issue either. His anima within his Soul Realm was flowing evenly throughout the entire manifested zone, so overusing it could spell instant exhaustion. He had to learn how to create something Myrin called, ¡®Channels of Willpower¡¯ that led his anima to where it needed to go. In short, there was still so much left for him to figure out. The more he learned about how complicated magecraft really was, the more he began to question the ritual he conducted. How was he able to pull it off? And without a Soul Realm to facilitate the complete movement of his own anima at that. Something told him that he would probably never find an answer to all of this unless he revisited Earth, something he was reluctant to do. And most importantly¡­ His eyes shifted toward [The Faerie Court]¡¯s description on his status page. That skill was still a complete mystery to him, but he did know its origins. The Rift. The mention of it made him shudder as the memories poured back in. At the end of his Soul Realm manifestation test, he had been attacked by those whispers again. They clawed at his mind, desperate to be heard. But the moment he returned back to reality, the whispers stopped following him. Soren took this as confirmation that Unknown¡¯s obfuscation techniques had worked, but they limited the corruption of the rift to his Three Soul Layers. He sighed to himself. This was another problem to solve. If the whispers permeated his Three Soul Layers, then there was a possibility of them interacting with him directly through his Soul Realm. He would need to be extremely cautious while practicing this new ability. ¡°We¡¯ve arrived,¡± Myrin¡¯s voice cut through his reverie. Soren watched as the surrounding trees unfurled, creating more road for the carriage to move in, until finally, they reached a clearing. Soren froze, his mouth agape. Never in his life did he ever see such beautiful scenery. What reflected in his eyes was a large lake with a glistening blue reflection¡ªnothing like what he imagined a swamp to be. The lily pads were enormous, but aside from them, there were entire blooming lotuses that glowed in the dark as well, illuminating the scene even more. The biggest light source however had to be the Beacon of Guidance which was positioned directly at the center of the ¡®swamp.¡¯ Countless lily pads surrounded it from all sides. Just as he was about to get off the carriage and rush to explore the surroundings a bit, a small silhouette appeared beneath the blinding light of the pillar. A gentleman appeared¡ªone with elven ears. From what Soren could tell, his hair was jet-black and curly, swaying in the moonlight wind. He was wearing a silky, flowing robe that reflected the light of the Beacon of Guidance. The fabric shifted in a dreamlike manner¡ªSoren caught himself almost falling asleep just by glancing at it. Aside from that, he was holding onto a staff that was just as tall as he was¡ªthree black bells were attached to the top of it which chimed at the faintest breeze. Both he and Myrin looked at the stranger curiously, until Myrin realized something. ¡°A Saint¡­¡± He blurted out. Chapter 25: Denied Passage

Chapter 25: Denied Passage

Soren lifted his brows. A Saint? He remembered Myrin mentioning a Saintess named Sylia who they were supposed to meet in Yadria. ¡°Is this person connected to that Sylia we were supposed to meet?¡± Soren asked, but was met with silence. Myrin¡¯s expression was stone-cold. ¡°Did we reach Point Sylvia,¡± Tina¡¯s voice echoed out from within the carriage. Soren responded. ¡°Yes, but there¡¯s a stranger standing next to the Beacon of Guidance.¡± Suddenly, Soren heard Myrin mumbling something to himself. Just when he was about to ask him what¡¯s wrong, he stepped off the carriage and walked forward to the edge of the glistening lake. He glanced back at Soren, ¡°tell Tina to come greet the saint. You as well.¡± Soren frowned and did as he was told. When Tina heard what was going on, her expression also changed. Without waiting for them, Myrin propped himself on one knee and lowered his head. His right hand was placed over his chest. ¡°The blossoms bloom in your wake, Saint of Spirits, Luvin.¡± Tina swiftly mirrored his actions, and Soren followed suit clumsily. The man on the other side of the lake smiled faintly. Sneaking a peak, Soren saw him take a step off the lily pad and miraculously walk on the water in their direction, and without leaving a single ripple in his wake¡ªevery step made the bells attached to his staff chime in a soothing way. And yet, a hint of dread was still building within him. Soren was unsure why, but that jingle of the bell¡ªit scared him. The man took his time, leisurely walking toward them. He stopped only a few meters away. Soren couldn¡¯t help himself and looked up to see his face. He froze. The man was beautiful. Extremely beautiful. Even the fabrics lining his ethereal robe weren¡¯t as silky as his skin. Each of his elongated elven ears was pierced by flower embroidered earrings that glistened in the Silver-Eyed Moonlight. But more than just sight¡ªthe man smelled heavenly as well. It was a shocker to Soren; he had already gotten used to all the aromas of the forest, and there was plenty to fill his palette. And yet, none of those extravagant floral scents could even match what he was currently experiencing. His deep pink eyes seemed to glow in the dark, glancing directly at Soren, who just realized he had been caught staring. The man chuckled. ¡°Is there something stuck to my face?¡± Soren¡¯s heart spiked for a bit as he lowered his head again frantically. ¡°No¡­ Uh¡­ Sir.¡± He seriously wanted to slap himself. ¡°No worries, humans are like that sometimes,¡± he glanced at Myrin who was still bowing. ¡°My dearest Myrin¡­ What an unexpected visit. And you also brought two pets with you¡­ Ah, apologies. Three if we include the other one who¡¯d wandered elsewhere. ¡°No matter.¡± Pets? He wanted to lift his head again and question what he meant by that, but his instincts told him not to. ¡°Most holy Saint of Spirits. I pray to the Maiden high above that you forgive our transgressions. I come to you as a bearer of dialogue¡ªa diplomat, as promised by the most holy Saintess of Dreams, Sylia. My companions here have also arrived to help facilitate this task on behalf of the Holy Saintess.¡± ¡°I most certainly have heard of such plans, yes.¡± He said playfully. ¡°Then¡ª¡± ¡°But I am afraid I must deny your entry. Yadria at the moment is currently going through¡­ A brief crisis, bless the blossoms.¡± Myrin gulped a mouthful of saliva. ¡°Bless the blossoms¡­ Is this situation in regards to the Malevolent Hexes roaming these sacred woods?¡± The man named Luvin nodded. ¡°Indeed¡­ It is most regrettable. This is the fate of the unblessed after all¡­¡± Soren noticed his voice changing¡ªbecoming somewhat agitated, ¡°these lands have always been tainted by their presence, and yet those on the other side continued to provide them with aid¡­ And yet, this is how they repay the Maiden which has cradled them for more than a millenia¡ªspreading corrupted Anima to their once blessed neighbors.¡± Soren was shocked at what he was hearing. He glanced over at Tina¡ªher expression was intensely grim. He was somewhat surprised she hadn¡¯t already blown up in his face, but he quickly realized that even she, who he had viewed as a monster up to this point, was afraid of this man named Luvin. ¡°Holy Saint, if you may let me add, I believe me and my helpers may be able to provide assistance with that situation. Along the way, we¡¯ve been attacked by a large group of them. From our findings, they seem to be exhibiting a strange behavior in regards to their corruption¡ªthe Memory Void Spirits, as we have come to call them, tend to seek after the thoughts, emotions and senses of others. The Memory Void Husks however mostly want to pass their corruption to others to cleanse themselves. ¡°However, this is not the complete picture either. It seems some of these Malevolent Hexes have been corrupted at different types of levels¡ªsome more drastic than others. We believe there is a chance to save them if the corrupted person is quickly tended to!¡± What he was saying was true. After that incident, Myrin had spent countless hours mulling over it. Aside from his unpreparedness for the encounter against the Memory Void Spirits, he was also curious about something else. Why did the Memory Void Husks attack them? Their first Memory Void Husk encounter did not end in the same way. The poor guy they met back then was harmless¡ªall he did was try his best to deliver a message with whatever was left of his will. The author''s tale has been misappropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. At first they assumed that The Nameless Mist acted on its victims based on time¡ªthe longer you were exposed to the corruption, the more violent you became. But that couldn¡¯t be true. After all, from what Soren remembered, that first Memory Void Husk was way more infected than the ones they encountered later in the swarm. No, the real answer was willpower. Those with a stronger willpower were able to hold out against the mist¡¯s effects while those who were weak in spirit tended to immediately succumb to the effects with no way to cure them. The Nameless Mist, regardless of quantity or time, acted the same way regardless¡ªit all depended on the person who was corrupted to fight against it. But that also meant that they would need to quarantine the unblessed and separate them based on how strong their willpower was. Then, they would need to find a Phantasm with some form of power that¡¯s capable of expunging or cleansing the corrupted mist. It was a hard task, since The Nameless Mist seemed to operate above even The Beyond itself, but it most definitely wasn¡¯t impossible. The Saint, Luvin, looked at Myrin and frowned. ¡°Myrin, have you not learned anything? How dare you?¡± ¡°I¡ª¡± ¡°I do not want to hear anymore of your nonsense. The only cleansing I will allow is through eternal slumber under the guidance of the Maiden¡ªthat is the least they could offer to repent their sins.¡± The man sighed and looked up toward the surrounding treeline¡ªcountless fireflies and other bioluminescent insects flew around freely. ¡°This place, Point Sylvia. It holds a lot of importance in our faith, you know.¡± Myrin stayed silent. ¡°But out of compassion, We the Saints of High Court had planned on building a new settlement here for the unblessed. We argued and argued and argued, until We finally came to an agreement. But at the very least, I was happy with this outcome¡ªthe blessed could live peacefully and as close to the loving Maiden, while the unblessed and their heretical lot could find a home away from the Spirit Blossom Willow and the discomfort it surely causes them. It was supposed to be a win for everyone involved.¡± Yeah right, Soren thought while trying to not show himself rolling his eyes. Luvin continued. ¡°Of course, these plans had to be postponed. With the arrival of this¡­ Nameless Mist from who knows where which spread amongst the unblessed populations of Yadria.¡± Soren heard his voice soothing again, ¡°It truly pains me. These unblessed may have not chosen their fate, but no one does¡­ ¡°Myrin, what you speak of is an insult to the true believers of the Maiden. You would risk the corruption spreading just to cure those who have already been condemned for an irredeemable sin? Is it because you relate to them that much? ¡°If the unblessed truly cared about Yadria, they too would agree with my assessment. And yet¡­ ¡°Many of them refuse and try to hide their corruption until it¡¯s too late. One such person did just that and only after he had his entire Runic Existence corrupted and his flesh twisted into a monstrous Malevolent Hex did he reveal himself¡ªcorrupting several innocent children with him. How truly selfish.¡± He stared coldly at Myrin. ¡°So do you dare to peddle your nonsense after you heard all of this?¡± Myrin stayed silent. ¡°Hmph. Just this once, I will forgive your transgression of bringing humans to our sacred land. Take them back with you from wherever you had all come from and never return. Your exile had been decreed by the Saintess of Blossoms roughly 15 years ago¡ªit had yet to expire. ¡°And now, you are using Her mercy to return back to Yadria with these greedy humans brought with you. How do you even have the shame to do that?¡± Myrin opened his mouth briefly, but no words came out. There was no way he could argue his case against a Saint. Suddenly, a faint breeze of light brushed past them. Its colors shifted, Soren had no way to describe it other than it reminded him of the Northern Lights back on Earth. Though, what he was currently witnessing had to be a hundred times more majestic. The ethereal light echoed a beautiful womanly voice. ¡°Luvin, Myrin and his companions have come to our lands with my approval. Do you seek to deny me my rights as a Saintess? You are but a mere Custodian.¡± The voice seemed to enter their minds directly¡ªit was completely telepathic in nature. Luvin frowned. ¡°Sylia, do you seek to disgrace the Maiden¡¯s name? Myrin is one thing, but you want to allow humans to enter our sacred city as well? Have you gone mad?¡± The voice echoed out immediately in response. ¡°The humans from the Aellora kingdom have visited our sacred city in the past, this is nothing new. ¡°Know your place, Luvin. Is Saintess Lesticia allowing you to act this way?¡± Luvin stayed silent for a few seconds and sighed. ¡°Fine. However, I will not be escorting them personally. They have done surprisingly well against the barrier so far¡ªI am sure they could handle the rest of the way there on their own.¡± The man didn¡¯t wait for a response. In a graceful motion, he slammed his staff into the water, creating countless ripples around it. The 3 bells rung their ethereal tune. Out of nowhere, a large black wolf appeared from the distance, leaping right behind Luvin and going into a sitting posture. Soren couldn¡¯t help but look up and admire what was happening (while hiding his fear of the monster sitting behind the Saint). Luvin gracefully sat sideways on the wolf as it lifted itself back up. He stared at Myrin and the others. ¡°Farewell, Myrin, the first exile of Zinrie. May our paths never cross again.¡± In only a few seconds, the wolf leaped away into the woods, disappearing instantly with Luvin on its back. The ethereal womanly voice ignored him and spoke to them once more. ¡°I offer my deepest apologies for the disruptions he may have caused.¡± Myrin lowered his head further, ¡°Holy Saintess, there is no need for such words. My companions and I are ever grateful for your intervention, bless the blossoms.¡± ¡°Very well,¡± she replied, her tone soft yet regal. ¡°Let us put this matter behind us. I can sense that your journey has been a perilous one so far. From this moment on, I shall illuminate the path to our sacred city. Simply follow, and Yadria will appear to you by the time the sun rises once again.¡± Myrin lifted his head slightly, looking at the ethereal light. ¡°We are deeply honored by your mercy and guidance. May the Maiden bless you eternally.¡± Soren watched in awe as the ethereal light morphed into a string that extended past Point Sylvia, passing through the mangled foliage of the Feylith Forest. The trio sat on one knee for a few more breaths¡ªonly after Myrin noted that the Saintess¡¯ voice was gone did he stand up again. The others followed suit. He glanced back at them and smiled. ¡°How convenient. My Flower Divination came true after all¡± Tina sighed. ¡°I think this encounter shaved a few years off my lifespan.¡± Soren couldn¡¯t agree more. Even though Luvin looked more beautiful than even the most delicate flower, hidden behind that facade were deadly thorns. Every word he spoke had a layer of venom laced beneath it. What a freak, he thought. Chapter 26: Camping Next to a Lake

Chapter 26: Camping Next to a Lake

Thirty minutes after their encounter, Tyrel finally showed back up, only to find them all extremely exhausted. He was busy scouting out another area which they believed had traces of The Nameless Mist. Seeing his confusion, they all explained what had happened and their encounter with the Saint of Spirits, Luvin. As much as he was shocked, they however were much more surprised by the news he brought back for them. Apparently, he had found a group of stranded Unblessed who had not been converted into Malevolent Hexes. They had told him that they were fleeing from Yadria due to the ongoing issues there, but got lost in the process. Tyrel had brought them with him to their encampment. After they had set up camp, Tina went off to hunt for prey¡ªthe food they had stored wasn¡¯t enough to feed the group of unblessed, especially the children with them who looked malnourished. Tyrel followed her to scour for more survivors. Myrin sat on a log, distant from the group of unblessed who huddled around a blanket they offered them. Soren sat next to him as he tended to the fire they started. The lake would have been perfect for fishing but the fish weren¡¯t active at this time of night. ¡°Praise the blossoms. That could have ended much differently¡­¡± Soren stayed silent for a moment, then asked, ¡°what exactly is a Saint? Are they any different from Saintesses?¡± ¡°Much different,¡± he replied joyfully. ¡°Saints are what we call Custodians of Faith. It is important to note that their title of Saint is not exactly accurate to the rest of the continent. The Church of Nature and the Brilliant World Church for example also have chronicled Saints in their canon, but they are rarely even seen¡ªmost Aelloran folk view them like mythical beings. The same could be said about Empyreans but that¡¯s a topic for another day. ¡°The point is, Yadria¡¯s Saints have much less authority than what foreigners imply they have. The true powerhouses of Yadria are the three Saintesses¡ªspecifically The Saintess of Dreams, Saintess of Spirits, and the Saintess of Blossoms. Each Saintess can appoint three Saints beneath them¡ªa total of nine. We call them the Custodians of Faith for that reason.¡± So that guy was just the servant of a Saintess? And yet he was this powerful. Soren¡¯s perspective on this world had shifted significantly. Although he knew there were probably really powerful individuals in the Mysterious World, encountering one was different from simply hearing about from a distance. ¡°Speaking of the Saintess, we should have asked her about who could have been spreading this corruption¡­¡± Soren took a bite out of a kabab of meat. ¡°Isn¡¯t that Luvin guy pretty suspicious?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Myrin lifted his brows. ¡°It''s simple,¡± Soren explained. ¡°If I was prejudiced against the unblessed and I see them being treated better and better¡ªeven obtaining enough leverage in Yadrian society to demand their own separate settlements, I would want to change that. ¡°And what better way to do that than make them an even bigger enemy to the other side of society?¡± Soren gulped down another piece of meat. Myrin stayed silent. What Soren was saying most definitely had merit. The Nameless Mist couldn¡¯t have come from nowhere¡ªit had to have been planned out by someone. The best evidence for that would be the Malevolent Hexes themselves. Just as The Records had chronicled about them, Malevolent Hexes were unnatural creations that were made through taboo magecraft and or mysteries. The first of their kind must have been purposefully created, and with The Nameless Mist as their base, their existence spread across the poorer areas of Yadria¡ªthe places that usually have the highest density of populations in cities. Soren had seen this pattern before back on Earth¡ªat least heard about it anyway. Poorer areas get filled with diseases that spread to richer areas. And rather than fixing the root of the issue¡ªpoverty, the blame gets shifted to the people who lived through that experience first. The more he thought about it, the more it sickened him. And here I was condemning Earth, but Yarian is no better¡­ If what Mr. Unknown was saying was true, there had to be other dimensions beyond Yarian as well, and the chances of them being just as shitty were now looking pretty high. You can¡¯t escape human nature, Soren. He said to himself. ¡°You may be right,¡± Myrin¡¯s voice broke him from his reverie. ¡°But even so, do not mention this discussion to anyone once we reach closer to Yadria. The Court of Nightshade watches these woods silently¡­¡± ¡°The Court of Nightshade?¡± He nodded, ¡°Indeed. They are a branch of holy phantasms that are skilled in espionage and secrecy. They roam these forests without leaving a single leaf¡¯s worth of their presence. I personally have never even seen them before, but I know they are always around, watching.¡± Soren gulped. ¡°I will be careful then¡­¡± The conversation continued for a bit on the politics of Yadria and things Soren should beware of¡ªelse he offends someone there. After their discussion with Luvin, it became evident to him that Yadria held a strong distaste for foreigners. And humans in general were viewed as lesser beings. Something about their anima being different¡ªaccording to Myrin. However, what Soren really wanted to know most about was what Luvin¡¯s connection to Myrin was. Soren wasn¡¯t stupid¡ªhe could tell there was definitely more to Myrin¡¯s past than meets the eye. Especially since Luvin mentioned his exile from Yadria. And even before they met Luvin, Myrin had constantly tried to change or maneuver subjects regarding Yadria. ¡°The truth is, I am also Unblessed,¡± Myrin smiled as he watched Soren¡¯s face contort in shock. ¡°You read my thoughts again¡­¡± ¡°Haha¡­ There was no point in trying to hide it.¡± Soren stayed silent for a moment. ¡°Does¡­ Tina and the others know?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± There was a hint of melancholy in his voice. Soren stayed silent for a few seconds before responding. ¡°I thought you said the Unblessed were prosecuted because of their lack of anima. If you are also unblessed, doesn¡¯t that disprove this assessment? Why do they still believe in such a fallacy if it''s obviously being disproved?¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°As you have seen from that first Memory Void Husk we met, anima is most definitely not the main aspect that one looks for when it comes to being unblessed. This was a theory a Yadrian scholar proposed a millenia ago that became the mainstream belief. ¡°As to why they still believe in it even though it¡¯s untrue¡­ I can¡¯t say for sure. The unblessed have become somewhat of a way of life in Yadria for more than a thousand years now. Political factions opposing their treatment have risen in the past, but the issue almost always lands in the middle. And it''s fairly obvious why. This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Think about it, if the unblessed were being shunned by the holy Maiden randomly, would this not create massive amounts of doubt in Her gospel? This is why so many scholars have tried to create their hypotheses for why the Unblessed are rejected from Yasini¡¯s Paradise¡ªwithout it, fear would most likely spread. People will grow suspicious of themselves and others¡ªthey wouldn¡¯t be able to know whether some day they too would be rejected from Her heavenly grace. Eventually, one of these hypotheses stuck¡ªit was much easier to believe that those who were rejected simply lacked anima than to simply attribute it to the whims of the goddess.¡± He took a bite from his kabab. ¡°To be honest, I think at this point, the issue isn¡¯t even about the unblessed themselves. It''s more so an economic problem. Yadria depends heavily on the cheap labor of the unblessed. ¡°There are many jobs in Yadria that no one but the Unblessed are allowed to do¡ªlike sanitation or construction work. But most often then not, high nobles tend to hire them for maintaining their properties.¡± Soren wasn¡¯t expecting Yadria to be this grim. He had assumed it to be some sort of elven paradise¡ªhe needed to stop comparing this world to the fantasy novels he had read. Sensing the mood, Myrin changed the subject and began to explain what it was like to enter Yasini¡¯s Paradise. Apparently, the books he had read on the subject described it to be extremely beautiful, filled with gardens, floating cities and other fantastical environments. A whole separate world that existed within one¡¯s own dreams. ¡°How fascinating¡­¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but imagine what it was like, but he knew that it was probably impossible for him to enter¡ªonly Yadrians obtained the privilege to do so. ¡°So then if it isn¡¯t a matter of having too little anima, what exactly causes some Yadrians to be unable to enter Yasini¡¯s Paradise?¡± Myrin thought for a second then shrugged. ¡°We don¡¯t know, haha. Only the Maiden knows best.¡± Soren frowned. ¡°And yet you still pray to Her?¡± Myrin stayed silent. Soren resisted the urge to slap himself again, I really need to control what I say¡­ ¡°I apologize¡ªthat was an insensitive question.¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°No worries. It¡¯s understandable for you to think this way. However, I am still grateful to the Maiden for everything She offers our people. She is the reason why the glory of Yadria still shines today.¡± ¡°Say,¡± Soren decided to change the subject. ¡°How did you do that with the trees? When you move them to form a road. I always wondered about that.¡± ¡°Oh that,¡± he grinned. ¡°It¡¯s fairly simple. I annoyed them until they did what I wanted.¡± ¡°.....¡± ¡°Haha¡­¡± He manifested his Soul Weapon. ¡°The trees of the Feylith Forest¡ªthey are all one living organism. They move, rotate and even morph their shapes in some cases. Yadria itself is partially made of these trees morphed into the shape of homes for people to live in.¡± Soren was shocked. ¡°Is this related to the Spirit Blossom Willow?¡± He nodded. ¡°Indeed. You can think of the Spirit Blossom Willow as the core and every other tree in this forest a part of its roots. This wasn¡¯t always the case, by the way. These trees were once very normal, until they were absorbed by the Spirit Blossom Willow¡ªbecoming what we know them today.¡± Soren thought for a moment before asking. ¡°What even is the Spirit Blossom Willow?¡± ¡°Good question,¡± he chuckled. ¡°Roughly 1367 years ago, an incident occurred. We Yadrians call it the Great Yasini Demise. We don¡¯t exactly know what happened, but on that day, the Feylith Forest ruptured, and a strange energy unlike the anima we are used to erupted from the earth. On that day, it is said that a sapling absorbed this strange energy and within just a single night, it grew into a mighty tree that dwarfed the rest of the forest. Its roots stretched to the ends of the Feylith Forest, attaching itself to every form of flora and fauna in its wake.¡± ¡°A strange energy¡­¡± Soren mumbled. Myrin nodded. ¡°Indeed. We call the source of this energy The Dragon Vein. It''s unknown what it exactly is¡ªcountless Magi venture into the forest every year to uncover its secrets, all of them ending in failure. I don¡¯t believe even the Saintesses know what it really is. ¡°Regardless of its origin, this energy spreads through the roots of the Spirit Blossom Willow and gives another layer of life to the forest.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Soren thought for a moment. ¡°But why do you call it The Great Yasini Demise?¡± ¡°That is because the Maiden entered The Spirit Blossom Willow and hasn¡¯t been seen since. Even Yasini¡¯s Paradise became a once in a year event, unlike the previous age¡­ The goddess used to roam the world and even give guidance to us mortals¡ªnot anymore. Though, I am not exactly sure how accurate this is¡ªmost believe these stories to be nothing but myth. ¡°And it was also around this time that the term Unblessed became prevalent. It was completely unprecedented for a person to get rejected from Yasini¡¯s Paradise back then¡ªall Yadrians enjoyed this custom, regardless of their anima.¡± Soren continued eating his food while pondering over his words. After their meal, Myrin instructed Soren on training his Soul Realm. He would periodically expand it around them until it dissipated on its own due to exhaustion. His record so far has been 47 seconds, much better than it was two days ago. However, this was only when the Soul Realm was activated on its own. When paired with [Eyes of the Fairy], he was only able to last up to 25 to 30 seconds depending on what his focus was supposed to be on. Whenever he used these two together, he felt his point of view shifting, as if he was looking at everything at the same time in a small radius around himself. It was extremely mentally exhausting. And even worse, it hindered his ability to focus as everything in the Beyond assaulted his vision all in the same moment. Still, he was marginally improving over time. The Hermit¡¯s Eye as it was called, would prove to be extremely useful once his ability to control the shape of his Soul Realm manifested. The one thing he still wasn¡¯t exactly sure of, however, was whether unlocking his Soul Realm had any effect on his Soul Chain¡¯s stability. According to Myrin, he was able to tell that his soul chain was unstable due to how tumultuous his Three Layers were. When he observed them the first time he met Soren, he described it as if there were multiple storms brewing within his Echo of Mind at the same time. And even worse, these storms seemed to clash against each other, as if his thoughts were contradicting themselves. It was a complete shocker to Soren when he heard this¡ªhis mind only echoed the thoughts he himself imagined. Even when he visited his Echo of Mind himself, the only echoes were his own. So to hear about these shadowy thoughts creeping into his Echo of Mind scared him. Myrin wasn¡¯t exactly sure why Soren couldn¡¯t sense them himself. Soren did have a theory however. He suspected that it might have to do with the fact that his own Soul Weapon was also his true self. Because of this oddity, his own thoughts and the thoughts of his Soul Weapon meshed together in a way that it made it impossible for him to differentiate them. However, this was nothing but speculation. Soren sighed¡ªthis was another mystery to add to the pile. What they did know however was that this was usually the effect of Soul Chain instability¡ªit hinted at the fact that his own Soul Weapon might be trying to usurp control over him. After all, Soul Weapons tend to not have their own thoughts¡ªthat only occurs when the Soul Weapon tries to gain autonomy over its own host. Usually, combatting this would mean trying to stabilize his own Soul Chain and possibly rushing to form the next node in the chain to reach the next tier, but this option wasn¡¯t available to him. Myrin theorized that instead of going for the usual solution, fighting against these rogue thoughts from his own Soul Weapon directly by finding his True Self and gaining full control over his Three Layers might be able to delay his Soul Weapon¡¯s takeover of himself. And he wasn¡¯t exactly wrong with his hypothesis. According to his own observations and Myrin¡¯s, his Echo of Mind was much more calm. And the contradictory thoughts had ceased¡ªat least to a certain degree. He was sure that it had gained him at least another few days to a week to live. Not the best, but not the worst either. Soren smiled, if my soul weapon took over my body, would anything even change? Me and The Records are the same, after all¡­ The thought made him chuckle. Here he was sitting next to an elf eating a kebab of meat while fanning a campfire, and he was thinking about what would happen if ¡®he¡¯ took over ¡®himself¡¯. Chapter 27: Soul Frame

Chapter 27: Soul Frame

A few hours had passed since their conversation had began¡ªTyrel and Tina had just came back from their brief expeditions. Him and Myrin had spent the time conversing on magecraft and the different types of affinities that existed in the world. Apparently, the number was completely unknown. Some Magi scholars quoted it to be around 10,000 different types of affinities, some of which are combinations of smaller affinities. But even this number was seen as nothing but a guess¡ªaffinities were entirely dependent on the person¡¯s true self and whatever manifested from it might not always conform to knowledge that was already known. In Magi Society, there were countless rare cases in which a new Magus discovered that their affinities were unknown to the libraries they scoured. This meant that they were left with no choice but to research their affinity and create new magecrafts that function with it with nothing to guide them¡ªthey had to create new spellforms completely from scratch. These spellforms, however, were almost always unstable. And the only way to test them was through usage. Because of this, magi that were born with unknown affinities usually never made it far in their careers¡ªwith no proper magecraft to use, they would dedicate their lives to paving new magecraft spellforms that would probably never be touched until a new magus with the same affinity as them was born in the future to carry on their legacy. Spellform crafting, as it was called, was something not many magi ever delved into. Most resorted to simply reusing older magecraft from known grimoires found in countless magical libraries across the continent. Some of these grimoires were left in underground catacombs and labyrinths¡ªrelics of a past age. And even then, simply using well-documented magecraft was still a hard endeavor. The more complex the spellform, the harder it was cast, even with years of practice. According to Myrin, Magi were ranked through the complexity of the spellforms they were able to cast. Every year, hundreds of Magi from across the continent journeyed to the Capital of Magic, Luvinica, to obtain their Magus Certificates. Countless organizations, most of which were secretive, appear there to find new recruits¡ªthough for the most part, they usually only selected individuals they were already familiar with. A magi¡¯s spellforms were created in layers, which were called circles. The more complex a spellform was, the more circles it held. And so, the ranks were recorded based on the number of circles a Magi could manifest. Myrin for example was a 3rd Circle Magus. That was the highest number of layers he could manifest with his spellforms. Though, he did say he was planning on retesting this year in hopes of making it to next the layer. Although a magecraft¡¯s spellform was dependent on its circles to manifest correctly, other factors also applied, like the quality of the Soul Realm as well as its affinities. And even then, a person¡¯s mental strength was also important. If a magus couldn¡¯t focus hard enough to draw the spellforms in his mind¡¯s eye and project them into their Soul Realm, the magecraft would fail. Even if one held enough willpower to draw more complex magecraft, if their Soul Realm¡¯s zone was too small or its shape wasn¡¯t correct, the casted magecraft would probably still fail. And it was important for magi to expand their repertoire of magecraft because each circle added to the spellform increased the potency of the magecraft exponentially. Soren however wasn¡¯t very concerned with all of this. He knew that magecraft as a topic was something he could only realistically pursue after he had learned to utilize his Soul Realm more effectively. After witnessing Tina and Tyrel fighting against the horde of Memory Void Husks, a certain question always popped up. How exactly did they manage to fight so acrobatically? Tina was even able to subdue the headless ogre with a single kick. These were superhuman actions. According to Myrin, physical enhancement magecraft did exist. However, Soren had never seen them using their Soul Realms to cast such magecraft. Soren approached Tina who was stirring a large pot of stew for the Unblessed refugees. ¡°Could I help you with anything?¡± She looked at him with a somewhat annoyed expression. ¡°Yes, don¡¯t get in my way.¡± ¡°.....¡± He smiled while rubbing his hair awkwardly. ¡°Cough, I wanted to ask you something. Why do your melee attacks do so much more damage than say¡ªMyrin? Are you using some kind of physical enhancement magecraft? The same with Tyrel.¡± She looked at him for a second and smirked. ¡°Why? Do you think being a magus is too boring?¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°I¡¯m just curious.¡± She lifted the spoon she was using to stir the pot with. ¡°Use your [Eyes of the Fairy] to look at this spoon.¡± Puzzled, Soren did as she asked. He observed the spoon through the Beyond. It was very strange. As he squinted closer, he could observe a weird looking field surrounding the spoon. Suddenly, Tina jerked her hand in a swish-like motion¡ªa gust of air formed that blew Soren¡¯s hair in all directions. Correcting his hair, Soren looked up at Tina in shock¡ªher face was full of glee. ¡°Unlike Magi, this is the power us Sentinels utilize¡ªSoul Frames. Reading on Amazon or a pirate site? This novel is from Royal Road. Support the author by reading it there. ¡°Soul Realms, as you have learned, manifest as a large bubble around a person¡¯s form. However, have you not wondered where exactly this Soul Realm was whenever you weren¡¯t using it?¡± Soren thought about her question but came to no answer. ¡°The answer is inside you¡ªliterally. Soul Realms shrink to the size of your palm and stay within your body¡ªusually next to or around the heart. You never feel this motion just as how a person doesn¡¯t feel his organs working. Whenever your mind calls for the Soul Realm, it expands into what you have gotten used to seeing by now.¡± Soren crossed his arms. ¡°But what does this have to do with this Soul Frame you are mentioning now¡­¡± She grinned. ¡°A Soul Frame is the extension of that idea. Rather than expanding the Soul Realm in a zone around you to project magecraft, Sentinels like me and Tyrel envelope our Soul Realms around our bodies. ¡°A Soul Frame is usually referred to as the Fourth Layer. As you know, The Heart¡¯s Shroud, The Echo of Mind, and the Veil of Perception represent our emotions, thoughts and senses respectively. But what about our bodily experiences, such as sickness, anatomy, and instincts? Those represent our existence as well, don¡¯t they?¡± Soren nodded. ¡°A Soul Frame merges the concepts of the Three Layers you know to theorize the existence of this Fourth Layer. And rather than projecting spellforms to cast magecraft, we project our raw anima to enact our will with our bodies. ¡°That is the way of a Sentinel.¡± Soren thought for a second before asking. ¡°So then does this mean I should also try forming a Soul Frame?¡± She shrugged. ¡°Forming a Soul Frame means losing out on the ability to cast magecraft entirely. You won¡¯t be able to expand your Soul Realm around you anymore. This is what we call the Divergent Paths of Mystery. On one hand, keeping your Soul Realm as it is means becoming a Magus. On the other hand, reforging your Soul Realm into a Soul Frame means becoming a Sentinel. Once you make the decision, there is no turning back. ¡°I think you should wait until you meet our mistress before making a decision. This choice is also heavily dependent on what your affinities are and we can¡¯t really test those out for you yet.¡± Soren smiled. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± Before he could say anything else, she shoved a bowl of stew into his chest, almost blowing the wind out of it. ¡°Now stop bothering me and go pass out the stew to the others!¡±
Soren spent the rest of the time at the camp helping out with the Unblessed as Tina had instructed him to do. Though, instructed was too lenient of a word. It was more like he was forced to. From one chore to the next, she refused to let him rest. Myrin had found the whole ordeal extremely funny, but that only lasted for 10 minutes until Tina started ordering him around as well. Soren could swear he even saw the headless ogre give him a look of pity¡ªTina was treating Spirit Beasts better than them. While passing out the food, Soren spent the time pondering over what he had learned. The knowledge on Soul Frames was exciting, but he also knew the risk of trying to form one was immense. Especially since the decision was permanent. Weighing the benefits against the cons, A Soul Frame had the advantage of being much less mentally exhausting. Just as how an inactive Soul Realm was subconsciously existing within a Magi, a Sentinel¡¯s Soul Frame was always subconsciously active and surrounding one¡¯s body at all times. In a way, it became just another organ or body part to a Sentinel. Simply thinking about strengthening their punches made them stronger. The same with their feet when they wanted to jump really high or run really fast¡ªall of it depended on the concentration of anima they utilized in those moments of burst. It was all instinctual. Magi on the other hand needed to not only keep track of their enemies in battle, but they also needed enough head-space to imagine the spellforms in their mind¡¯s eye and project them onto their Soul Realm. And as Soren had seen, even Myrin who had tons of experience could fail to cast a magecraft if his mind was tampered with. To win as a magi, preparation was key. And concentration was the door with which one passes or fails. If your concentration wasn¡¯t strong enough, even with ten powerful affinities at your disposal, none of it would matter. However, what Sentinels lose out on the most has to be versatility. With a Soul Realm, you are free to project any spellform of your choosing and cast hundreds of thousands of variations of magecraft if they match your affinity. An affinity for flames for example, could be used in a number of ways with the right magecraft¡ªflame pillars, fireballs, flame arrows. As for Sentinels? The most they could probably do was manifest flames around their melee attacks or coat their weapons in their affinity. Regardless of these comparisons, Soren was much more interested in another question. What effect would a Soul Frame have on his inherent ability? The Hermit¡¯s Eye. That was what his Soul Realm was called. Its ability to synergize with [Eyes of the Fairy] allowed him to view the beyond outside his own point of view. It was a strange ability, but Myrin had told him its usefulness will be immense once he learns about his affinities and starts casting magecraft on his own. But if he had a Soul Frame, this ability would most likely be lost. Since a Soul Frame inhibits the form of one¡¯s own body, his inherent ability would instantly be rendered useless¡ªwhat¡¯s the point of having the ability to see outside your own point of view when its range will only be a few inches around your body? He wondered if the inherent ability would change once the person formed a Soul Frame. Maybe another ability would manifest that could take advantage of its new form. Soren sighed¡ªhe knew Tina wouldn¡¯t answer anything until he finished his chores. Though, it wasn¡¯t entirely a bad thing. During that time, he had met and talked with a lot of the unblessed. At first, they were hesitant to converse with him¡ªmany of them have never even seen a human before. None of that mattered though when said humans were feeding you food and providing you shelter. ¡°Soren, will I really be able to meet my brother again?¡± The timid yet soft voice of a little girl drifted from behind him. Soren looked down to find a blond haired child with freckles all over her nose¡ªher left ear had a bloody bruise over it that had only just now started to heal. Soren smiled meekly, ¡°Of course. I am sure Tyrel will find him.¡± ¡°Tyrel? The shorty with a mean expression?¡± ¡°Y-yes¡­¡± He tried to hide his laugh. Truthfully, Soren wasn¡¯t sure what Myrin and the others were going to do with the unblessed. Taking them back to Yadria was probably impossible¡ªthey had escaped there for a reason. Myrin did tell him that the Aelloran authorities did take refugees from Yadria, but they were still not done with their mission and turning back the other way now would certainly be a bad idea since that would mean they would fail the mission the royal family had assigned to them. And then there was the issue of this little girl, Liluth. She had apparently been attacked by a few Memory Void Husks when she and her mother were running away in the forest¡ªin the process, she got separated from her older brother. Tyrel had searched everywhere but never found them. It was looking fairly hopeless. Chapter 28: Living Hexes

Chapter 28: Living Hexes

The clock had hit past midnight when they finally left Point Sylvia. In the end, they decided to split up from Tyrel who chose to lead the group of unblessed the next day out of the forest. According to the route Soren had charted, the journey should take them to the Aelloran border in just a few days. That route had also been cleared of any Spirit Beasts and Malevolent Hexes so the chance of them meeting anything too dangerous was relatively small. And because the Illusionary Barrier only thwarted the advance of people trying to reach Yadria, they had no reason to worry about getting lost or off track. Due to this decision, Soren discovered something else about The Records. The pages could be ripped off from the book and they would continue to display the information on them. He got the idea to test this because Tyrel needed a map of the route they had gone through. To test it, he first ripped a small piece from the edge of a page and when that didn¡¯t have any consequences, he moved to ripping out an entire map. He was afraid that the information recorded would be lost, but that turned out not to be the case. Any information ripped from a page would simply regenerate the moment he commanded his Soul Weapon to do so, leaving two copies of the same information¡ªone still in his book, the other on the ripped sheet of paper. Unfortunately, however, the information on the ripped piece of the map was not dynamic¡ªit didn¡¯t magically change depending on the location they were in¡ªit simply turned into regular ink and paper. Still, this was an extremely useful ability to have for sharing information on the fly. In those few hours he spent with the unblessed, Soren still managed to get attached to them, especially that little girl with freckles named Liluth. He wasn¡¯t sure why, but she reminded him of his own childhood. No, he did know why. That girl was extremely smart. Soren was fairly sure she knew that he was lying about Tyrel finding her brother soon. From a young age, Soren had trained his poker face to not reflect his emotions, first to thwart his own father from finding reasons to pick on him, and then he used the skill throughout his professional career as a chess player. That girl Liluth¡ªshe had the same skill as him. The only time her stone-cold face broke was when she ate the bowl of porridge Tina had offered to them. He saw as her face melted into both relief and hope. After talking with her for a bit, he found out that she and her brother used to work under a noble as servants¡ªtheir mother was a prostitute. When they were younger, they were excessively beaten whenever they cried. At some point, she didn¡¯t know when, but the tears stopped coming out. After they parted ways, a part of his excitement for Yadria died. The more he heard about the place, the shittier it sounded. Still, the descriptions Myrin had told him of the sacred city made it sound so fantastical-looking. Living all his life in some messed up block in Brooklyn, New York made it hard for him to resist the urge to want to visit such a place. Though he did get the chance to visit other places briefly for chess tournaments, most of that time was spent focusing on the matches rather than admiring the views. During the trip toward Yadria, the carriage was mostly silent. The stories they heard about the Malevolent Hexes and the spread of The Nameless Mist were all extremely horrifying. To a person without a Soul Realm to create a boundary, simply inhaling the mist was deadly. In a way, Soren was lucky that he met a Memory Void Spirit rather than a Husk when he first transmigrated to Yarian. If it had been the other kind, he would have most likely become a Malevolent Hex himself. It did get him to wonder though¡ªif a Phantasm was corrupted by the mist, would they be any different from the Malevolent Hexes he¡¯s been used to seeing by now? He hoped he wouldn''t need to find out the answer to that question. There was one thing he did like about the trip so far¡ªthe fact that he could sleep. Ever since they started their journey, Soren was forced to stay awake during the times they moved to make sure the Illusionary Barrier didn¡¯t change and throw them off course. And because they were rushing toward their destination due to the issue with his lifespan, he had to stay awake for sixteen to eighteen hours a day just to keep track of the map¡ªmost of which was also spent mentally exhausting himself with overusing [Eyes of the Fairy] and practicing his Soul Realm¡¯s expansion rate. Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Now however, that was no longer necessary. An ethereal glowing string led them toward the correct path, as promised by the Saintess of Dreams, Sylia. Soren now could trade shifts with Myrin to move the carriage. Much to his surprise, the trees continued to morph themselves out of the way even when Myrin was asleep. He wondered if this was just the effect of his Soul Weapon or whether the trees simply feared his music that much. He wanted to believe in the latter¡ªit was a much funnier conclusion. Soren wasn¡¯t sure what the time was, but he could slightly see the glow from the sun past the sea of crimson tree leaves. The dawn had finally reached them. Yadria had finally reached them. The first thing Soren saw was a colossal tree trunk that soared high into the sky. Yesterday, it had seemed distant¡ªa vague silhouette against the clouds. But now it dominated the horizon, as if someone had picked up New York City¡¯s Central Park and lifted it on its side, stretching it into the heavens. And far greater than its mighty stem were the branches that unfolded the higher you tilted your neck¡ªeach carrying millions of golden leaves that radiated in energy. If he had been drunk, the chances of him mistaking the golden crown of the tree for a second sun weren¡¯t zero. Even its countless twigs were probably the size of buildings. Soren awoke Myrin from his slumber. ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± His flutist elf companion rubbed his eyes as he glanced up past the treeline, only for his gaze to meet an even taller tree. He smiled, ¡°Just as it was 15 years ago¡ªhow mysterious. Praise the blossoms.¡± As they continued down the unfolding road, a large clearing appeared within the forest. A mile or so ahead was a large stone-brick wall that extended across the clearing¡ªthe trees had merged with it, as if their branches were purposefully reinforcing the structure. The elven city rose with the enchanted forest trees. The towers that peered up from beyond the walls were a blend of old Victorian Gothic elegance and the natural magic of the forest¡¯s flora and fauna. Some of the roofs were covered in green or cyan grass and flowers. Others had mushrooms budding from underneath their windows. As their carriage drew closer to the wall, Soren noticed the air thickening. It was as if there was a strange energy permeating the air that shifted colors. Myrin explained that it was the Illusionary Barrier which had gotten stronger as they closed in on the sacred city. Suddenly, the earth shook around them. What the hell? An Earthquake?! He looked around in panic. Myrin ordered the headless ogre to stop in its tracks. Roughly thirty something meters ahead, Soren noticed the Earth jutting upward in a strange manner¡ªmounds of dirt and cyan grass rose up from the ground, growing rapidly. They grew larger until Soren and Myrin noticed the shape of a body forming from the liquid earth. Soren immediately understood what they were¡ªat least superficially: Golems. They stood on their four limbs like gorillas eyeing their prey. Their limbs themselves were made of disjointed stones that were attached together, similar to the Stonehenge monuments back on Earth. Cyan moss and grass was scattered all over their bodies¡ªone of them even had a large, colorful mushroom cap above its head like a hat. Their emerald green eyes radiated energy¡ªthey looked fairly peaceful to Soren but he knew they were dangerous. ¡°Living Hexes,¡± Myrin explained. ¡°These are the defenders of the city. The barrier can recognize our intentions¡ªthe moment we show signs of aggression, thousands of these golems will continue to form until we are defeated.¡± Soren gulped. ¡°Can you defeat them?¡± He frowned. ¡°That¡¯s the wrong question to ask. You should be asking me if we can survive against them.¡± ¡°.....¡± ¡°I''m going to order the headless ogre to continue its march. We have permission from the Holy Saintess to enter the city. Just ignore their gazes and don¡¯t even think about aggression of any kind. They should allow us to pass¡ªat least I think so anyway.¡± Soren turned to the window behind him and informed Tina of what was happening. Myrin ordered the headless ogre to continue moving the carriage. It only took a minute or so until their carriage was literally right between the two Living Hexes. From afar, they looked huge, but it was a different story once they got up close. The golems were colossal¡ªeach one could probably peek over the walls of Yadria. Saying their carriage was dwarfed by their size was an understatement¡ªa single boulder that composed their towering limbs was double the size of it. Soren felt his chest tighten as they strolled past the two stone monstrosities. He could feel time slow down as sweat rolled down his cheek. Just one kick from it could probably turn their bodies and the carriage into dust. Luckily, Myrin¡¯s hypothesis was correct. The two Living Hexes simply watched as their carriage moved closer to the wall. In the distance a large gate appeared before them. Myrin exhaled in relief and looked over at Soren who was trying not to piss himself. He smiled, ¡°Welcome to the sacred city, Yadria!¡± Chapter 29: Yadria

Chapter 29: Yadria

It had been a few hours since they entered Yadria¡ªthe outskirts of it anyway. Entering the city felt like entering a whole other world. And Soren was already experienced with such things. If you brought back Victorian era gothic architecture and mixed it with old nordic hill dwellings with a tad bit of icelandic turf houses added to the mix, you¡¯d get Yadria. Every building looked to have once stood on its own, then sometime in the future, merged with the surrounding flora. Some buildings had entire trees jutting out from their sides, forming an entire other dimension to the structure. Others had massive mushrooms jutting out from the roofs. The lamp posts that lined the streets were all made of tiny glowing trees. A blend of nature and stone masonry. Most ridiculous of all, however, had to be the Moving Homes. These were apparently Living Hexes similar to the golems they saw outside the city walls. Except, these had another purpose¡ªtransporting entire homes across the city. Large trunks would grow from underneath the small platform holding up the house¡ªmoving the building smoothly across the city. Entire sections were apparently allocated for Moving Homes to park in. When he asked Myrin why this was even necessary, he simply pointed up at the colossal tree at the center of the city. The Spirit Blossom Willow. This was the colossal tree he had spotted prior to entering the city. Understanding its sheer scale and size was pretty impossible. It took Soren his entire neck snapped all the way back just to see its branches. And even then, the crown of leaves probably went above the clouds themselves. It was insanely huge. And Yadria being placed around its circumference meant the city needed to be large as well. In Yadrian society, all noble houses were expected to perform a pilgrimage around the sacred Spirit Blossom Willow each year on the 180th day of Vyak. While Yasini¡¯s Paradise occurs roughly 3 months earlier, this pilgrimage was unlike the first. It was meant to show devotion to not just The Flower Maiden, but Yadria itself. Of course, this tradition was later adopted by lower ranking high class citizens who wished to appear more refined or classy within their circles. After a while however, many quickly realized that this sacred duty could be completed in a much shorter time if they simply used living hexes for transport. Add a few hundred years, and this model was refined until finally, Moving Homes became a thing. Why go out and travel when your house itself could do the pilgrimage for you? Soren chuckled to himself. He knew a few people back on Earth that would have probably loved this invention. Ah, who am I kidding? Really, the only person he knew that would truly be this lazy was Julie. I wonder what she¡¯s been up to lately¡­ Probably still wasting all her money on gacha games¡­ He shook his head and walked toward the balcony. The city skyline came into view. ¡°Did you get a goodnight¡¯s sleep?¡± A voice interrupted his thoughts¡ªMyrin. The blonde elf had just come out of the shower with his hair ruffled. He smiled at Soren while brushing his hair with a towel. ¡°I honestly did not expect this level of hospitality. I brought with me countless ancient tomes from our mistress to trade for Imra, but it seems none of that is needed.¡± They were currently staying on the outskirts of the city in a normal looking hotel. Even so, the view from the balcony was already breath-taking enough. ¡°Is Tina still sleeping?¡± He asked. Myrin nodded. ¡°Don¡¯t expect her to wake up any time soon. Other than the holy Mother of Silver, she worships two other things: food and sleep. Especially since the beds here are incredibly comfy.¡± Suddenly, the building started to shake. Soren tilted his neck to the balcony¡ªhe noticed the view changing. It was as if their building had lifted into the air. He then remembered something. The hotel did look fairly normal to him, but Myrin had told him its functionality was nothing but normal. It too was a Moving Home, and a fairly large one at that. He guessed there were people out there who couldn¡¯t afford purchasing one of these Living Hexes, and so, renting them was the next best option. The author''s content has been appropriated; report any instances of this story on Amazon. Myrin looked at him and chuckled. ¡°The hotel will be stopping at three Moving Home Slots before it gets to our stop. We have the entire evening to ourselves until then.¡± Soren glanced out the balcony and smiled. He watched as the hotel¡¯s tree-like limbs maneuvered over buildings like a child avoiding stepping over his own playhouse. The streets were bustling with life. A few streets across, he could see another Moving Home going the opposite direction as them. It was much smaller than the hotel¡ªonly one balcony was available on the second floor. Right beneath where that Moving Home had stepped was a food market. He could see a bunch of people mixed together, all heading in different directions with groceries in their hands. ¡°What even are living hexes?¡± Soren asked. ¡°How are they different from Malevolent Hexes?¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°Try using [Eyes of the Fairy] on that Moving Home. Soren did exactly that. Seeing the unseen, he focused his eyes on it and activated [Record]. Event Log New Entry Recorded: [Living Hexes] (Magecraft) He ordered the pages to shift. Living Hexes (Magecraft) An unnaturally born creation made through magecraft. Using a soul contract with a spirit, an inanimate object could be brought to life through possession of its material form. Contracts require extensive knowledge into demonology and a magus affinity in relation to binds and vows. Soren lifted his brows. ¡°Spirits? Demonology?¡± He¡¯d never heard of such things prior to this. He opened the magecraft section in The Records and saw a new section appear titled demonology. But no information about the subject appeared when he ordered his book to show him what it meant. I guess The Records recognizes that magecraft exists, but the types of magecraft themselves are something I will need to discover on my own. ¡°Demonology¡­¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°Stay away from that field entirely.¡± Soren titled his neck. ¡°Why? It seems interesting.¡± ¡°Demonology doesn¡¯t just depend on knowledge on magecraft, but also language. Unless you are an expert in etymology, this field is highly dangerous. ¡°The reason why is simple: contracts are soul bound. The moment you sign a deal with a fae or demonic spirit, the clauses on that contract will be forced upon your very being. Refusing your end of the deal would end horribly. ¡°And what¡¯s worse is that demonology is not always enforced using Scripted Runic. Other more ancient languages like Yasini are needed, especially for fae-folk.¡± Soren thought for a moment. ¡°Are you saying it''s dangerous because words could be misconstrued?¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± he nodded. What he was saying definitely didn¡¯t sound too out of the ordinary. Even back on Earth, contract laws were immensely important¡ªsigning something without reading the fine print was foolish and could cost you immensely. Even he had fallen victim to such contracts¡ªhis parents found a loophole in the fine print to siphon the money he obtained from his chess federation sponsorships for themselves. Now apply that same danger with contracts but to supernatural beings that could bind your entire existence to said contract. A chill ran down his spine. ¡°I''ll keep your advice in mind,¡± he replied to Myrin. ¡°But what even are spirits?¡± He remembered the Memory Void Spirit¡ªhe wondered if it was a being similar to that. ¡°Spirits are existences that have no physical body. Unlike most beings like us who have both a physical body and a metaphysical one that exists within The Beyond called a Runic Existence, Spirits only have the latter. ¡°They roam freely within The Beyond. There are two types of spirits. Demonic and Fae. Interestingly enough, fae-folk spirits can be found almost everywhere in Yadria. They are attracted to the Spirit Blossom Willow. ¡°As for demonic spirits¡­ You usually find them across the realm. They are much more concentrated in The Eclipse Moor as well as deep within labyrinths from the old Avalon Empire.¡± ¡°I see,¡± Soren looked out of the balcony. He glanced up at the Spirit Blossom Willow¡ªits golden leaves had shifted colors to that of emerald green. According to Myrin, the tree would continue to shift in hue as the hours passed. Yadrians used it to tell time. Soren realized that the Moving Home Hotel was now in a different area than before. Underneath him, the buildings looked more dilapidated. ¡°That¡¯s the Sulkwood District,¡± Myrin responded to his thoughts. ¡°Its where the unblessed live.¡± Soren frowned as he glanced out from the balcony. Street children in rags roaming the markets barefoot with what looked to be something on their ears. Myrin explained that those tags were clipped on them to mark their sins. He finally understood why all the unblessed had maimed ears. From the corner of his eye, Soren noticed a ruined, wooden cart carrying what looked to be a pile of things wrapped in white cloth. Countless men were surrounding the cart and dragging it off somewhere. There were a few women weeping next to it as well. Frowning, Soren focused on the cart and activated [Eyes of the Fairy]. For whatever reason, he felt like he needed to know what it was carrying¡ªthough he already had a creeping suspicion. As his eyes focused and pierced through the white sheet covering, his hypothesis was confirmed. The cart was carrying bodies. And not just any bodies¡ªunblessed who had presumably died due to The Nameless Mist. Though most of them did not have the features he used to see in Memory Void Husks. These ones only had dried out skin¡ªit seemed that they had probably died before they had fully transformed into Malevolent Hexes. But what shocked him the most was what he found within that pile of corpses. A body of a child that looked to be no older than fourteen years with blonde hair and freckles across his cheeks and nose. Liluth¡¯s brother. He somewhat wanted to believe it was another child victim, but the description he got from her matched what he was seeing completely. The information entering his eyes from the Beyond couldn''t be wrong. Soren stood there motionlessly as the Moving Home Hotel went past the group of grieving mothers surrounding the cart. Judging by where they were heading from, he realized that these were probably bodies they found outside of Yadria that they brought back for burial. Another evening in Yadria¡¯s slums passed uneventfully. Chapter 30: Diplomatic Meeting

Chapter 30: Diplomatic Meeting

Dusk reached the sacred city. Orange light was shown through the brilliant leaves of the Spirit Blossom Willow, like sunrays piercing through heavy clouds. Soren looked through the balcony¡ªhe could see in the distance a large castle that looked to be attached to the cliff-side of the tree¡¯s trunk. It was incredibly serene. It loomed over him with fine edges and decorations spread evenly across its walls and towers¡ªall of them intertwined finely with the holy wood of the colossal tree. He questioned how they could have even built such a thing¡ªit was completely hanging from the side of the tree. The bottom of the castle was visible. He could see what looks to be some sort of magical platform levitating up and down¡ªpresumably to carry people up toward it. Tina walked by and threw her weight on the railing of the balcony. ¡°Sigh¡­ I can¡¯t believe how imposing Floramere Keep is¡­¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°It is indeed beautiful. I have never seen anything like it. But surely Aellora also has amazing architecture too, no?¡± ¡°Celestine Citadel does come a bit close in sheer scale. But its main attraction is the Sub-terrarian Labyrinthos.¡± Soren remembered what he¡¯d heard from Myrin. ¡°The Avalon Empire?¡± She nodded. ¡°The relics found deep within still amaze scholars to this day. Entire wars against the neighboring Staterra Kingdom were fought over them. ¡°The bloodshed hasn¡¯t ended even now. Though, they mostly just employ Phantasms as spies to enter Celestine and steal relics from under the noses of the Holy Raven¡¯s Watch.¡± Soren had no time to ponder over her words. The Moving Home started to lower itself into an open slot¡ªthey had reached their stop. ¡°Do you think the disguises will work?¡± He glanced over at Tina, who simply lowered her head against the railing in boredom. ¡°It should. Our mistress worked on them.¡± While Myrin was supposed to go and meet with Sylia to negotiate the deal, Soren and Tina were going to go to the market to purchase other essentials as well as items their mistress had ordered them to obtain. Soren had still not been told the exact details of this deal they were supposed to negotiate. All he knew was that Myrin needed to obtain approval to obtain a large quantity of the Spirit Blossom Willow¡¯s wood. This was something the Church of Nature needed for whatever reason. As for what Myrin¡¯s group as well as Sylia got in return for facilitating and accepting this deal? He had no idea. Myrin approached the balcony. ¡°I''ll be heading out to Floramere Keep.¡± He had changed out of his usual white robe and mage hat into what looked to be a dark blue oriental silk robe with an orange sash belt wrapped around his stomach. Floral embroideries went down his collar. His legs were covered by what looked to be silk trousers and normal straw sandals. Soren nodded at him. ¡°Be careful of that Luvin guy, and whoever else shares his views.¡± Myrin chuckled and headed for the door of their room. ¡°I am sure the Maiden will protect me. Praise the blossoms.¡± ¡°Praise the blossoms,¡± Soren repeated.
After taking a quick Spirit Beast carriage, Myrin finally made it to the base of Floramere Keep. It was a large square area that looked polished in marble. At the center, Royal Guards from the Court of Tulips watched over the levitating stone platforms going up and down. An air of elegance and lethality covered their shining spears. ¡°Praise the blossoms,¡± Myrin said while lowering his head. ¡°Praise the blossoms,¡± the guard replied. ¡°Identification? And do you have an appointment?¡± Myrin pulled out a wooden badge with a symbol of a flower surrounded by stars. ¡°I have come as a diplomat for Aellora on behalf of the holy Saintess.¡± He handed the badge to the guard who seemed a bit annoyed with the mention of Aellora. ¡°You may pass.¡± It took a bit of waiting until the platform lowered itself again. Stepping onto it, Myrin noticed glowing emerald green lines coursing through the marble. Spellforms, he thought. It had been 15 years since the last time he had stepped onto this platform. Back then, he was nothing but a child¡ªhe had never noticed any of the details. Even his home, Floramere Keep, which he had memorized every hallway of, looked more imposing now that he had the time to appreciate its intricacies. ¡°I wonder how they are all doing,¡± he caught himself smiling for a second then remembered his task. Reaching the castle, Myrin was once again interrogated by the guards who demanded his identification. He happily obliged. ¡°Exile? Why in the Maiden¡¯s name would you be here?! Have you decided to bring shame to our family again?!¡± The cold voice pierced through his heart¡ªhe recognized it. ¡°Aunt Lestia¡­¡± ¡°Do not call me aunt! How dare you address me!¡± It was a woman with blonde hair that looked to be in her fifties. Wrinkles covered her aged skin, and yet, a sliver of beauty remained¡ªa reminder of better times. ¡°I apologize, High Lady Lestia.¡± He corrected himself. The woman was surrounded by maids who were flustered by the encounter¡ªthough, a few enjoyed the drama. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. ¡°How dare you enter this sacred place once again! Are you trying to waste Saintess Finnea¡¯s mercy?!¡± Myrin lowered his head. ¡°I have received permission from the holy Saintess Sylia to be here¡ªI apologize for any confusion.¡± She glanced up and down at him furiously. Her suspicions were only slightly lowered when she noticed the wooden badge in his hand. ¡°Hmph, carry on then. Try not to bring further shame upon our family name.¡± Myrin stayed silent as she walked away with her maids. He smiled slightly. ¡°Just as feisty as I remembered.¡± The Zinrie family. It was the Royal Family of Yadria¡ªtheir role was mostly ceremonial, but they did take care of the governance of the city¡ªintroducing policy, planning out new infrastructure and whatever goes into running a city. In the social hierarchy, they were placed directly below the Saints. Even so, they all lived a life of luxury and status¡ªMyrin too. At least up until his exile from Yadria. He was only five years old at the time¡ªchildren of that age were finally introduced into participating in the annual Yasini¡¯s Paradise. And for noble children, it was an even bigger deal. It symbolized the first coming of age ceremony. It also marked their introduction to high society within the dreamscape. Myrin? He never even entered the dreamscape. He slept through it. That was the moment his parents discovered he was unblessed. For the Zinrie family which has served the Maiden for more than a millennium¡ªthis was a stain on their legacy. How could their heir be shunned by the Goddess? They couldn¡¯t let anyone find out about this. After countless arguments over his fate, some suggesting life-long imprisonment to even execution, High Lady Lestia pleaded with the Saintess of Blossoms for leniency. In the end, the decision came down to exile or death. As a five year old, he couldn¡¯t make the decision through his tears. Lestia simply agreed on his behalf, and with only a handful of his belongings, he was thrown into a nearby spatial gate¡ªkicked out of the Feylith Forest entirely. Myrin smiled as he walked down the hall¡ªall of it brought back memories he didn¡¯t think he could still remember. A large, imposing gate appeared before him. Intricate floral designs were sculpted across its marble finish. Two royal guards stood on each side of it. The Chamber of Dreams. One of the most holy places within Floramere Keep, alongside the Chamber of Spirits and the Chamber of Blossoms. Where the three Saintesses resided. ¡°The first exile of Zinrie comes to greet the holy Saintess of Dreams.¡± The two guards looked at each other in puzzlement¡ªa serene, womanly voice entered their minds. ¡°Let him in.¡± They frantically rushed to open the gate. Myrin took a deep breath and stepped inside. It was a large hall with a red carpet going all the way down the center. At the other end of the room, a stairway that leads up to a platform could be seen. The platform itself was veiled by a curtain¡ªa silhouette of a woman sitting on the floor on her knees. Even though Myrin couldn¡¯t see her figure, he could tell she was attractive. A shimmering veil of energy lingered in the air that held the aroma of honeysuckle. He realized he was staring into space and lowered himself frantically. ¡°I apologize.¡± His apology was returned with silence. I need to watch myself, he thought. All Saintesses were beautiful¡ªand to a terrifying degree. Some even describe Them to be inhuman¡ªin the general sense that it was impossible for mortals to even fathom Their innate beauty. Anyone that looked at Them was said to instantly be enchanted and turned into a slave. It was for this reason that She hid behind a curtain and even then, a simple silhouette was still enough to enamour most mortals. Their anima was just that potent. ¡°Myrin of Zinrie. The first exile¡­ Come closer.¡± Myrin gulped as he approached the platform and kneeled. ¡°As promised, I have arrived to facilitate the dialogue between the High Court of Dreams and Aellora¡¯s Aetolus family. They would like to purchase 50 cords of Spirit Blossom Wood and 10 carts worth of Spirit Saint Ash.¡± ¡°Why do they demand these holy materials?¡± Myrin lowered his head. ¡°A ritual. To the Greenfather.¡± Silence permeated the air¡ªit was suffocating. Fortunately, She replied. ¡°May I ask what they offer in return?¡± ¡°In collaboration with Staterra¡¯s officials, a new section of the Avalon Ruins was discovered. As you may know, the Maiden, praise the blossoms, had some relations to that ancient history. Relics from the Second Age of Fantasia will most likely be found there. They found evidence to support such a claim. ¡°They would like to offer you and whoever you champion to enter the Labyrinthos. Any relics you find in relation to our ancestors would be returned to its rightful place.¡± The room fell to silence once again. Myrin mulled over his words, trying to make sure he didn¡¯t say anything offensive. ¡°Very well. But we will only offer half of their demands. The other half would be sent after the expedition.¡± Myrin thought for a second and nodded. They didn¡¯t tell me to haggle. ¡°Very well. I must thank you for your graciousness, most holy Saintess. I will make sure to deliver the news.¡± ¡°And another thing¡­¡± ¡°Y-yes¡­¡± ¡°If that area within the Avalon Ruins is discovered to be a sacred temple of the Maiden, they must give the land to us.¡± The land itself?... Myrin was stumped¡ªthis was a problem. The underground labyrinthos of the old Avalon Empire were magically enchanted to twist and change periodically. A location that once was in the East of the dungeon could be in the West by the next day. If they have a portion of the dungeon to Yadria, would it be the static location or will the borders need to be redrawn each time the dungeon changes? He didn''t know. ¡°T-that is something I cannot decide on behalf of Aellora. I will need to forward this demand to the Church of Nature and the only Royal family for further inquiry.¡± ¡°Very well,¡± Her voice radiated out into the chamber. Just as he was about to stand up and leave, her enchanting voice echoed out once more. ¡°What do you think of Yadria, Myrin of Zinrie?¡± The question made him freeze. What does She mean by that? ¡°I-I¡­ I think it is still as sacred as I used to remember it.¡± ¡°Do you wish to return?¡± He was stumped. He stood silently for a straight minute. His lips curled up into a smile. ¡°Your mercy is truly boundless. But I must regretfully reject your gracious offer. ¡°I.. I finally have a place to call home.¡± Silence permeated the air. Myrin held his breath¡ªhe was unsure if he had just offended the holy Saintess. ¡°That is indeed regrettable. You may not be blessed by the Maiden¡¯s infinite grace, but your moral character and talent is above the rest. Should you change your mind, you are always welcome to enter the Court of Roses.¡± His eyes flashed with surprise. She thinks of me this highly?! He lowered his head embarrassingly. ¡°I-I am honored by your words¡­¡± Chapter 31: Wards & Hexes

Chapter 31: Wards & Hexes

Tina and Soren each wore a veil as they roamed Saint Krilo Street. Being this close to Floramere Keep, the holy district was known for housing a lot of the clergy as well as many affluent nobles¡ªcompletely the opposite of the slums he saw in the Sulkwood District. The only unblessed he could see were those following behind noble men and women as they went about their shopping. Aside from that, Soren also listened closely to the conversations around him. Yadrians spoke in two main languages, Yasini and Yadrian. High nobles tended to speak mainly in Yasini, but the majority of citizens stuck to normal Yadrian-speak. It took a bit of time, but with the help of his abilities, he was somewhat able to learn the languages¡ªnot as fluently as Vinuan, however. With his Soul Weapon in hand, he followed after Tina. One of the magitech devices they brought with them produced illusions for disguises¡ªthey both currently had pointy ears, but just in case, a cloak over their heads was also necessary. Their attire was hand selected silk that was tailor-made to blend in with the nobles of this district. ¡°Are you sure no one will figure us out?¡± He followed closely behind Tina who was walking much faster than him, making it hard to catch his breath. ¡°Yes, it should. If it doesn¡¯t, I¡¯ll make sure to kill Myrin. He¡¯s the one that chose this embarrassing attire after all.¡± He glanced down at her dress. It was silk white with strands exposing her shoulders. Her back was also half-way open to see. It flowed down to her feet and was a bit see-through. Though, not enough to see anything but a faint silhouette. Embroideries ran down the slit exposing her chest. The whole thing looked like a blend between a nightgown and a royal dress. Though, she did wear a cloak above it that shielded her from the chill of the wind¡ªat least to a certain degree. She sped down the street with Soren in tow. ¡°That bastard Myrin had to choose a dress t-this scandalous¡­ Let¡¯s find a store to enter¡ªI am getting cold.¡± Yadrians believed in the freedom of the wind¡ªthat spirits that roam the unfounded moved across it. Because of this, all their clothing reflected that belief. Their fabrics were extremely thin¡ªSoren could feel the wind chilling his bones. ¡°Why do you hate the dress so much? It looks good on you.¡± She gave him a cold look. ¡°Are you trying to flirt with me?¡± Soren rubbed his neck, ¡°No, no¡ªI was just complimenting you.¡± Who would date a crazy witch like you? He doubted he would survive a single day under the same roof as her. She turned back ahead and moved even faster, almost leaving Soren in the dust. ¡°I know what you are doing¡ªyou want to curry favor with me. If it''s about letting you into Star Fate Guild, we can discuss that once we leave this godforsaken city. ¡°And also, stop lying. This dress is ugly on me.¡± Busted. He wasn¡¯t lying about it being good on her though. He smiled. ¡°Eh, it''s not like you can read my thoughts like Myrin. I do mean it this time.¡± ¡°Hmph.¡± She stopped before a wooden sign titled, ¡°Wards & Hexes.¡± After a brief look through the window, she smiled and opened the door to the store¡ªthe bell rang, signaling new customers. Soren followed after her. ¡°Welcome,¡± the store owner said in a husky voice. It was an elderly man barely holding onto his cane. He looked half-dead to Soren. ¡°I am looking for conduit stones. 50 of them.¡± The old man answered her. ¡°What kind? And how big?¡± ¡°Those with a star anima affinity. And each one needs to be perfectly cut into cubes of 2 feet.¡± ¡°Got it. Anything else,¡± the old man asked. ¡°Yes, fairy wing dust¡ª300 milligrams of it. And some Spirit Chalk¡ª10 packs of it should be enough.¡± ¡°Understood. That will be 10,000 Imra.¡± According to Myrin, that was the name of Yadria¡¯s currency. It existed in spirit¡ªSentinels and Magi stored it within their Soul Frames and Soul Realms respectively. It apparently utilized the strange energy that originates from the Spirit Blossom Willow, though he wasn¡¯t sure on specifics. She reached out her hand and shook hands with the old man. A small flash of light appeared in between their palms¡ªthe Imra was transferred. The old man wiggled his way to the back of the store while hunching over his cane. Soren leaned in next to Tina and whispered, ¡°can I explore the store a bit?¡± She gave a slightly annoyed nod. Soren walked over to another aisle titled ¡°Runology.¡± Ever since he saw Myrin do that Flower Divination technique, a pool of intrigue was building within him¡ªone that was close to spilling over if he didn¡¯t satiate his curiosity. Glancing down at the shelf, a few items reflected in his eyes. A large bowl with what looked to be marbles inside? There was also a set of 12 wooden slabs, each etched with a strange symbol which he assumed was written in Yasini. To his left, there was also a strange bag filled with¡­ Dust? Countless other items were scattered randomly across the shelf. Stolen novel; please report. He started inspecting the bowl first. It had intricate designs going across its circumference with five wooden marbles inside of it. Soren activated his [Eyes of the Fairy] and commanded his Soul Weapon to [Record] it. Elderwood Seed Bowl (Fate Reading) A bowl filled with 5 marbles, each representing a seed of fate. In Yadrian theology, The Flower Maiden once sewed five seeds across the Feylith Forest. Each of these seeds represent one of the following: Growth, Decay, Balance, Wisdom, and Chaos. The first of these seeds was planted in Point Sylvia, giving rise to the swamp of life that has taken root in that place. This Fate Reading method taps into the symbolism these seeds hold to divine a person¡¯s innate nature. To use this method, a person must pierce the veil into the unseen (The Beyond). The visions that play within will show all possible futures by allowing the seeds to grow. The growth of all five seeds come into consideration to read a person¡¯s fate. Soren pondered over the words. In a way, it was similar to what he had seen Myrin do with the flower divination. At that time, The Beyond showed him multiple projections of the flower being wilted, which he interpreted as the multiple possible futures that could exist. Though, understanding it beyond that superficial explanation was impossible. He moved on to the next item. The Twelve Pillars (Fate Reading) 12 Wooden slabs that have ancient spellforms etched onto them. These spellforms were derived from Ancient Yasini, a language that only Saints and higher ranking Court members use. Each wooden slab represents a pillar of Yadrian belief: Origin, Unity, Honor, Knowledge, Time, Renewal, Spirit, Endurance, Harmony, Destiny, Dreams, and Transcendence. A person cannot utilize this Fate Reading method without extensive knowledge into Yadrian theology. As he read the descriptions, a question continued to grow within him. One that he had wondered about since he obtained his Soul Weapon. The knowledge his [Eyes of the Fairy] obtains, where does it come from? The simple answer would be from The Beyond. But then where does The Beyond obtain this information? Dust of Forgotten Paths (Fate Reading) Fairy Dragon scales that have been ground to dust. Following the War of Swords in the Third Age of Fantasia, high-quality Fairy Dragon scales became increasingly rare. The remnants left behind by the master Eldersmiths used them to forge the Jewel of Silmer and other ancient relics¡ªwhat remained from that era was large quantities of this byproduct. This dust has anima properties that tie it very closely to The Beyond, allowing for even the dullest of Magi to read fate. Nowadays, navigators use them to find the correct path when diving into Labyrinthos. Soren sighed. A lot of these descriptions fascinated him, but he had no Imra to purchase any of these Fate Reading tools. And even if he did, he still didn¡¯t know what Runology was and how it was tied to Fate Reading. He moved a bit down the shelf. A strange wooden board with strange pieces mounted on it drew his attention. He inspected it with [Eyes of the Fairy]. Spirit Mosaic Array (Fate Reading) (Ludologia) A strange board that holds a multi-faceted spellform. Each of its ley lines represent a rotation in the solar system. The pieces were etched from Spirit Blossom Willow tree wood and are blessed with sacred energy. Although it is used in Fate Reading, it also doubles as a board game that Yadrian high nobles with powerful Soul Realms use to play against each other in social gatherings. A board of fate. ¡°Board of Fate, huh?¡± It reminded him of a certain board game he used to play. He decided to move on from this section and head into another aisle. This one was titled, ¡°Magecraft.¡± Inside, countless grimoires were stacked across the shelves, some of them containing locks A devious idea entered his mind. If he used [Record] on the countless grimoires lining the shelves, wouldn¡¯t he gain all their knowledge on magecraft? This would count as theft, though, right? His greed was stronger than his hesitation. Sounds fun, let me try it¡­ ¡°What are you doing?¡± Tina¡¯s annoyed voice startled him. He almost dropped his Soul Weapon on the floor¡ªwell, not really since it could levitate on its own. ¡°Exploring,¡± he said with his usual poker face. ¡°As I said I would.¡± She sighed, ¡°I hope you weren¡¯t planning on doing what I think you were going to do¡­ Those grimoires have wards on them that could detect your intentions.¡± She pointed at a red tome to the side of him. ¡°For example, if you opened this one with the intention to memorize its contents, a large flame pillar would emerge from the book and burn your eyes to dust.¡± Soren gulped. ¡°I will keep that in mind.¡± ¡°Nevermind all of that. Let¡¯s go, I already obtained what I came here for.¡± She stormed out of the store without waiting for him. Soren collected his thoughts and scurried after her. ¡°What even is the stuff you bought? Conduit Stones or whatever they were called¡­¡± He looked around her hands and found nothing. ¡°And where did you place them anyway? Do you have a backpack underneath your cloak or something?¡± She rolled her eyes as she walked down the street. ¡°No, I put them in the Spatial Bracelet I own.¡± ¡°Spatial Bracelet?¡± His eyes widened in amazement. ¡°As for your other question¡­ It¡¯s something related to our Star Fate Guild¡ªit''s a secret.¡± Soren rolled his eyes. Should I just use [Eyes of the Fairy] to snoop around her belongings? He threw the idea in the trash immediately¡ªif a damn grimoire could detect him, there was no guarantee Tina wouldn¡¯t either. Heck, even the grimoire burning his eyes off seemed like a better fate than pissing her off. He sighed. ¡°Fine, keep your secrets. But can you tell me where we are going next? And why are you in such a hurry¡­¡± ¡°Haven¡¯t I said it before? Yadria is called one of the nations of disorder in the human realm. They had all of humanity enslaved for a thousand years during the Second Age of Fantasia. I doubt they¡¯ll enjoy our presence if they find out...¡± ¡°.....¡± Slaves? He knew elves had a disdain for humanity when he met Luvin, but he didn¡¯t think the history went this deep. Just as he opened his mouth to reply, a strange, shadowy figure drew their attention. It was standing still in an alleyway between two buildings¡ªthey were able to see it from the sidewalk they were on that was adjacent to it. It was holding an elongated wooden staff with three bells attached at its apex. Right below it was a Yadrian child wearing rags that was slumped on the wall¡ªSoren knew it had to be an Unblessed from his ragged clothing. The cloaked figure stood still with his hand placed above the child¡ªa strange dark stone was beneath his palm. Just as they were about to question him, he squeezed his hand, shattering the stone. A strange dark mist poured out from within it, submerging the child in its form. Soren immediately recognized it. The Nameless Mist. Chapter 32: The Nameless Culprit

Chapter 32: The Nameless Culprit

Just as Tina realized what was happening, her eyebrows furrowed in anger. She reached down to her waist and threw three of the daggers she had hidden there. The figure immediately noticed and slid to his side, dodging them. Soren wasn¡¯t as quick as Tina to react. His eyes were still focused on the dark mist covering the child. The Nameless Mist?! The shadowy man glanced over at them. Soren could almost imagine a smile beneath the hood of his cloak, but he didn¡¯t get enough time to look any deeper¡ªhis body simply started fading away like a ghost. ¡°Oh no you don¡¯t!¡± Tina had already activated the thing he¡¯d seen her use before¡ªsomething she called a Sacred Treasure. Liquid silver poured out of her gauntlets, forming into the shape of a crescent bow. Without even blinking, three arrows had already been shot toward the fleeting figure of the man. Soren watched in horror as they simply passed through him¡ªbarreling through the alleyway and lighting it up for all to see. They exploded a second later. She frowned and clicked her tongue. ¡°Activate [Eyes of the Fairy]!¡± Soren didn¡¯t hesitate¡ªhe immediately activated both his Soul Realm and his Soul Weapon. His Soul Realm expanded evenly in all directions, enveloping the entire alleyway. The Hermit¡¯s Eye activated, letting him see The Beyond from multiple angles at once. It was already stressful enough to activate his Soul Weapon¡¯s ability alone, but now, he was effectively activating hundreds of the same ability all around him at the same time¡ªthe mental strain, even with all his training, was still too much to bear. He winced in pain as he scanned over the block. ¡°To your left!¡± Soren aimed frantically before his ability was deactivated. Tina wasted no time. She immediately activated her Soul Frame and added a boost of anima to her feet to jump really high. Like a skilled parkourist, she ran up the side of the alley and over the fence to chase after the shadowy figure. Soren decided to strain himself and try morphing the shape of his Soul Realm to elongate it past the wall blocking their view. He shouted to Tina again, ¡°At your 2 O¡¯ clock!¡± Tina immediately manifested a new set of arrows, this time even faster. They whizzed through the sky, creating a howling noise for all to hear. An explosion reverberated in the air. Tina hit him. Just as she was about to shoot a few more arrows at the ghostly target, a rogue thought approached her mind. No, it wasn¡¯t just a thought. It was an entire dream. Tina¡¯s eyelids slowly closed. What the¡­ Her mind flashed with visions. Pictures of her childhood at the orphanage. Another of her training to be a nun at the local village church. Other scenes like her eating happily with her new family, or chasing the dumb bullies from the playground for daring to go against her also flashed by. But there was something strange about it all. These scenes only felt half real. They were a fabrication. She could tell something was off, but she couldn¡¯t exactly point to what exactly was causing that feeling in the first place. She felt her body fall¡ªher Soul Frame had deactivated itself. In her half-slumber state, she caught herself against a railing of one of the buildings. Moments later, the fleeting dreams plaguing her mind had ceased. The shadowy figure had escaped. Tina caught herself and organized her fleeting thoughts. She glanced back toward the now somewhat distant alleyway¡ªSoren was kneeling before the child that had been touched by the corrupt anima they called The Nameless Mist. Aside from the incident itself, what was more surprising was the fact that no one nearby had even realized the commotion. Their small fight was only a few steps away from the main street they were walking in. The alleyway was still as dark as ever, but the new rubble caused by Tina¡¯s arrows made it even more dilapidated. If you come across this story on Amazon, it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. Jumping back down, she walked toward Soren. Even now, countless Yadrian nobles walked down the sidewalk as if the entire commotion they caused had never even existed. Soren was flabbergasted¡ªat first he assumed it might have been due to the magitech device they were using that created illusions, but he quickly dismissed that idea. There was no way it would have this much of an effect on not just their own disguises, but also the environment itself. And the nobles walking past them weren¡¯t regular people either¡ªall of them most certainly were either Sentinels or Magi themselves. ¡°Did he escape?¡± He asked plainly to Tina. She bit her lip in response. ¡°Yes, that fucker got away. I have no idea what he did, but he somehow messed with my thoughts¡ªI started hallucinating mid fight. By the time I finished stabilizing my Heart¡¯s Shroud and Echo of Mind, he was gone.¡± Soren nodded, ¡°I see.¡± He glanced at the child who was now covered in a dark mist. ¡°What do we do about him? Is there a way to save him?¡± Tina nodded, ¡°Move aside.¡± She pulled out a small clear-glass bottle and flicked open the cork lid, pouring it above the child and onto The Nameless Mist. Soren had seen this before. That bottle, according to Myrin, was filled with an alchemical property that reacted to anima¡ªit was called a Spectralis Vial. It had the ability to change color depending on the quantity of anima a person held. The colors shifted through the entire spectrum of the rainbow¡ªwith red being the lowest reading and violet being the highest. On average, a human soul that had not awakened their Soul Realm typically held a color between orange and yellow. Yadrian children however were much more rich with anima¡ªthey tended to be born with the anima equivalent of green or blue, the latter being higher. When testing the Malevolent Hexes, almost all of them scored deep red. Their amount of remaining anima was miniscule, if not, non-existent. The Nameless Mist truly made the person¡¯s existence disappear. Soren watched the liquid seep past the dark, oozy, black mist¡ªpouring directly on the child¡¯s body. It truly fascinated him¡ªwouldn¡¯t The Nameless Mist also affect the reading? However, that was not the case. Almost immediately, the color shifted from see-through to dark red. It was as if the liquid couldn¡¯t even recognize the higher form of anima¡ªit was alien to its own alchemical properties. The child however¡­ She sighed and shook her head. ¡°Out of all of the people we¡¯ve tested, no child has survived... May Her silver grace shine through the darkness and illuminate his path¡­¡± Soren frowned. Another innocent victim had been consumed by this insanity. Soren never viewed himself to be a good person. He was selfish¡ªa person who valued his own safety more than others. When his mother was beaten by his dad, he never spoke up for her, though she also never spoke up for him either. And as he grew up, that mentality stuck to him like a parasite, leeching off of whatever was left of his empathy for the world. Even so, that didn¡¯t mean he was completely heartless. If he had the ability to save someone and there was no risk involved to himself, he would most likely do it. With the case of The Nameless Mist however¡­ That was a different story. This was something beyond the understanding of mortals. Even Myrin himself noted that its existence was completely unnatural to this world. He likened it to the sacred energy that poured out from the Dragon Vein, though this one had completely different properties. There was no way Soren could fight against that¡ªeven touching the mist itself could cause him to be corrupted. The only way they were able to contain it was through magitech devices that Myrin had with him (that he still didn¡¯t fully understand), and even then, that still didn¡¯t solve the issue. Those devices themselves were being corrupted by the minute¡ªit wouldn¡¯t take long before they would degrade and start leaking the mist out. This was the other reason Myrin and the others had come to Yadria. Local Aelloran villages that bordered the Feylith Forest had seen countless anomalies about strange creatures lurking in the woods. And according to the Magi scholars Aelloran officials had sent out, a strange anima was detected deep within the forest that they had never seen before. ¡°That bastard had a Staff of Saints.¡± Tina said while storming out of the alleyway. Soren remembered it¡ªa wooden staff with three bells attached at the top. The same as the one Luvin had. ¡°We can¡¯t be sure yet,¡± Tina reminded him. ¡°There are 9 Saints in total in Yadria. It could be any one of them. And it could also be a replica or a fake to throw us off.¡± Soren nodded. ¡°But it is still really suspicious¡­ What other saint do you know hates the unblessed this much?¡± Tina stayed silent for a bit and sighed. ¡°Let¡¯s go back to the hotel. We need to inform Myrin when he comes back.¡± Just as he was about to reply, words plastered across his Soul Weapon drew his attention. New Entry Recorded: [Fragment of a Tablet] (Mystery) New Entry Recorded: [Nameless Figure] (Miscellaneous) Almost immediately, he commanded his soul weapon to turn the page. Fragment of a Tablet (Mystery) A stone fragment from some sort of strange, ancient tablet. It has unknown properties, but breaking it seems to cause the anima contained within to seep out. Soren pondered over the words for a second before changing the page once again. Nameless Culprit (Miscellaneous) A strange, ghostly apparition that is hard to distinguish. It is unknown whether this is a form of magecraft or a mystery. Parts of its anima were compiled¡ªhe is fairly powerful. Compiled? What does that mean? As if responding to his thoughts, his Soul Weapon shifted pages once more, revealing a map of the Feylith Forest¡ªmore specifically, Yadria. A strange, colorful line shifted across the map, ending in a building only a few miles away from their current position. Soren glanced up at Tina and smirked. ¡°I think we have a lead.¡± Chapter 33: Fairys Soul

Chapter 33: Fairy¡¯s Soul

Myrin stayed silent while kneeling before the curtained altar. The Maiden¡¯s flower, Saintess Sylia, was still pondering over something¡ªhe refused to even breathe loudly. It was fairly odd. He had already answered all Her questions and even the main goal of negotiating a deal on behalf of the Church of Nature had been completed. Why was She keeping him around? ¡°Myrin Zinrie.¡± Her cold yet soothing voice reverberated in his mind. ¡°Y-yes¡­¡± ¡°During your journey, you observed the characteristics of the Malevolent Hexes that have been spreading across this sacred forest. Do you have any insights into them?¡± His eyes widened. Although he was already expecting to talk with the High Courts about what he encountered out there, he didn¡¯t expect Her to ask about it Herself. ¡°What we encountered out there¡­ Was a tragedy like no other,¡± he replied. ¡°Hundreds of Unblessed had their entire Runic Existences erased. It was terrifying.¡± ¡°Indeed¡­ Those poor souls¡­¡± He could feel the sincerity in Her voice, but there was also a hint of pity. Myrin sighed. ¡°A companion of mine has an ability to see into the beyond. With it, he was able to witness this grotesque anima shrouding the victim¡¯s soul directly. It seems to hold the properties of forgetfulness¡ªthe person being affected will lose all their memories and even the beyond itself seems to ignore them, as if it can¡¯t sense them at all.¡± ¡°A forgotten rune¡­¡± Myrin lifted his brow, ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°It is nothing to concern yourself with.¡± He lowered his head, ¡°I apologize¡­¡± ¡°No matter¡­ Before you head out, one last thing. Even though you won¡¯t be returning to Yadria as a prince, I do want to grant you the right to participate in the annual Runic Acquisition Festival.¡± His eyes widened in shock. She continued before he could even respond. ¡°Your human companion¡ªthe one with the book-shaped Soul Weapon. He can participate as well.¡± WHAT?! He wanted to scream but held himself together¡ªif Tina or the others saw him, they would no longer call him Myrin the Soothing Bard. ¡°Honorable Saintess, may you grant me one question? Please forgive my impertinence¡ªI can somewhat understand why you¡¯d allow me to participate, but Soren is a human! Isn¡¯t that against tradition?¡± ¡°Why? Do you not want him to participate?¡± ¡°I-I certainly do! It would be the greatest honor for him!¡± The Chamber Hall fell into silence once more. Her voice only echoed out a few breaths later. ¡°That human¡­ His soul isn¡¯t of this world. That would certainly not be that entirely special on its own¡ªthe Vynasians are also from beyond The Endless Sea. ¡°No. What is so interesting is what his soul really is. It has similar conceptual ideas to the Maiden Herself. The soul of a fairy. ¡°More accurately, the Abstract Rune he had merged with embodies those qualities.¡± Myrin stayed silent, contemplating what She was saying right now. Like the Maiden Herself?.. Isn¡¯t that sacrilegious? He wondered if this was a test of faith from the Saintess. ¡°The guild you are a part of¡ªit follows the Witch of Star Fate, doesn¡¯t it?¡± Her question startled him. ¡°Y-yes! Mistress Sienna.¡± ¡°I am sure you know what her goal is, correct?¡± Myrin gulped. ¡°Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate¡­¡± ¡°Indeed. ¡°Then would it surprise you to hear that a slight rotation within the Orbits of Fate was discovered recently? One that happened the exact moment my Illusionary Barrier felt the rift fracture open and spit out that young man from within its mangled maw?¡± Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! Myrin was shocked. What Mistress Sienna had found was indeed a slight clue into the orbits of celestial fate. But at that time, it was still frozen in place¡ªat least according to her. A movement in Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate had not been recorded since the end of the Third Age of Fantasia. Not since the Great Yasini Demise. Myrin already had assumed that Soren¡¯s arrival on Yarian may have had something to do with its Celestial Fate. It was a fairly easy assumption to make¡ªSienna¡¯s prophecies were usually hard to decipher and even harder to obtain. For her to read fate, a movement in the world¡¯s destiny was needed. And while the world spun, destiny remained still. For over a thousand years. In most of her prophecies, the conclusion was something rather tame, like a new dungeon pathway would form that could cause minor disagreements between countries. Or a simple new discovery in magic would happen within the famed academy of Luvinica. Not once had she prophesied the coming of a person to Yarian, and even more specifically, their complete characteristics. It was something unprecedented. And what was even more coincidental was the nature of their meeting itself¡ªwhat was the likelihood of a Vagrant Phantasm having abilities that were exactly tailored to their needs? Though, at the time, Myrin did suppose that it wasn¡¯t that miraculous¡ªhe had always had the hope that even without the Mistress¡¯s prophecy, Saintess Sylia¡¯s control over the Illusionary Barrier could be waived to allow them passage. Though it never happened until the very end of their journey. ¡°You must be thinking about all the events that had transpired prior to your arrival. One of them being that young man¡¯s ability to maneuver the barrier. ¡°Indeed, I could have allowed you and your companions passage from the very beginning.¡± Myrin lifted his head slightly and lowered it just as quickly¡ªhe wanted to question her reasoning. ¡°It was a test,¡± She replied to his thoughts. ¡°That young man¡¯s control over his own thoughts is just as fascinating as yours. It is a shame he was born a human. ¡°Aside from that, however, it was also to make sure he didn¡¯t perish from his own Soul Weapon¡¯s influence.¡± His Soul Chain¡¯s instability? Myrin wondered how She knew so much. ¡°Are you saying that using that [Eyes of the Fairy] ability could allow him to maintain control?¡± ¡°Yes, but not permanently. The effects it holds on his Soul Chain revert back to nothing only a mere few hours after its usage. As you know, Anima functions based on influence, and that ability creates a lot of influence within the Beyond.¡± Myrin pondered over her words. ¡°The more one interacts with the Beyond, the more it changes¡­¡± ¡°Indeed.¡± ¡°So then do you know what exactly is causing his instability in the first place?¡± Dead silence. The awkwardness almost suffocated him this time. ¡°I do know, however, that is not something I should tell you. Let the young man disclose it himself.¡±
Like a hawk, Soren stood on the tilted roof of a building, overlooking the street below¡ªhis feet firmly hooked beneath tree roots that were interlocking with the building¡¯s architecture. Tina was right next to him. Their hair fluttered in the midnight breeze¡ªhe could almost imagine their shadows being cast by the overhead Silver-Eyed Moon. After their brief encounter with the individual he has dubbed, ¡°The Nameless Culprit,¡± an interesting change occurred to his Soul Weapon. A trail of anima was detected. One that The Records managed to pick up. And with its help, he was able to find a location that held large quantities of that anima. Just two streets away from the tower they were on, a large building could be seen. Mangled branches snaked their way across its concrete walls, giving it an eerie vibe. The windows were also completely dark¡ªthey could not see what was happening inside. It all felt as if a mini dark forest resided within. According to Tina¡¯s investigation, that building was abandoned 30 something years ago¡ªan apparent storage depot that a local guild operated¡ªthey most likely were caught smuggling narcotics or other illegal things into Yadria. To the locals, it was probably seen as a cursed location¡ªa place unfit for those blessed by the Maiden. Whatever it had been transformed into now, was most definitely far more sinister. Even though Soren couldn¡¯t see anything inside, the vibe it gave off was most definitely anything but normal. He could almost smell the corrupted anima seeping out from within. ¡°Are you sure you wanted to come, Soren?¡± Tina said with a concerned face. He smiled. ¡°Yes.¡± ¡°But you have no reason to do any of this. Our deal ended the moment you brought us to Yadria¡ªwe only asked you to navigate the Illusionary Barrier. This mission has nothing to do with you. Why would you take this risk at all?¡± ¡°Because it¡¯s fun,¡± he said nonchalantly. Tina was baffled at his answer. ¡°That ghostly figure we saw¡ªhe smiled at me. It was most definitely a challenge from him. How can I let that slide?¡± ¡°... You¡¯re crazy.¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°Maybe so, but what is life without any thrills? Besides, you said we would only observe, anyway.¡± She stayed silent for a moment before nodding. ¡°I secretly tipped off the Court of Nightshade about this location a few hours ago. They should come look into it tonight.¡± Soren squinted as he tried to get a better look. ¡°It¡¯s so odd, though. How did he manage to hide in such an obviously abandoned building? The rest of the block certainly has residents. How did he evade all their attention?¡± ¡°It was probably the same method he used to make sure no one noticed our small fight in that alleyway. This is why we can¡¯t engage him directly¡ªI am definitely not stronger than him. I¡¯m assuming he¡¯s a Tier 3 Phantasm or higher¡­ Though it''s hard to say. ¡°Remember this Soren, in a battle against a magus, preparation is key. A battle against a Phantasm? That requires another Phantasm. Even though I hold some fairly powerful Sacred Treasures, the Mysterious World is not something most can fathom¡ªit truly runs deeper than your wildest imagination.¡± Soren nodded. ¡°I understand.¡± Suddenly, Tina noticed something from the corner of her eye. Tiny shadows were swiftly moving across the street. Not even the whispers of the wind could be felt from their movement. It was the Court of Nightshade. ¡°They¡¯ve arrived,¡± Tina whispered. Soren decided to activate [Eyes of the Fairy] once again. ¡°Are you sure you want to use it?¡± Tina asked. She knew how strenuous it was on not just his psyche but also his physical health. Without Myrin¡¯s healing magecraft, Soren would have never been able to use it this many times. Sadly, this time, Myrin couldn¡¯t come with them¡ªhe was for some reason late to their rendezvous point. Tina suspected that something else must have come up during his visit to Floramere Keep, but that was just mere speculation she formed after gathering intel during the evening. But by far their best asset for this kind of mission had to be Tyrel. His abilities were much more suited for the shadows, and sadly, he was unavailable as well. This left them much less prepared for what was about to come. Chapter 34: Nightshade Raid

Chapter 34: Nightshade Raid

Soren and Tina watched quietly. The night was most certainly going to be long. A few streets away from them, Soren could see sparks igniting quickly and disintegrating just as fast. A fight was happening. He couldn¡¯t exactly tell their shapes or what exactly was happening¡ªthere were cloaks moving too fast for his eyes to see, fighting against what looked to be¡­ Plants? He frowned. ¡°I may need to get closer if we want to actually see what¡¯s happening.¡± Tina glanced up and down at him briefly. ¡°I have a Sacred Treasure that could allow me to see more clearly in the dark. This is your final chance¡ªare you sure you want to stay around? Your ability to see into the Beyond is useful but I can certainly go without it, no issue.¡± Soren thought for a second then smiled¡ªhe nodded. Tina simply sighed and grabbed him by the hood of his rain-cloak. ¡°What the¡ª¡± Before he could even finish his sentence, Soren felt a strange energy surrounding his body¡ªTina¡¯s Soul Frame. She didn¡¯t even give him a chance to regret his decision; they immediately flew off of the balcony they were secretly huddled in¡ªflying through the air. ¡°What the fuck!!!¡± He looked behind him in shock¡ªTina¡¯s feet were somehow kicking the air forward rapidly. He quickly closed his mouth¡ªan insect almost entered inside. This was certainly not what he was expecting. They shot rapidly toward the scene. A few explosions even caught his attention, and yet, not even a flicker of sound could be heard for miles. The night held its breath¡ªa tranquil sea of quiet was rupturing with conflict.
Riding atop a colossal black wolf was a man covered in dark-gray robes. His illustrious green hair fluttered in the wind as the giant wolf maneuvered across the now demolished street. Large beams of light were shooting rapidly toward them at speeds they almost couldn¡¯t conceive. ¡°Captain! There¡¯s more to your right!¡± He grit his teeth and pulled back on the wolf¡¯s jet-black furr, letting it shift directions. A beam of light pierced right through where they were moments prior. In the distance were countless large flowers that had their petals aimed at them. Anima was rapidly condensing at their centers before shooting at them at rapid speeds. This was a spell Captain Virion of the Court of Nightshade knew of¡ªBlooming Burst. It was a fairly common 3rd Circle magecraft that only required one to have a plant or spirit affinity. Either one worked, especially in Yadria where spirit anima was much more concentrated. However, this was different. A blooming burst magecraft requires the user to have a root connecting the plant to him at all times. These were autonomous. It was as if each colossal plant was alive on its own, fighting with its own conscious thought. He grit his teeth. ¡°Maneuver to the backside! We must enter that facility no matter what! The Saintesses are watching us!¡± ¡°Yes sir,¡± they all replied. It was fairly strange. Just a day earlier, finding even a single clue regarding the origin of the Nameless Mist was almost impossible. They had scoured countless slums, Unblessed districts, and quarantined countless neighborhoods. Nothing. It was as if the mist had a mind of its own. It simply out maneuvered them at every turn. And what was worse was the fact that it continued to spread. Even if many of the higher nobles could put up some resistance to its corrupted influence, the same could not be said about their children. It was truly shameful¡ªthe longer they stalled, the more casualties they acquired. The Nightshade Court was certainly going to lose its status if it had continued. You could be reading stolen content. Head to the original site for the genuine story. It was only a few hours earlier that they managed to catch their first lead. An anonymous letter that told them of this location. In hindsight, it was fairly obvious. The facility they were trying to breach had enough space to hide large quantities of Malevolent Hexes. It was also in a fairly unblessed section of Yadria that most nobles wouldn¡¯t even dare to touch. Although it wasn¡¯t a slum by any means, it also had a stigma from 30 something years ago that kept most normal citizens away from its windows. Why did they never search that area? The question rang in his head as they sprinted closer toward the building. This was also another mystery he had no answer to¡ªwhy did they get detected so quickly? Their plan was to swiftly and secretly infiltrate the building from multiple floors at the same time to corner whoever was inside, manufacturing the Malevolent Hexes. And yet only mere moments after their arrival in their designated areas, they were ambushed. This should have been an impossibility. Countless wards lined their clothing that gave them stealth that not even some Saints could detect without a bit of effort. And the magecraft they had prepared should have made them practically invisible within the shadows. That was who they were¡ªthe Court of Nightshade. At least until tonight¡­ Was the intel we received a trap all along? He wondered. There was also the possibility that there was a traitor within the Court that had leaked the information about the raid. Regardless, Virion soldiered on. Two of his men were also escorting him toward the building¡¯s main entrance¡ªeach one riding a Dark Mist Wolf, as they called them¡ªa well known breed of Spirit Beasts that Yadria had been using for many millennia. In front of them were an army of plants and vines, each charging up their own burst of anima to shoot at their enemy. Virion frowned and commanded his Soul Weapon to activate. A flood of violet light flooded from his palms, morphing into the shape of two daggers. It only took a breath¡¯s length for them to solidify¡ªhe gripped them tightly. A dark purple miasma shifted menacingly across their edge. Whispering Thorns had activated. With his arms crossed, he narrowed his vision and slashed the air in front of him. An ¡°X¡± shaped mark formed in the air, rapidly shooting forward toward the plants blocking their way. Phase Strike! This was an ability he had trained for countless years now. It allowed him to attack the vitals of any enemy his Soul Weapons sees fit. By using the Beyond, the Soul Weapon automatically obtains the information necessary to make the calculated strike, and immediately sends the attack through the Beyond itself to pierce the enemy where it matters most. In an instant, hundreds of plants in front of them were shredded into nothing. He grinned. This was the power of his Soul Weapon. An ability that could only be countered by someone who could see into the Beyond. Becoming the captain of the Court of Nightshade was certainly not an easy task, but it certainly was easier with this¡ªout of 364 assassinations, he had failed none so far. After clearing the rest of the plants, the group had finally made it toward the front entrance of the now dilapidated building. Piles of rubble had already accumulated from all the bombardments it had received earlier during their march. He glanced over at his soldiers. ¡°Tell Julive to rotate around the back. We have to make sure all angles are secured!¡± They swiftly nodded. The person behind him who was also riding on a Dark Mist Wolf activated his soul weapon. It was a yellow leaf that he placed on his lips¡ªa tune began to play, one that was too faint to hear unless you were paying attention to it. The message was carried over successfully. Nodding to each other, they placed their attention back to the front gate. Without holding back, Virion dismounted from the Dark Mist Wolf and walked over to the gate¡ªhe kicked it down effortlessly. With his Soul Frame activated, he glanced around the darkened warehouse. Completely empty. There was absolutely nothing inside. ¡°What in the blossoms¡­¡± ¡°Ugh!¡± Suddenly, a grunt was heard from one of his subordinates. Virion swiftly shifted his neck back. The man with the leaf Soul Weapon he knew as Silvon, was holding his own neck tightly, as if he was suffocating. A black, gooey substance seeped out from his mouth as he struggled to keep himself up. His eyes rolled back into his skull, leaving only the eerie whites visible. His breath hitched, and only seconds later, all life slipped away from him. Virion looked down in horror¡ªa black wooden stake had pierced through Silvon¡¯s heart. From within the gaps of the festering wound rose a dark mist that cloaked his now lifeless body. Virion and his other subordinate backed away swiftly. A ghost-like figure manifested behind Silvon whose skin rapidly dried up. He had been turned into a Malevolent Hex. The figure smiled at Virion, ¡°The Whispering Dream greets you.¡± Chapter 35: The Corruption Spreads

Chapter 35: The Corruption Spreads

Virion swiftly dashed forward, his eyes primed on the ghostly figure hiding behind Silvon¡¯s corpse. Just as he was about to slash his daggers in their direction, the hooded person stepped back with a smirk on his face. All of a sudden, Silvon¡¯s corpse erupted with anima. ¡°Stop!¡± Virion screamed, but it was too late. An explosion of Nameless Mist flew in all directions, as if a gas canister had built up enough pressure to eclipse the deep oceans. Virion grit his teeth as his surroundings turned to dark. He could hear his other subordinates grunting in pain¡ªthey were all dropping like flies. ¡°No!¡± Virion used his other skill, The Silent Lurker. His body swiftly turned into pure anima in the form of a shadow. Like a snake, he slithered across the open warehouse, back to the entrance. The ghostly figure showed itself once more, but this time, he was surrounded by large plants that were ready to attack Virion. He used Phase Strike again, slicing them all to bits. The ghostly figure, however, seemed unphased. With gentle steps, he climbed the side of the building by manipulating the vines to shape themselves into footholds. Virion had no choice but to chase after him. What in Yasini¡¯s demise is even happening anymore¡­ He looked around him¡ªthe remaining Court of Nightshade members under his wing were being overwhelmed by the colossal plants, and even worse, the corrupted anima of the Nameless Mist was now slowly growing. Whatever that hooded figure did to Silvon was clearly bad. If it continued to spread as it currently was unimpeded, many of the nearby noble quarters would surely suffer losses. He couldn¡¯t let that happen. With his Soul Frame activated, two spellforms attached to the soles of his boots flared to life. Their radiant material runes glowed, forming three sigils that gave form to wind. In a single step, Virion cut the gap between him and the hooded figure by half. Phase Strike! His Soul Weapon recognized his thoughts and immediately started piecing information from within the Beyond. The hooded figure¡¯s vitals had been located. Slashing the air, a purple haze came to life that almost instantaneously reached the hooded figure, cutting him into countless pieces. Virion didn¡¯t hold back¡ªhe used Phase Strike a few more times for good measure. The ghostly figure only managed to reach the roof of the building before collapsing into minced meat. Virion caught up to his now mangled corpse. I have to figure out what to do now¡­ How do I stop the mist from spreading? He had no idea. Inspecting his body showed nothing on it. It was strange. He was expecting to be fighting a Sentinel or Magi with an affinity for ghosts or spirits. Aside from a bit of residual anima, he couldn¡¯t even feel the leftover presence of a Soul Realm or Soul Frame. Not even a Soul Weapon was present. He clicked his tongue. If only the Saint was here¡­ Aside from Luvin and Saintess Sylia¡¯s brother, all seven other saints had headed for the Endless Sea. A large rift had been opening for the past week and they were busy investigating it with the Court of Roses and Tulips. The fact that no information about the Nameless Mist had reached them yet was very odd. Although Saintess Syla, Lesticia, and Finnea all remain present in Yadria, Their role disallowed Them from engaging with mortal affairs¡ªTheir only duty was to the Maiden Herself and the Matron of Faith. Watching over the holy Spirit Blossom Willow from within Floramere Keep was Their sacred duty for a thousand years, and it shall be that way for another thousand. That would be the case only if they could stop this spread of corruption. Even though Saintess Sylia could easily see where the corruption was spreading, that was only the case when its encroachment reached a certain height. If the concentration of Nameless Mist anima in an area was too little, She would most likely gloss over it. And even in the cases where it did spread rapidly like what Virion was witnessing now, the culprit would somehow easily escape. It was truly baffling. Never in the history of the Court of Nightshade had they faced an adversary this cunning and hard to understand. Virion sighed. He glanced over at the minor wounds he had then looked down at the corpse. His Soul Weapon blared to life, activating Nightshade Reaper. This was an ability that allowed him to convert the lifeforce of an enemy he had killed with his Soul Weapon into pure anima he could absorb, healing his injuries. Though, none of it really mattered in the end. Just mere moments after he started absorbing, Virion noticed something strange. The diced pieces of flesh from the corpse slowly became more incorporeal¡ªthis was not something that happened due to his skill. He immediately became cautious. In that mere moment of hesitation, the corpse disappeared. What the¡­ He was baffled. Sensing something, he looked up¡ªthe cloaked figure was now reformed back to what he used to look like, except for the fact that he was covered in wounds from head to toe. His cloak was also shredded to pieces, making him look even more dilapidated. Still, he was alive. The cloaked figure simply smiled at Virion from beneath his hood and turned to run away. Vines grew out of the ground that turned into steps for him to walk on. ¡°Stop you bastard,¡± roared Virion. His Soul Frame came to life once more as he blasted himself into the air after him.
Soren glanced at the battlefield and frowned. Large plants filled the streets and men and women armed with countless Soul Weapons battled against them. It was terrifying to watch. Some were stabbed by the vines and sucked dry, others had their entire bodies ripped apart¡ªthere were even some that got blasted by beams of light generated by sunflowers. Soren had seen that type of magecraft once before¡ªMyrin had used it against the horde of Memory Void Husks. Except this time, all of them were not only autonomous, but also much more lethal. What was even more terrifying, however, had to be the dark mist slowly encroaching on the entire district. Countless blocks had already been consumed by its presence. Soren wasn¡¯t sure how many casualties there were, but it had to be in the hundreds. Only the people living above in the Moving Homes could probably avoid this catastrophe. And even worse, it didn¡¯t seem like it was stopping at all. He could see countless members of the Court of Nightshade slowly turn into Malevolent Hexes. Except, unlike the ones he was used to, these exhibited a much stranger quality. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Just like the Malevolent Hex horde they faced, they were aggressive. Based on what they knew of the Nameless Mist, it operated equally on anyone touched by its influence. How much a person resisted based on their own willpower determined how well they did against its encroachment. With the Memory Void Husks, they¡¯re entire existence getting erased made them run simply on bodily instinct¡ªthey would much rather try and spread the Mist to someone else than keep it to themselves. This was something Myrin dubbed the ¡°Passover Effect.¡± What they were witnessing currently, however, was different. Rather than ¡°Passover¡± their corruption, the Phantasms being corrupted from the forces of the Court of Nightshade were expunging dark mist from their bodies at an insanely rapid rate. There were also a few that had their Soul Weapons transform into grotesque versions of themselves and were using their abilities to spread the mist even more. Soren needed to know what the hell was going on, and fast. With [Eyes of the Fairy] and the Hermit¡¯s Eye inherent ability activated, he scanned the battlefield and recorded everything. Event Log New Entry Recorded: [Memory Void Exhaler] (Malevolent Hex) New Entry Recorded: [Memory Void Corruptor] (Malevolent Hex) New Entry Recorded: [Blossom Burst] (Magecraft + Mystery) New Entry Recorded: [Vine Prison] (Magecraft + Mystery) New Entry Recorded: [Floral Depravity] (Magecraft + Mystery) New Entry Recorded: [Field of Obfuscation] (Mystery) New Entry Recorded: [Field of Diffusion] (Mystery) New Entry Recorded: [Conceptual Override] (Anima) Ignoring the pain from his ability, he swiftly glanced over the information being shown to him. Aside from the countless magecraft that had somehow also had aspects of a Mystery to them, Soren was much more interested in knowing about the new Malevolent Hex types. Memory Void Exhaler (Malevolent Hex) A corrupted being that exhibits the visual features of an elf. This entity has once been a Magi or Sentinel that was infected by the Nameless Mist. But rather than have its existence simply erased, a more sinister outcome awaits it. Its Runic Existence has been transformed, absorbing and mixing with the anima until it became a factor of its own influence. Now, its Soul Frame and Soul Realm had been completely taken over by this rogue anima, redefining what its true self is, causing it to expunge more of the same anima at an alarming rate. Soren watched the battlefield frantically. The proud assassins Myrin had spoken of had now become mindless factories that produced the Nameless Mist. With their true self redefined, they now believed their existence was solely the spreading of the mist itself. His eyes darted back to the page¡ªhe needed to know about the other type. Memory Void Corruptor (Malevolent Hex) A corrupted being that exhibits the visual features of an elf. This entity has once been a Phantasm that was infected by the Nameless Mist. The concepts governing their Soul Weapon had been redefined¡ªthe abstract runes they had once merged now incomprehensible to what they originally were. With their Soul Realms corrupted, the infected Soul Weapon now takes over its host as the new owner of the body. Holy Phantasms that were once gifted their powers by the Maiden have now converted worship to Him. Him? Soren wasn¡¯t sure who it was alluding to. But since the pronoun was clearly marked differently, he was expecting it to be a god of some sort. This Nameless Mist¡­ Where the hell does it come from¡­ He glanced down at buildings and streets below. The night had certainly done its job at darkening the roads, but the bioluminescent floral architecture did its job to make sure it wasn¡¯t completely dark. But now, even those plants have lost their purpose¡ªthe once beautifully illustrious Saint Krilo District had succumbed into an abyssal void of mist. Down in the streets, a few of the Memory Void Corruptors were fighting against their former comrades. Soren spotted the one nearest to him¡ªa large wooden staff that curled into itself at the top was levitating next to him¡ªhis presumed Soul Weapon. An aura of dark mist shrouded its form as he cast magecraft against one of his friends. ¡°We exist in non-existence! ¡°We exist in non-existence! ¡°Hahahahahaha!¡± The eerie chant echoed out into the streets. Tina frowned. ¡°Soul Weapon takeovers are a very real threat to Vagrants¡­ But this is the first time I¡¯ve seen it happen to a Holy Phantasm¡­¡± Sweat dripped from Soren¡¯s forehead as he glanced at the now transformed Phantasms. The insanity was oozing from their bodies¡ªthey had lost all semblance of who they once were. He then looked back up at Tina who was standing next to him. ¡°Are you going to do anything?¡± She gave him a weird look. ¡°You want me to die? There¡¯s several of those bastards down there. Even one of them would probably instantly kill me.¡± They¡¯re that strong? Soren still had no frame of reference when comparing the strengths of Magi and Phantasms. To him, Tina was a superwoman with a bad personality. And the people down there were also superhumans with bad personalities. The difference between them was non-existent to him. He sighed. ¡°So then what should we do? Do we turn back? There¡¯s no way we can stop this.¡± ¡°I thought you wanted a challenge,¡± she asked smugly. Soren shrugged, ¡°Dangerous thrills are only fun when there¡¯s a sliver of a chance of success. I see none here.¡± He glanced back down at his Soul Weapon. More info was displayed. Field of Obfuscation (Mystery) A field of anima surrounds the area, creating a barrier. This barrier twists the Veil of Perception of anyone looking into it, making it hard to look past what is happening within. A field? Soren wasn¡¯t sure if this was something the Court of Nightshade had used to hide their activity or whether it had always been there from the very beginning, cast by whoever was responsible for this tragedy. Field of Diffusion (Mystery) A field of anima surrounds the area, creating a barrier. This barrier twists the Echo of Mind of anyone looking into it, making any stray thought that involves entering the barrier dissolve into nothing. So this one makes sure people don''t enter the vicinity of the battlefield¡­ He was almost certain this was cast by the Court of Nightshade. The person orchestrating this wouldn¡¯t mind more people getting corrupted. He flipped the page to where the information about Conceptual Override¡ªthat seemed interesting as well. Conceptual Override (Anima) When a higher dimensional anima infused with conceptual ideas of a higher plane interact with that of a lesser plane, Conceptual Override occurs. So that¡¯s why¡­ Soren always wondered why the Nameless Mist acted so strongly against even Phantasms. The concepts that governed its existence were much higher than those who merged with Abstract Runes¡ªthe concepts of which were lesser. But this also introduced an even more terrifying thought. If the Nameless Mist was able to trick even the Beyond itself, an entire plane of existence overlapping the natural world, then that would mean¡­ The Nameless Mist¡¯s influence and conceptual ideas were higher in authority than the world itself. A chill ran down his spine. What the hell even is it¡­ Why did this world have to go to shit the moment I transmigrated? ¡°So¡­ Did you find anything,¡± Tina asked. He could see the concern grow on her face. Even if Myrin and Tyrel were here, they too would be helpless. Heck, she didn¡¯t even think Mistress Sienna could do anything to stop this. Soren sighed. ¡°All I know is that this Nameless Mist is much more dangerous than we thought originally. Unless we isolate this area somehow from the rest, stopping its growth is impossible with our current powers. What the hell are those supposed Saints even doing? Aren¡¯t there a few that could take care of this? Or that Sylia-something or whatever.¡± ¡°Holy Saintess Sylia,¡± Tina corrected. ¡°And no, according to Myrin, only two Saints are currently in Yadria. Luvin who you met before and Saintess Sylia¡¯s brother, Silmar. And both of them are tied with other duties. Though¡­ I did hear that Silmar was one of the most fantastical Magi in all of Yadria¡­ He should have heard of this by now¡­¡± Just as Soren was about to reply, he noticed something from the corner of his eye. A strange, hooded figure was skipping steps from vine to vine¡ªmore flora bloomed beneath his feet, turning into colossal sunflowers that dropped down to the streets below. Soren recognized him. ¡°The Nameless Culprit!¡± Chapter 36: Caught Red-Handed

Chapter 36: Caught Red-Handed

Soren watched as the hooded man swiftly maneuvered the now mist-ridden streets. His signature smug expression was present. ¡°Tina!¡± He pointed at him. ¡°On it!¡± She wasted no time¡ªactivating her Sacred Treasure. Molecules of liquid silver melted from her gauntlets and formed into a crescent bow. She pulled the string back and let her anima manifest as a glowing, radiant arrow. With one eye closed, she let go of the metaphysical string¡ªthe arrow shot toward the hooded figure, piercing through the air. Sensing danger, he frantically steered his body to the side, letting the arrow wizz past him at a hair¡¯s length. He glanced over at them and frowned. Soren immediately re-activated [Eyes of the Fairy] and his Soul Realm¡¯s Hermit¡¯s Eye. He watched from the Beyond as the figure turned incorporeal¡ªa bundle of purple haze and mist filled with stars. That was how he was represented within the Beyond. ¡°He¡¯s moving to the left!¡± 9 O''clock!¡± Seeing the unseen, Soren was able to pinpoint his slippery movements. He had been thinking about it ever since their fight in the alleyway earlier in the day¡ªthe figure was somehow able to dodge all of Tina¡¯s attacks without even batting an eye. It was as if he was able to know where she was aiming before she even knew it herself. This puzzled him. It was only after he reanalyzed the scene that he came up with a hypothesis. The hooded figure they called the ¡®Nameless Culprit¡¯ was reading their thoughts. This was not something he had evidence to support, but after scanning the battlefield earlier, the mention of the Field of Obfuscation intrigued him. He was certain that this Mystery had something to do with him. And since the description mentioned how it tampered with other people¡¯s thoughts, it was now pretty much confirmed that he had used it during their brief encounter in the alleyway to mask his actions from those around him. That barrier was very powerful¡ªthe fact that not even noble Yadrians who are all mostly experienced Magi or Sentinels¡ªsome of them even being Holy Phantasms working as clergymen under the Saint¡¯s watch and none of them were able to even detect its presence or what was happening within baffled him. Whoever they were currently facing had to be extremely powerful. Still, Soren wasn¡¯t completely worried. From his current analysis, the figure looked to be injured. And because he understood that he was somehow reading their thoughts through the Echo of Mind, all he needed to do was command his vision to shift into showing him the unseen he wanted to see. He was going to fight fire with fire. With his Soul Realm active and his [Eyes of the Fairy] shifting his vision, his thoughts honed into what he wanted to see most: the figure¡¯s Echo of Mind. If he was going to read their thoughts, Soren might as well read his thoughts as well. Just like that, the beyond focused into showing him what he desired to see most. A vision of a tumultuous jungle filled with vines and trees filled his vision. Countless creatures roamed the forest chaotically. This was it¡ªhis Echo of Mind. ¡°An arrow will come at me in 4 seconds.¡± ¡°An arrow will come at me in 4 seconds.¡± ¡°An arrow will come at me in 4 seconds.¡± Soren turned to Tina who was aiming her bow, ¡°shoot it now!¡± She immediately let go of the metaphysical bowstring. The arrow slashed the air in its wake before hitting the target in its shoulder. Checkmate! Soren celebrated internally. This was something he didn¡¯t know he could do¡ªhis [Eyes of the Fairy] was able to infiltrate another person¡¯s Three Layers of self. He was able to read the figure¡¯s thoughts about their own thoughts and actions. Though, part of its success probably had to do with his Hermit¡¯s Eye inherent ability. He would need to know what to focus on before focusing on it, after all. Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon. Without hesitation, Tina grabbed Soren by his shirt and jumped from the roof of the building. He wanted to scream but held himself together¡ªthe Memory Void Corruptors could detect them down below. With sleek blasts of wind from her feet, she maneuvered above the buildings until she reached the cloaked figure who had fallen to one of the nearby roofs due to his injury. Just as she got a hundred meters away, she shot three more arrows at the target just to make sure. Soren lifted his brow, ¡°are you sure that won¡¯t kill him? We still need to interrogate him, you know!¡± ¡°Interrogate? Keep that idea out of your head Soren. We are dealing with a Mystic grade Phantasm here. He probably has a number of tricks up his sleeve. Don¡¯t let your guard down.¡± She approached the figure one step at a time with her Sacred Treasure aimed at his ¡®corpse¡¯ throughout the way. Soren forced himself into keeping [Eyes of the Fairy] active just in case¡ªhe could feel a searing pain all across his skull, but he resisted it as much as he could. Tina was right, there was no telling what could happen. Slowly, Tina approached him. ¡°I can hear him breathing,¡± she said to Soren. ¡°Though, it¡¯s very faint¡ªlooks like our attacks worked. But keep your guard up, it could also be a trick.¡± She slowly inched closer and kneeled on one knee next to him. ¡°Let¡¯s see who¡¯s beneath the cloak.¡± Taking his hood off, Tina and Soren were shocked. It was an old elven man. His skin was very wrinkled¡ªto the point that Soren thought he was half-dead. ¡°Impossible,¡± they both said. They recognized him. It was the store owner of ¡°Wards & Hexes.¡± The disheveled old man breathed jaggedly as he smiled at them both. It was a smile filled with laughter. A smile filled with joy. A smile filled with madness. ¡°The Whispering Dream greets you!¡± Before they could reply, his head exploded. Guts and brain matter sprayed all across the roof and on their clothes. Soren stood there motionless to it all. He had no idea how to react. His body had shut down. Tina on the other hand was also shocked, but she still tried to recompose herself. With her Sacred Treasure still active, she scanned the battlefield to see if there were any changes¡ªfor all she knew, this all could have been an illusion. ¡°Stop!¡± A voice echoed from the distance. Tina turned around to find a man hooded in purple clothing lined with flower embroideries and two glowing violet-colored daggers sprinting toward them. Captain Virion. She thought. ¡°Identify yourself!¡± He ordered. ¡°Tina Graywood¡ªA member of Star Fate Guild.¡± Star Fate Guild? He thought. I did hear there were humans coming from Aellora¡­ His eyes sharpened as he scanned over her vitals¡ªhe was going to prepare to use Phase Strike if she did anything suspicious. He glanced over at the silver bow in her hand. It was radiating in anima. ¡°Lower your Soul Weapon and or Sacred Treasure!¡± Tina kept her bow primed. ¡°I am afraid I cannot comply with that request.¡± ¡°Why in Yasini¡¯s Demise can you not?!¡± ¡°Because the enemy uses illusions. I cannot trust you.¡± ¡°.....¡± He had no idea how to respond. He did know that whoever they were facing definitely had an affinity for illusionary magecraft. The field spell he had active around the area was something they couldn¡¯t even fathom to understand. He had ordered his team to investigate its spellform, but with the battlefield being in such disarray currently, the hope of that investigation helping him decipher it now was basically impossible. Still, he knew he had to get her to lower her weapon. ¡°Surrender yourself to the Court of Nightshade or face Yisini¡¯s wrath!¡± ¡°I won¡¯t comply. Bring it on.¡± ¡°Stop,¡± a third voice interjected. Tina turned to her side¡ªSoren was looking the man named Virion in the eye. ¡°Let¡¯s surrender,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ve already checked him with [Eyes of the Fairy]. He¡¯s not an illusion.¡± Tina glanced toward Virion who had his daggers ready and sighed. ¡°Fine.¡± She ordered her Sacred Treasure to deactivate, turning it back into liquid silver that rushed into her gauntlets. She placed her hands up to show her surrender. Just as she was about to say something, she heard a thumping sound coming from beside her. She turned around¡ªit was Soren. He had collapsed from exhaustion. Overusing [Eyes of the Fairy] this many times had finally taken its toll. Chapter 37: Behind bars

Chapter 37: Behind Bars

A cold yet dazzling murmur rattled Soren¡¯s mind. A murmur that was as alluring as the madness it entailed. ¡°The Whispering Dream greets you.¡± He had no idea why, but at that moment, his mind couldn¡¯t help but fill with joy¡­ And also terror. The visage of the old man¡¯s flesh expanding before bursting into a sea of blood and pus replayed constantly. Just then, he felt his eyes fluttering to life. His senses returned to him slowly as he hyperventilated from the shock of it all. Where am I? He grit his teeth to ease the pain emanating from his temples, but it did not cease in the slightest. The last thing he remembered was a man with two daggers confronting Tina and him. He must have passed out due to overusing his abilities. Ugh! I seriously need to figure out a way to deal with the side effects¡­ Aside from just the pain, the time dilation aspect of it was also very terrifying. Though, other than that one time when he used it against a Memory Void Spirit or when he was running away from the Headless Ogre, that effect had still not appeared again¡­ He was unsure what the trigger for it was. It was definitely different from just the usual usage of his abilities. Maybe it was random? He didn¡¯t know. And there was one other thing he needed to figure out. It¡¯s limitations. When they confronted the hooded figure, he had the idea of using his [Eyes of the Fairy] to see the Beyond and pierce through the person¡¯s Echo of Mind to read their thoughts. Tina had discussed before how slippery that man was¡ªit felt very unnatural for her to miss her shots so easily. After piecing together a few ideas about what his abilities were, Soren figured that the only way to counter it was to do what he could do but better. His goal was to try and replicate Myrin¡¯s inherent ability to counter their own thoughts being read¡ªafter all, he had always wanted to find a way to make sure Myrin didn¡¯t snoop around his mind all the time and that was the perfect opportunity to test out his theory. The result was, of course, a success. But that still didn¡¯t quell his doubts¡ªin fact, it only heightened them. According to Myrin, a person¡¯s Soul Realm or Soul Frame existed outside of the Beyond¡ªin our natural world. It was simply a projection of one¡¯s own will outside of themselves. What Soren had to have seen when his [Eyes of the Fairy] was simply a facade created by the Beyond to mirror the Nameless Culprit¡¯s Echo of Mind. The Beyond as he understood it, housed information down to the conceptual level for everything in the world, even things it did not fully understand. By its nature, it needed to have its own copy of the hooded figure¡¯s Soul Realm. And that of course introduced a question to Soren¡¯s mind: Could it have been tampered with? After all, they were facing a master illusionist¡ªsomeone with abilities that clearly have psychological effects. Faking their own Echo of Mind might one hundred percent be possible. Still, he wondered about the motive of such a trick. Why would anyone expose their own Soul Realm and then die because of it? The questions only made his head hurt even more. Rubbing his forehead, he began thinking about his current circumstances. He tried very hard to lift his body but couldn¡¯t¡ªhe was pressing his back on something very cold and metallic. It only took a few more minutes for his blurred vision to stabilize. The first thing Soren saw was utter darkness. In front of him, he could see the shape of what looks to be metallic bars¡ªa jail cell. Rays of light were piercing from somewhere beyond his own scope of vision¡ªoutside his own confines in this dirty cell. He smiled at the absurdity¡ªthey were trying their best to stop what was happening only for them to be framed for the crime. Though, if he¡¯d been in the Court of Nightshade¡¯s shoes, he¡¯d probably made a similar assumption. His thoughts turned periodic, as if to match the sound of dripping water coming from the ceiling. Soren suspected he was in some sort of underground dungeon. He could hear countless rats squealing as they ran down the hall adjacent to his cell. One of them even entered inside. Soren tried his best to ignore it¡ªthere was a more pressing matter to worry about: His Soul Weapon was missing. He sighed, I guess they took it away¡­ He wasn¡¯t that afraid they would discover anything¡ªall the information was written in English, a language they should have no understanding of. Actually¡ªscratch that¡­ The possibility of them having some sort of deciphering magecraft popped in his head. I forgot this is a fantasy world¡­ He wanted to slap himself. Once again, he had underestimated his circumstances. His mind ran through the scenarios. This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. He wasn¡¯t that concerned about them finding out about [Record] or [Eyes of the Fairy]¡ªthey were fairly special but Vagrants were known to have special abilities. What he was mainly concerned about was [The Faerie Court]. That ability was gained unnaturally¡ªhe still had no idea what it does and he didn¡¯t plan on testing it anytime soon. But one thing was certain: It was most definitely unique. Mr. Unknown said so himself¡ªThe fragment of a fragment of a forgotten rune he had merged with was lost for more than a million years. Would they kill me for it? The thought of trying to break out appeared in his mind. Though, he doubted he could escape with his ankle chained to the wall¡ªit was done very tightly too. He guessed whoever put it on must have hated his guts. How could anyone hate me? He thought. I¡¯m literally the nicest person ever. The thought made him chuckle self-deprecatingly. ¡°Who are you?¡± A shriveled, tiny voice echoed out. Soren¡¯s eyes widened. There was someone else being held here that he didn¡¯t notice. He gulped down his hesitation and replied. ¡°Shouldn¡¯t you introduce yourself before asking my name?¡± ¡°Hm? Why is that?¡± The voice asked meekly. Ah, right¡­ Soren forgot that Earth¡¯s customs don¡¯t apply in Yadria. ¡°My name is Andre. Will you introduce yourself to me as well?¡± Soren was ready for a fight if it came to it. The voice sounded fairly weak, but there was no way he could trust just his senses¡ªTina taught him that after all. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t have a name,¡± the voice said. Soren didn¡¯t realize it at first, but the child was speaking in Yasini¡ªa language usually only spoken by nobility. Though, it was only to a beginner¡¯s level¡ªeven Soren, who had only learned the language a few days ago, was slightly better at piecing words together. ¡°You don¡¯t have a name? How does that make any sense¡­¡± ¡°I don¡¯t remember ever having a name,¡± he said. ¡°I¡¯ve been in here for as long as I remember.¡± Soren stayed silent. He couldn¡¯t really see in the darkness, but he could feel his own frown deepening. ¡°You¡¯re a kid aren¡¯t you? How old are you?¡± ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°.....¡± Soren wondered if he was Unblessed¡ªthough even with Yadria¡¯s gross mistreatment, he¡¯d never heard of them jailing a child and not even granting him the right to have a name. That seemed too extreme even for their standards. It puzzled him, but he did have a theory. According to Tina, humans were viewed as lesser than even the Unblessed in the eyes of many nobles. There was a possibility that this child was a human they had kidnapped or found¡ªthey had left him to rot in a cell for his entire life. If what Myrin had told him regarding Yadria¡¯s and Aellora¡¯s relationship was true, this would certainly spark even more tensions if it was discovered. Regardless of the cynicism, he was much more concerned with finding out more about him. But with how dark the cell was and his ankle chained to the wall, there was no way he could even approach him, let alone see him. The child spoke up once again with a slight cough. ¡°Mister, are you a fairy?¡± The question rattled him a bit. A fairy? What the hell is he saying¡­ Though it did remind him of what he found in his inner self. He leaned back against the cold, metallic wall. It was very damp¡ªthe entire cell was leaking water, after all. He could feel the chill wrapping around his bones slowly. ¡°Why do you say that?¡± There was brief silence between the consistent dripping of water from the ceiling. ¡°... Because I can smell it¡­¡± Soren froze. ¡°Are you messing with me?¡± ¡°Why would I be?¡± Stillness floated in the air once more. The child-like voice broke the silence, ¡°I can tell¡­ I''m a Demon after all¡­¡± ¡°What?!¡± His eyes widened as his skin stiffened. ¡°Demon? As in a demonic spirit? What the hell?!¡± ¡°Demonic Spirit¡­ Yes, I am one.¡± ¡°But that doesn¡¯t make sense! Spirits don¡¯t have physical bodies! How can they keep you here?¡± ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know. I feel strange when I move away¡­ Very painful¡­¡± Soren stayed silent for a second¡ªinterpreting his thoughts. He feels pain when he moves¡­ He wondered if there was some sort of magecraft sealing him in place. He sighed¡ªSoren decided to change the subject. ¡°You say I am a fairy¡­ What exactly does that mean? That I am a spirit just like you?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± The voice said meekly. ¡°It¡¯s different¡­ You¡¯re different.¡± His eyebrows lifted. ¡°Different? What do you mean?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not a real fairy¡­ A fake one. A fictional one¡­ ¡°No¡­ Fake is the wrong word¡­¡± The child said slowly as the room fell to silence once more¡ªSoren was puzzled. He waited for a response, but the child didn¡¯t speak for another few seconds. ¡°You are a fairy not from this world.¡± Soren froze. ¡°How did you¡­¡± ¡°A good fairy. Not a bad one,¡± he interrupted. ¡°Fairies are the enemy of us demons. But you¡ªI don¡¯t see you as an enemy, Mister Andre. ¡°I have a proposal.¡± Soren¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°A proposal?¡± ¡°Yes. It is a deal that will help both of us, Mister. ¡°I want you to sign a contract with me.¡± Chapter 38: Contract?

Chapter 38: Contract?

¡°A contract?¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°Do you hear yourself right now?¡± The demon kept quiet. Soren wasn¡¯t stupid. He¡¯d already heard enough to know how much of a bad idea it was to sign a contract with any spiritual being. Demonology, as it was called, delved into this field of magecraft. Myrin had warned him about the risks¡ªmany magi who specialized in this sort of thing tended to live short lives. It only takes one bad contract to destroy yourself. And for Soren, it was an even bigger taboo. He had still not even understood a fraction of Scripted Runic¡ªthe language magi use to weave spellforms. There was no way he could understand the intricacies of the contract if he decided to sign it. Just reminding himself of the ritual he conducted from scribe-of-worlds.com and the consequences of it that he was unaware of was already a big enough deterrent. Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. Maybe if he had his Soul Weapon with him, the situation would differ a bit¡ªhe could try using [Eyes of the Fairy] on the contract to understand its clauses better, but that sadly wasn¡¯t an option. Heck, even if he did have his Soul Weapon with him, illusion magecraft exists. After his encounter with that shrouded figure, he had become much more alert about such things. The demon spoke once more, ¡°I understand your hesitation¡­ I am a demon. Demons are scary. But if you sign a contract with me, the binds sealing me to this dungeon will cease¡­ And then I will be able to help you escape as well¡­¡± Soren didn¡¯t know why, but a sense of dread was building up in his chest. Whatever was on the other side of his cell¡ªhe could feel it grinning beneath the veil of darkness. ¡°Forget it,¡± he said plainly. ¡°I don¡¯t even trust other humans, why the fuck would I trust you? You creep me out. ¡°Besides, I don¡¯t need to rush to get out of here. I think the chances of me getting out are relatively high¡ªI am friends with an elf, after all.¡± ¡°Are you sure you are friends with him?¡± The demon said meekly. There was a hint of mockery, but it was hard to really tell¡ªthe child¡¯s voice made it sound like a genuine question. Soren frowned. He looked down at the ground, counting the droplets of water dripping from the ceiling. Was he and Myrin friends? Realistically, he didn¡¯t know. He¡¯d only met him for a week now. Same with Tina and Tyrel. They¡¯re all practically strangers to him. The only reason he decided to tag along with them was because he was desperate¡ªhe had no choice. He theoretically could have tried using his abilities to map a way out of the forest instead of heading toward Yadria with them, but that would mean venturing out into the Feylith Forest wilds alone. It was impossible for him to survive such a journey. Just their venture toward Point Sylvia made them face countless battles against Spirit Beasts and Malevolent Hexes alike. Any one of those attacks could have killed him if he was by himself. The more he thought about it, the more doubtful he was. Yes¡ªhe had seen how they treated others. They had no reason to spare their rations, for example, to feed the poor Unblessed refugees trying to escape the forest. They also didn¡¯t have a reason to split up with Tyrel so that he could lead them out of the forest. In fact, it was much more detrimental to their mission¡ªTina said so herself. If they had Tyrel around, their ability to gather more intelligence before the Nightshade Raid would have made them much more prepared for what had to come. And yet, even with all that he had seen of them, a small kindling of doubt continued to fester within his heart. ¡°Why has your friend not shown up yet? I have already seen the moment they brought you here¡ªit has been two days since then.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Two days?!¡± Silence permeated the air. I only have a week or so left to live¡­ How can they leave me here for two days¡­ His thoughts swirled. Soren¡¯s deal with Star Fate Guild was that in exchange for bringing them to Yadria using his abilities, they would in turn bring him with them back to Celestine city to meet with their mistress who may have a cure to his Soul Chain instability. But now that he thought about it more, why would they honor that side of the deal? He had already served his purpose¡ªall they required of him was bringing them to Yadria, and he had finished that. Why would they risk offending Yadria¡¯s officials to free him? Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. ¡°Do you desire power?¡± The voice echoed out into the expansive underground hall. Soren¡¯s heart began to beat faster. ¡°Power?¡± He replied doubtfully. ¡°Is that not what you are after? To become a magus. ¡°I can help with that goal.¡± Soren stayed quiet. The child-like demon continued. ¡°Think about it, Mister. If you had power, they would have never been able to place you here.¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°And you say that as if you yourself aren¡¯t stuck here too. Doesn¡¯t that make you weak as well?¡± He could almost feel the air shift in a sinister and uncomfortable pattern. Despite the chill seeping into his bones from the breeze coiling its way through the halls of the dungeon, Soren¡¯s goosebumps were hinting at a much more ominous feeling. ¡°That is wrong mister,¡± the demon spoke. ¡°I was chained here because I was powerful. They couldn¡¯t kill me. The¡­¡± His voice trailed off. ¡°... I don¡¯t remember their name¡­ ¡°I don¡¯t remember my name¡­ ¡°Who am I?..¡± Soren stayed silent¡ªtrying to comprehend what he was hearing. Should I do it? His inner voice was fighting against itself. On one hand, it was truly foolish to try and take the power of something that might not have his best interests in mind. On the other hand¡­ He only had a week to live. Should he continue waiting and trust in Tina and Myrin? Or should he embark on his own path? He didn¡¯t know. The indecision was killing him. He dug his teeth into his arm as he continued to think about what to do. Suddenly, an idea struck him. Why did he need to choose at all¡ªhe could simply call for a guard himself. ¡°Anyone,¡± he screamed. ¡°Anyone there?! Where are the prison wardens! I want to speak to someone!¡± His voice echoed out into the hall. No response. He tried calling again, but he was only met with more silence laced with the beating of his own heart. ¡°They won¡¯t come,¡± the demon said. ¡°They never come¡­ This area is sealed with magecraft¡­¡± Magecraft¡­ His heart sank. Will I get stuck here till I die? Maybe it was the cold, but he couldn¡¯t help but quiver as he huddled his arms around his shackled legs. He needed to think of this logically. Since it¡¯s been two days since anyone had come for him, it was definitely a fair assumption to think they won¡¯t come for a few more days either. Going with the demon¡¯s suggestion was risky, but at least if it went wrong, he¡¯d have died knowing he tried his best to get out. After all, when you¡¯re stuck between a rock and a hard place, you have to pick a direction, and hope it leads to daylight. ¡°So,¡± the demon said slowly, ¡°have you decided? Do you want to become my contractee?¡± Soren¡¯s lips curled up into a smile. He leaned back against the cold metallic wall and answered his question with one word. ¡°No.¡± He could almost feel the demon''s shock for words. ¡°But¡­ Why?¡± ¡°Two things,¡± Soren said. ¡°One, you mentioned that it has been two days since i¡¯d have arrived here, but that is clearly a lie. If it really had been two days, I would have felt actual hunger. Aside from my headache, I don¡¯t feel too fatigued. ¡°Second, if a contract with you really did allow us to escape, do you think the Yadrians would be dumb enough to make us share adjacent cells? That seems highly incompetent. ¡°These two reasons already disqualify you from my trust¡ªIt took me a bit of effort to even piece together all these clues¡ªMy head still hurts. But aside from that, there¡¯s something even more fundamentally important to me than just the mere matter of trusting you or not.¡± ¡°What¡­ Is that?¡± The demon asked. ¡°Freedom.¡± The demon stayed silent as Soren explained. ¡°I would much rather die forgotten, than give up my freedom to live as a slave.¡± ¡°But you are already enslaved,¡± the demon countered. ¡°Being kept here restricts your freedom, does it not?¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°Sure, but being a slave in the physical world is still better than being a slave metaphysically as well. The demonology contract you want me to sign with you will certainly lend me power, but not even death will allow me to escape its consequences. My soul itself will be eternally shackled to you.¡± The demon stayed silent. Soren simply slumped onto the floor while placing his arms below his head. He whistles loudly while speaking back to the now silent demon. ¡°Besides, even if I did want to sign a contract with a demon, it certainly wouldn¡¯t be you. I would want a demon stronger than a Saintess or something to sway me. ¡°I¡¯ll just stay here and wait for my death. How should I spend the next 7 days?¡± He almost couldn¡¯t believe how much he had accepted his own fate. It was kinda fun¡­ He thought. Even if he was going to die soon, he did not regret his decisions at all. The time he had spent in Yarian had made him feel more alive than the past few years combined. ¡°Haha, so my life ends in a cell just like that bastard Goerge. How ironic.¡± ¡°What a weirdo,¡± the child-like demonic voice chuckled. ¡°Your time here has come to an end anyway. Between you and that girl, you were certainly more entertaining. ¡°Though if you ever change your mind¡­¡± Before Soren could question what he meant, a blinding light eclipsed his vision. He squinted as much as he could, and yet the luminosity of it continued to blast past his eyelids. The haze ended seconds later¡ªSoren found himself disoriented. He couldn¡¯t tell up from down and his stomach churned as if ready to empty itself¡ªhe somehow managed to hold it in. After about a minute, his vision began to stabilize, along with his other senses. ¡°Welcome to Floramere Keep, Soren,¡± a soothing voice reached out to him. ¡°You have passed the Saintess¡¯ test.¡± Chapter 39: Floramere Keep

Chapter 39: Floramere Keep

A few hours had passed since he found himself in Floramere Keep. To say he was shocked was an understatement. After the sudden flash of light, what reflected in his eyes was not the damp, underground cell he found himself in¡ªno, He was in a grand palace hall filled with chandeliers hung from tree roots that weaved across the ceiling like straws in a nest. Opulent pillars filled with decorations and runic symbols glowing in ethereal energy went around the circumference of the grandeur space. He was now no longer in that cramped dungeon¡ªwhether it was through magecraft or something else, he didn¡¯t know. The first person to greet him was a tall Yadrian man covered in white robes that matched his silver, cascading hair. Soren wasn¡¯t sure what was more beautiful¡ªthe castle¡¯s interior design, or his enchanting smile. His name was Silmar, a Custodian of Faith under the grace of Saintess Sylia but also her younger brother. To the right of him stood another Saint¡ªone that he was familiar with. Luvin. The man¡¯s beautiful features were slightly hidden behind his annoyed expression. At that moment though, Soren was too flabbergasted to even analyze his surroundings more deeply. According to Silmar¡¯s explanation, the cell he was being held in was a test of faith ordered by the Saintess of Spirits, Lesticia. She had devised this test to prove the character of the humans they had captured. Demons were the mortal enemy of all Yadrians and Fae-folk. To sign a contract with one was akin to blaspheming the name of the Maiden. And just as Soren had guessed, the demon had lied about how much time had passed¡ªit was still only the morning after the Nightshade raid. If he had been a bit more delirious, he would have most likely fallen for the trick. Unlike his original theory, Silmar disclosed that they had never actually left Floramere Keep¡ªdespite feeling like he had teleported. He didn¡¯t fully explain how it worked, but according to him, they would be automatically awakened back here the moment their thoughts held a strong desire to reject the demon. It was through this that the nobles and clergymen of Yadria were able to witness Soren and Tina¡¯s noble character which wasn¡¯t corrupted as Luvin had claimed it was. After he found out about this, Soren¡¯s knees almost gave out. He had truly dodged a bullet. To him, nothing was taboo or off the table if it benefited him. In fact, he wouldn''t have minded signing the contract if that demon proved to be more powerful. Why wouldn¡¯t he desire more strength? Whether it came from a demon or an angel didn¡¯t matter to him. It was a good thing that the demon didn¡¯t try convincing him too hard, or else he would have revealed his true colors. Tina¡¯s test on the other hand only lasted a second. According to Myrin, she tried to kill the demon the moment he disclosed his identity. When he heard this, he considered using [Record] to store this information in his Soul Weapon¡ªa permanent reminder to never mess with her. Ever. Surprisingly, the person who ordered this test, Saintess Lesticia, was not present in the grand hall. Tina explained that the Saintesses weren¡¯t allowed to leave their temples unless they received revelations from the Maiden herself. He did see a person at one end of the hall hidden behind a curtain however. She was the Matron of Faith, Titania. The moment he even glanced in Her direction, his entire soul screamed to look away. After that incident, he was granted a room to stay in with the others of Star Fate Guild¡ªmuch to the dismay of Luvin who looked like he wanted to flip a table or two. It seemed like he really wanted them to fail the test. Soren glanced out of the balcony of his room. The view was enchanting¡ªtrees further than the eye could see were huddled together with Victorian style buildings in harmony. Large platforms with roots jutting out of them moving entire buildings atop their backs could be seen flowing from either direction. It was truly beautiful. Taking in the fresh air, Soren relaxed his shoulders, only to be startled by Myrin. ¡°Good morning!¡± Soren frowned, ¡°don¡¯t you have better things to do?¡± Myrin shrugged, ¡°Aside from annoying you and teasing Tina? No.¡± ¡°Fine, come watch the view with me then.¡± He sighed. They stood on the balcony leaning against the railing with the breeze carrying the scent of a thousand flowers to them. Leaves from the Spirit Blossom Willow occasionally fell from high above¡ªeach one was the size of a table. He could see them shifting hues as they glided down to the bottom. ¡°I¡¯ve always wondered,¡± Soren said. ¡°Why do they change colors?¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°The Dragon Vein¡¯s energy permeates across the entire tree. The anima within it¡­ It is very special. Only the Maiden really knows what its true purpose is, but many scholars have studied that visual change¡ªit is always constant. For as long as the tree stood, Yadrians have used the shifting of its colors to tell the time. ¡°This was especially true back then, by the way. Since its crown of leaves used to cover the entire night sky. You used to not even be able to see the sunset like we can right now,¡± he laughed. ¡°It has shrunk in size over the centuries.¡± ¡°Shrunk?¡± Soren lifted his brow. ¡°How could it lose so many of its leaves? Is the tree dying?¡± Myrin signaled him to lower his voice. ¡°Do not say something so sacrilegious! But nay¡ªit is viewed as a good thing. ¡°According to Yadrian myth, it is said that the Maiden and all Her grace will awaken when the Spirit Blossom Willow loses all its leaves.¡± The conversation shifted from there. They began discussing the Nightshade raid and its aftermath, as well as what Myrin had to deal with in the castle at that time. If you encounter this story on Amazon, note that it''s taken without permission from the author. Report it. ¡°The fact that the Krilo district is still quarantined is very concerning,¡± Myrin said. ¡°Nothing they¡¯ve done so far has worked at stopping the spread of corruption.¡± ¡°The Whispering Dream,¡± Soren murmured. ¡°The what?¡± Myrin was stumped. Soren repeated what he said, ¡°It is what what that hooded figure we fought said right before his head exploded: ¡°The Whispering Dream greets you.¡± Myrin stared out into the city with a blank expression¡ªthe rays of the sun hitting evenly across his smooth skin. Soren stayed silent for a few seconds before asking, ¡°didn¡¯t Tina say anything to you?¡± He shook his head. ¡°She only told me that the hooded figure smiled at her before he died.¡± Soren¡¯s frown deepened. Was I the only one that heard that phrase? It was certainly odd, but not outside the realm of possibility. They were dealing with a person capable of fooling entire populations of Magi and Sentinels into not even noticing his presence. Making someone hallucinate a phrase wasn¡¯t that impossible to do for him. But it did open up a question: Why? Why would he go through all of this when Soren was going to share it with the others anyway? He didn¡¯t know. And neither did Myrin. In fact, they both suspected that the shopkeeper who they fought was only a distraction or a puppet he was using. The true culprit was still out there. ¡°Do you think they¡¯ll be fine?¡± Soren asked. ¡°I wonder how they¡¯ll solve the problem of the Nameless Mist¡­¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see¡­ There are seven Saints currently missing in Yadria after all. Once they come back from investigating the Endless Sea and the colossal rift fracture opening there, they should be able to figure something out. ¡°Regardless, we¡¯ve done our part. The samples I have gathered of the Nameless Mist will be sent off to the Church of Nature and the Brilliant World Church for study. We need to find out what its origins are. Hopefully the skyship they are granting us will be ready by this evening.¡± ¡°Did the negotiations go well with Saintess Sylia then?¡± Myrin smiled. ¡°More than well. She accepted all our proposals. Of course, there were some unexpected caveats, but I don¡¯t believe the Aetolus Royal Family is willing to haggle over such things. ¡°I do apologize for not making it to the raid with both you and Tina, however. The Saintess requested my art skills for a ball performance that night¡­ The nobles were complaining too much with Saint Luvin heading the movement.¡± He chuckled to himself as he continued. ¡°I must say, the Saintess is as cunning as She is enchanting¡ªbless the blossoms¡­ I completely forgot about the Royal Yasini Ball¡­¡± Myrin explained that it was a celebration hosted by the Royal Zinrie family. The musicians they employed were all skilled Magi that could utilize magecraft that added to their performance. Musicians that could play the sacred tree songs of their past were very well respected in Yadrian society, and were also granted immunity from many things. Saintess Sylia saw this as an opportunity to grant Myrin more legitimacy in Yadria, regardless of his exiled state. Of course, Myrin completely eclipsed all their expectations¡ªhis Soul Weapon specialized in this after all. It was truly ingenious. It made him wonder what else She had planned for them. It also finally made sense to him why Luvin was so pissed. Both of his schemes had ended in failure. Soren remembered his time in the jail cell. The fact that Luvin and the Saintess he served wanted to punish them this badly even with all the evidence pointing to a different culprit baffled him. ¡°So what exactly was that cell I was in? And that demon too¡ªwhat¡¯s up with that?..¡± Myrin frowned. ¡°The Subterranean Shunning Grounds¡­ ¡°It is a place devoid of life and outside the bounds of our reality. It lies deeper than the deepest roots of the Spirit Blossom Willow, far below even the Dragon Vein. ¡°That is where you were. At least, where your Astral Projection was.¡± ¡°The what¡­ And what?!¡± He was rightfully confused. ¡°Let me explain,¡± Myrin replied. ¡°Within the Beyond is a location feared by many. It was made during the War of Swords to imprison demons far too powerful to kill. The demon you met was said to be a Sovereign during the Third Age of Fantasia. Millions of people died trying to simply seal him¡ªand it worked.¡± Soren was stumped for words. After hearing Silmar¡¯s explanation when he first completed the ¡®test,¡¯ he assumed that the experience he went through was some kind of illusion. It turned out, he really was speaking to a demon. And not just any demon¡ªsomeone with the title of Sovereign. Whatever that meant. But this also confirmed one other thing for him that he was worried about. According to Myrin, he had traveled toward the subterranean shunning grounds through a process called ¡®Astral Projection.¡¯ This method entailed separating a person¡¯s Soul Realm/Soul Frame away from their body to float freely. With this special technique, his very being was transported toward the demon¡¯s lair to partake in the test. When he heard this, Soren was rightfully angry. The fact that they put his life in danger just so they could test his ¡®faith¡¯ was ridiculous. But as he thought about it more, he could at least appreciate the fact that none of his conversations with the demon were leaked to the nobles and saints watching over the test¡ªthe magecraft they had casted only allowed them to sense the person¡¯s intentions and witness the event unfolding visually. After all, that demon somehow had discovered many of his secrets¡ªthere was no way he¡¯d want a bunch of hostile elves who hated his guts to know about them. The mention of those secrets reminded him¡­ A fairy¡­ That was what the demon called him. What he read in that revelation during his dive into the Heart¡¯s Shroud certainly led credence to that. His inner self called itself a Wandering Fairy. Soren wondered if this somehow tied to his Soul Chain¡¯s instability. As he understood it, a person¡¯s Runic Existence and their Inner Will were two, separate entities, but both governed the same thing. While a Runic Existence represented a person¡¯s conceptual make up externally, a person¡¯s inner will did the same thing internally. It was this distinction that created a separation between Soul Realm and Soul Weapon. But for whatever reason, it seemed his Inner Will and Runic Existence was blurring that definition¡­ And he had no idea why or how such a thing could even happen. For his Soul Weapon to be connected this deeply with his Soul Realm could only mean that the two distinct parts of his identity were somehow meshing together unnaturally. Even now, he refuses to disclose anything about what his True Self looked like. He was afraid. Afraid that Tina and the others would abandon him for this strange oddity. Soren recognized it as an irrational fear. He knew that he was being ridiculous, but he couldn¡¯t help but not trust Tina or Myrin just yet. The fact that the demon was so close to weaponizing that insecurity of his didn¡¯t allow him to sleep at all that night. He knew he needed to change himself quickly. Chapter 40: Demon Status

Chapter 40: Demon Status

After exploring Floramere Keep (secretly), the time passed to the evening where they were set to depart using a skyship. Myrin had only briefly explained what it even was¡ªhe just knew it was some sort of contraption that could fly. His expectations, however, were blown away instantly when he first saw it. Soren had no proper way to describe it. It looked to be a hybrid between a wooden mast ship and a blimp. Except, its body was shaped like that of a whale. The wooden deck was apparently made from Spirit Blossom Willow wood, allowing it to conduct the mysterious energy that originates at the heart of the tree¡¯s roots. It needed this energy for the countless spellforms flowing in and out of its colossal form. A true marvel of magitech engineering. Aside from its unusual shape, Soren¡¯s gaze was attracted to the large balloon-shaped blimp envelope above the deck. It was made of a see-through filament of some kind and dyed in a shade of cyan. At first, he assumed it was being used for lifting the skyship in the air, however, that turned out not to be the case. It served a much more fascinating purpose: absorbing the strange energy from the Dragon Vein. A strange energy Yadrians called ¡®Aether¡¯. Its bottle shaped design allowed it to store more of this energy, and the filament that made up its body was supposedly created through processing the leaves from the Spirit Blossom Willow. On the center of the ship¡¯s deck, a single tree rose up¡ªits branches slithered like snakes, wrapping around the see-through envelope. Soren theorized that aside from just acting as a support beam to hold the envelope together, it also had the purpose of siphoning the Aether it had gathered to power the spellforms etched across the wooden planks he stepped on. The entire deck was covered in runic symbols. The skyship was docked next to a stone platform that extended out from Floramere Keep. Soren could feel the wind hitting him¡ªlooking down at the tiny buildings sprawled beneath him was one quick way to disorient himself. He¡¯d never been that fond of heights. Still, regardless of the fear, it was exciting. ¡°Hahaha, did you overwork your feet or something? They are shaking.¡± A jolly voice entered his ears¡ªMyrin. Soren rolled his eyes, ¡°aren¡¯t you the one that freaked out over a roach crawling on your nose while we were camping out in Point Sylvia?¡± He coughed, ¡°let¡¯s not mention the past.¡± Soren ignored him. It was still an hour too early for them to depart¡ªhe had come to the ship to explore for a bit. He glanced at Myrin and smiled. ¡°I guess you¡¯re going to miss this place after all?¡± ¡°Are you kidding me?¡± He sighed. ¡°If I had 20 Imra for every noble that has invited me to their home in the past two hours, I¡¯d have wealth comparable to the royal family.¡± Soren chuckled. After his performance in the Royal Yasini Ball, his popularity exploded. Even those in the Luvin faction who heavily opposed his presence couldn¡¯t help but be enamored by his music. A few of them tried to indirectly approach him for a performance through other households¡ªeven with their supposed dignity on the line, they couldn¡¯t resist themselves. Saintess Sylia¡¯s plan had worked very well. ¡°At least this means you¡¯ll have more opportunities here in Yadria. You should give thanks to the holy Saintess for this, Mr. Prince.¡± Soren didn¡¯t fully know about his situation¡ªall he knew was that his unblessed status caused him a lot of scorn. Soren had always suspected that Myrin had some sort of noble lineage. It was only after making it to Yadria and learning about the Zinrie Royal Family did everything click into place for him. Unlike other unblessed who were subject to countless injustices, Myrin¡¯s status as a royal countered his status as an unblessed. It spared him from the cruel fate everyone else had to go through. Though, that was merely a single positive in a sea of negatives. In the end, his family found him to be a disgrace to their name¡ªhe had faced countless assassination plots throughout his childhood. Only through the protection of his aunt did he make it into his early teens. But even that didn¡¯t stop his life from taking the worst possible turn¡ªexcommunication. The Saintess of Blossoms ordered his exile out of the sacred forest to preserve the dignity of the royal family. For him to return to Yadria now and manage to convince many to his side through just a single performance amazed Soren. Myrin chuckled. ¡°Prince of dancing apes, perhaps. I''m just a glorified performer to them. ¡°Still, you are not wrong about it being a blessing in disguise¡­ This will prove helpful in our next set of negotiations. That is if Luvin doesn¡¯t set us up again¡­¡± Soren sighed, ¡°that bas¡ª, that man always has something in store, for sure.¡± Even after everything, he still needed to watch what he says¡ªwho knows where the Court of Nightshade was currently. They could be listening into their conversation. Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings. It had to be noted that even after Soren and the others proved their innocence before not only the nobility, but also the Matron of Faith Herself, Luvin had still tried to make life hard for them. He first ordered the maids to assign them rooms that had not been cleaned, and when that didn¡¯t work, he resorted to trying to make excuses for why the skyship couldn¡¯t be used. If not for Myrin¡¯s new found status amongst the nobles, it would have been hard for them to find a pilot that would take them toward their destination. After all, offending a saint was akin to ruining your entire life¡ªnot many were willing to take that risk. It was obvious to Soren that Luvin¡¯s behavior was highly suspicious. It didn¡¯t make sense to him why he would target them this heavily. Yes, he and Tina were humans and Myrin was an exile unblessed. Their entire group consisted of undesirable people. People Luvin found despicable. But that still didn¡¯t justify some of his actions. It was as if he was trying to make it as hard for them to move in Yadria as possible. Myrin had also noticed these oddities, but due to them still being in Floramere Keep, they couldn¡¯t speak about the situation just yet. Soren said goodbye to Myrin and headed for his room in the cabin. He wanted to settle in before their departure. But aside from that, there was something he wanted to test. Ever since his conversation with the demon, something continued to bother him. It was the last words the demon had said to him before his astral projection was whisked away, back to its mortal shell. ¡°Though if you ever change your mind¡­¡± What did the demon mean by that? Soren had assumed that the entire thing was a test, was it not? Why would he change his mind on the contract? It only then occurred to him. Even if they had intended for it to be a test of faith, Soren had truly confronted a real demon. The Subterranean Shunning Grounds, as Myrin called it, was a sealed area filled with powerful demons kept there since the War of Swords of the Third Age of Fantasia. Demons who most definitely desire to escape their confines. Though, he did doubt the demon¡¯s claims that simply signing a contract with it would allow it to escape its bindings. If that was the case, they would not have let him take the test¡ªit would have posed a risk for them if Soren had chosen to accept the deal. The process to allow the demon free was most certainly more complex than that. And yet, that demon was certain it would be as simple as Soren changing his mind. That puzzled him. Am I missing something? He glanced over at his Soul Weapon which was sitting on the bed next to him. A simple idea struck him¡ªone he had no proof of. Soren commanded his Soul Weapon to awaken. Responding to his thoughts, The Records sprung to life¡ªit levitated next to him, surrounded in a thick layer of golden aura. The pages flickered slowly like enchanted flames. Soren then ordered it to show him information about the demon. At that time, his Soul Weapon wasn¡¯t near him, so he didn¡¯t have the opportunity to use it¡ªthe likelihood for his book to have anything on the subject was very low. But for whatever reason, his gut feeling was telling him to test it. And within an instant, the pages shifted to what he desired to know most. He expected the page to be blank, but surprisingly it was anything but that. Status Name: Tazzith Race: Knowledge Demon Age: 10,000+ Spirit Body: Blood of Taboo Wisdom (Unique) (Tier Unknown) Affinities: Knowledge Granting, Affliction, Wards, Mimicry, All-Seeing Skills: ??? Titles: ??? Rune Collection: ??? Soren was speechless. My Soul Weapon can do this?! It should have been obvious to him¡ªif he could have his own status page, why wouldn¡¯t he be able to [Record] ones for other people as well? He planned on trying it later on Tina and Myrin. Aside from that, he was much more curious about how he had obtained this information. The Records wasn¡¯t with him when was held in that cell. There was no way he could have used [Record] on anything, let alone even see the demon using [Eyes of the Fairy]¡ªwhich in retrospect, he was thankful for. If he had gazed into that demon using the Beyond, Soren wasn¡¯t sure what would have happened to him. Judging by the age shown on the status sheet, he was most certainly powerful. Possibly comparable to the Saintess in strength, if not stronger. He theorized that maybe his ability to passively record information had kicked in, but that also didn¡¯t really make any sense. That portion of his ability only activated for knowledge he himself already knew¡ªlike the ability to play chess or speak english. The knowledge he was staring at right now were things he never knew before. And yet¡­ It felt as if he had already known that information from the very beginning. It was only after Soren had glanced at the demon called Tazzith¡¯s affinities, that things somewhat made sense. Knowledge Granting. He didn¡¯t know what exactly that entailed, but it definitely hinted at a way to transfer information into someone. It terrified him. The fact that he was injected with something he had not even consented to and had no awareness of was worrying. If he had implanted me with other more dangerous information¡­ Soren shook his head. There was no time to think about scenarios. Now that he had experienced this once, he needed to make sure he could guard against it in the future. Hopefully my conversations with their mistress will help me figure out my place in this world¡­ Suddenly, his eyes caught something beneath the faintly printed status sheet. More words he had not noticed earlier. An event log. Event Log New Message Received: [Title: Contract?] (Author: Tazzith) Chapter 41: The Skies Shatter

Chapter 41: The Skies Shatter

It felt like hours had passed since he¡¯d read that last sentence in his Soul Weapon. Out of fear, he had immediately slammed his book shut¡ªspending the time simply just staring at the cracked leather attached to its cover. He only broke out of his reverie after he felt the entire deck shaking¡ªthey were about to depart for what Myrin called Dungeon Door Number 1. Soren wasn¡¯t actually sure what this location was aside from it being apparently a very popular stop on this flight path. It sounded very ominous to him, however. He sighed to himself and cranked his body to stand up again. There was no point mulling it over. Yes, the knowledge demon named Tazzith somehow gained access to his Soul Weapon and was sending him a message similar to the one he¡¯d received from Unknown, but that didn¡¯t mean he needed to open it immediately. He was still in Yadrian territory. Demons were their worst enemy¡ªeven worse than how they viewed humans. It was too risky, especially with the Court of Nightshade still monitoring them. But aside from that, he himself didn¡¯t want to see what the demon was offering. There was no way to know what was inside that message¡ªit could be dangerous. He needed to be more prepared. Soren stepped out of his room and went up to the deck. The wood creaked with every step, but that was the least of his worries¡ªthe whole skyship was shaking for whatever reason. Climbing the wooden steps upwards into the deck, Soren felt the breeze rushing past his neck. His chestnut hair was blown by the gusts as he felt the cold air piercing through his skin pores. Unlike a few hours ago, the sky was much clearer¡ªhe could see the glistening of the Spirit Blossom Willow leaves as they swayed with the atmospheric wind. The first person Soren saw was Tina sitting against the wooden mast attached to the magical envelope. She was sharpening her daggers while whistling along with the tunes Myrin was playing under her breath. A bright smile was shown on her face¡ªone that twisted into a slight frown the moment her eyes locked with his. Am I that hateable? Soren chuckled. ¡°The sky seems bright, but a heavy cloud hangs above your head. What happened?¡± ¡°You¡¯re what happened,¡± she said, with a tinge of salt. ¡°Do you know how much they questioned me about your damn abilities?¡± Ugh¡­ Forgot about that¡­ He scratched his hair awkwardly, ¡°apologies for that¡­ And thank you for keeping it a secret.¡± After his Soul Weapon was taken away, they had probed it through all kinds of methods to try and disclose its secrets, but none of them worked. They were planning on eventually using more destructive magecraft against it but through Tina¡¯s dissuasion and with the help of the Saintess, they chose not to. It was apparently a big hassle for her. I owe her a favor now¡­ Soren thought about it for a minute¡ªhe wasn¡¯t sure what to repay her with. I guess I''ll have to consider it another time¡­ ¡°So what were you smiling about earlier if you were in such a bad mood?¡± He tried to change the subject. ¡°Oh, it was about my encounter with the Saint of Dreams, Silmar. ¡°Just like his title, he really is dreamy¡­¡± Soren felt his brow lift to the heavens. This woman had a romantic side? He felt her gaze becoming more hostile¡ªhe coughed. ¡°I-I see¡­¡± ¡°What, do you have a problem?¡± ¡°N-no. I agree, he is indeed a fine gentleman.¡± She smiled, ¡°indeed¡­¡± Soren saw her going back to working her whetstone. Deciding it was unwise to disturb her further, he walked around the mast toward the front of the skyship. They had only been flying for about 20 minutes so far¡ªthey hadn¡¯t even made it out of Yadria¡¯s borders yet. Myrin was sitting behind the bow of the skyship with his legs crossed. His Soul Weapon¡ªArtist¡¯s Wand, was active in its flute form. A strange yet soothing melody played, carried by the wind for the entire ship crew to see and hear. Soren walked next to him and leaned against the railing to listen to the music. He thought about his life so far. Yadria was truly a fascinating experience. He could see the colossal Spirit Blossom Willow from behind him¡ªthe whale-shaped skyship was inching further and further away as it flapped its massive wooden whale fins to navigate the air. ¡°I wonder if I¡¯ll make it back here again some day¡­¡± He thought, murmuring faintly beneath the dazzling tunes. He shrugged to himself. Why would they ever invite a human like me again here? It was truly comical. A city this beautiful hid such a dark and twisted past¡ªone they carried with them with pride¡ªat least some of them. Soren could definitely see the city changing in the future. Saintess Sylia and her brother were leading the charge. Although the Saintess of Spirits was antagonistic toward humans and the unblessed, She still needed to work within the bounds of the system. The Saintess of Blossoms, Finnea was neutral to both sides and tended to shift into either direction, depending on what She thought was best for the Sacred City. As more and more Yadrians learn to accept the unblessed, She will naturally side with Sylia and Her faction. Though, the recent Nameless Mist incidents have most likely thrown a wrench in those plans. Out of the three Saintesses, the ones who would benefit the most from it were without a doubt Saintess Lesticia and Her Custodians of Faith¡ªLuvin being one of them. Though, this was still just baseless speculation. In the end, they did apparently figure out a way to counter the Nameless Mist. Through the efforts of Myrin compiling all the information he could about it, they were able to discover that purified Aether was able to negate its effects and combat them. They weren¡¯t certain this would work on anyone but elves, however. If this situation spreads to the Aellora Kingdom¡­ Soren shook his head¡ªthere was no point in considering such a situation yet. Even the Aether method they devised wasn¡¯t perfect. Soren suspected that the only reason it even worked was due to the fact that Aether and the Nameless Mist were both mystical energy sources not from this world. After all, the Dragon Vein which sprouted the Spirit Blossom Willow more than a millennium ago also appeared out of nowhere¡ªhe was certain it too came from beyond Yarian¡¯s dimensional boundaries. This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. Myrin all of a sudden stopped playing his music, startling Soren. He glanced over at him and smiled, ¡°What made our wonderful, Mr. Prince stop? Did you run out of breath?¡± Myrin sighed, ¡°Tina is still angry at me. I hoped maybe this music could change her mood¡­¡± She had been angry at him for not showing up on time to attend the Nightshade Raid with them. While they were out risking their lives, he had been busy doing performances for the high nobles and chatting it up with countless noble women who found him charming. Soren couldn¡¯t really blame them¡ªMyrin would probably be a celebrity if he transmigrated to Earth. Still, he was fairly certain that Tina didn¡¯t actually hold a grudge against him. After all, his mission was diplomacy, and he had done a splendid job at it. Negotiations between Yadria and Aellora could definitely become much simpler the next time due to his efforts. Besides, she had probably already forgotten about it anyway¡ª the Saint named Silmar had grabbed all of her attention. Soren coughed. ¡°Have you tried cooking something for her? No amount of magecraft will ever rival a good meal, especially for a food junkie like her.¡± Soren could almost imagine his eyes sparkling, ¡°Good idea!¡± He chuckled as he watched Myrin joyfully walk toward the cabin stairs. He hoped his suggestion won¡¯t come back to haunt him. Tina¡¯s cooking was insanely good but he still couldn¡¯t say the same about Myrin. The last time he tried to help with cooking the porridge, he almost overcooked it if not for Tina¡¯s supervision. Please be good¡­ He might have truly doomed himself. Luckily, a head chef was coming with them on the trip¡ªwith his supervision, it shouldn¡¯t come out too bad. He could only hope. Suddenly, a flash of light startled them. They shifted their attention toward the East. Soren immediately froze¡ªwhat he was witnessing didn¡¯t look real to him. In the middle of the air, a large, dark black crack appeared, as if someone had slammed a sledge hammer into a pane of glass. The sky was shattering. And behind the sky, was a bottomless void. Soren watched in horror as purple lightning buzzed out from within the spatial crack. All of a sudden, a large silhouette appeared from within, slowly emerging from within the shattered void sky. It inched forward until its full shape became apparent to Soren, Myrin, and everyone else on the deck. It was a mast ship. But what was terrifying was its size. Even though the spatial crack was close to the horizon itself, the behemoth that emerged looked to be larger than the Spirit Blossom Willow itself. An impossibility. A swarm of smaller mast ships also emerged, surrounding the colossal mothership like a swarm protecting its nest. The vessels emerged simultaneously¡ªit was as if he was staring at an armada or legion. Soren couldn¡¯t comprehend it at all. Not even the most popular naval battles he¡¯d heard of from Earth¡¯s history couldn''t have possibly amassed this many ships. And not just any ships, Skyships¡ªones a million times more terrifying than the one he was currently sailing in. Soren could feel the air shifting, as if it was being displaced¡ªlike a cup of water having its contents overflowing from the top. They all stood there, motionlessly and silently, until he heard Myrin murmur a single word from beneath his rasped breath: ¡°Vynasians¡­¡±
Behind a grand and florally decorated curtain, one of the Maiden¡¯s Saintesses, Sylia, silently sat as Her dream filled eyes monitored the waves and motions of the illusionary barrier. A duty that only She could fulfill. Above Her canopy was a veil of starlight that shimmered in the shape of flower petals that moved in precise orbits. She sat silently as the motions entered Her mind. The Aether from the Dragon Vein flowed in Her as it did with all things that belonged to the holy Spirit Blossom Willow. All of a sudden, the imposing gate to Her chamber hall creaked beneath the weight of its own movement. A person was entering inside. Even with Her eyes closed, She could tell who it was. The sound of his steps were familiar to Her. ¡°Silmar¡­¡± Her voice echoed into his mind as he walked toward the steps leading to his sister¡¯s canopy. He lowered himself before Her. ¡°Sis¡ª, I mean holy Saintess of Dreams, Sylia. The Maiden¡¯s flowers bloom in your wake.¡± She ignored his informality. ¡°How has your mission blossomed so far?¡± The man sighed. He gracefully flicked his silver hair behind his elven ear. ¡°It has been somewhat fruitful. I was able to monitor Luvin¡¯s movements unimpeded for the past few days. Sadly, we had a brief exchange of magecraft during the Court of Nightshade¡¯s raid¡­ I am certain he is somewhat responsible for what had happened.¡± ¡°Was that why you weren¡¯t available to help them?...¡± He bit his lips. ¡°Yes¡­ Luvin is much more skilled than I thought. He fought me to a draw. ¡°But luckily, it didn¡¯t seem like he discovered my identity. I made sure to use an older grimoire of magecraft than the repertoire I am known for to mask myself. I also didn¡¯t use my Soul Weapon either. He should still be wondering who I am.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Her voice echoed out into the chamber. ¡°Continue monitoring him.¡± ¡°Yes, Saintess,¡± he replied, fervently. She shifted the conversation elsewhere, ¡°Any news from the other saints?¡± ¡°Sadly, no.¡± He lowered his head further. ¡°We have yet to receive a message from them¡ªit''s very worrying. ¡°And the rift fracture has widened significantly. I am certain it will shatter any moment today. Though, I doubt anything major will happen. These sacred lands are still protected by the Maiden. The Vynasians still fear Her presence.¡± ¡°I doubt that will last for long,¡± She retorted. ¡°They have heightened their antics over the years. Their territories in the Eclipse Moor have also expanded. It won¡¯t be long before they begin to eye the Feylith Forest as well. ¡°Our only way forward is to forge a stronger bond with our neighbors. The Church of the Silver Moon, Brilliant World Church, and the Church of Nature all share in our cause, despite our differences. ¡°Even the H¡¯avaast Tribes and their Slumbering Spirit God, would most likely help us. Offering them a place within Yadria¡¯s borders would certainly ease much of the animosity we have garnered with them.¡± Silmar¡¯s voice quivered, he hesitated to speak his mind. ¡°B-but Saintess¡­¡± ¡°I know, Silmar¡­ ¡°Change on this scale will take effort and time¡­ I will try to convince the other Saintesses¡­ With the Vynasians making another daring move, Finnea will certainly understand my stance¡­ We can no longer stay isolationist. ¡°After all, the whispers of history continue to seek the light of remembrance. ¡°Us too¡­ We can no longer ignore this fate.¡± Chapter 42: Quest Menu

Chapter 42: Quest Menu

Julie¡¯s eyelids felt heavier today than any day before this. It had been a week since her incident with IRE A-1549. A lot has changed since then. For one, her eyebags had become much more noticeable. Spending a week in quarantine and not being allowed much sleep did that to you. But this was the least of her worries. Ever since that brief encounter with the rogue Irregular Runic Entity known as Scribe-of-Worlds, Julie had been moved to a different team under Dr. Miguel¡¯s supervision. The Cyberhawks. As she understood it, the Human Preservation Project divides its members into departments¡ªthe total number of which was unknown. There were countless black projects under their name that were classified and above her paygrade. Even Dr. Miguel was apparently unaware of the total. The one¡¯s she was aware of, however, were what most of her colleagues called the ¡®Core Nine.¡¯ Her department was one of these nine. The Department of Mythological Affairs, or DoMA for short. This department mainly consisted of historians, investigators, and archeologists. Julie was selected as an intern for it specifically for this reason¡ªshe had graduated as a history major after all. But more than that, they were also involved in mapping folktales passed down through oral tradition, and tracing their origins to what could have been a rogue IRE in the past that the people back then simply attributed as a miracle or the work of the gods. It was a fairly common story within the project premises. Eve, one of her senior colleagues, told her that roughly 70% of all IREs they have encountered had some sort of history that spanned before this millennium even began. It shocked her at first, but she quickly accepted it as fact. After all, human history was long, and although Julie didn¡¯t know how old the organization was, it was certainly not there from the beginning of time. If anomalous entities have always existed, it would make sense for their history to be just as old as humanity itself. However, this was not the only thing DoMA involved itself in. After all, there were still the 30% of IREs that were not attributed to have ancient stories chronicling their past. Most of these IREs tend to be newly documented ones with little to no information that could give them a lead about their origins. Rather than myths and folktales, they cement themselves as urban legends instead. IRE A-1549 was one such example. The Cyberhawks were a sub-division of DoMA that were mainly responsible for tracking and pursuing rogue IREs with mentions of their existence over the internet. Eve told her that many of the popular creepypastas found online actually had some form of origin story that traced their existence to some form of IRE. After all, Anima as she understood it, was willpower. Without it, IRE¡¯s as a whole wouldn¡¯t exist. And what better way to gather the influence of anima than through the internet, who¡¯s spread can reach the ends of the globe? This was why The Cyberhawks had gained much more support over the years¡ªthe amount of funding allocated to them increased annually without stopping since the inception of the internet. Julie didn¡¯t disagree with this assessment¡ªher first IRE encounter just so happened to be of the digital kind after all. The one thing she did disagree with had to be the workload. Ever since she joined the Cyberhawks, she had been stuck to her screen doing online investigations into countless online rumors, creepypastas, news sources, and forums. Out of 3,753 investigations, only 500 required further inquiry and 356 required an escalation of action. This didn¡¯t mean all of these were the actions of rogue IREs¡ªmost of them usually were related to the same case or in other situations, they were simply Vagrant Occult Activities (VOAs) that were misread as IRE phenomena. Julie sighed as she submitted another report. She leaned back into her chair while rubbing her eyes. When the fuck will they let me out¡­ Seriously¡­ A week in isolation while still requiring work to be done was insanity. She¡¯d heard about workplace exploitation before, but she never expected to be a victim of it. At least provide me with some entertainment¡­ She faintly glanced back at the monitor radiating in blue light. Maybe that new gacha game that came out¡­ God, I really wanna play it¡­ The mention of gacha games made her remember something: today was supposed to be the day she got her paycheck. ¡°Fuck! Did they forget to pay me?!¡± She slammed her hands against the desk and rose up from her seat¡ªnot even her exhaustion mattered anymore. She was ready to fight even Direct 004 if it meant getting her money. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. Maybe not Director 004, she corrected. Yeah, not him¡­ Reaching the door, she banged on it a few times to alert the guard keeping watch over her room. ¡°Intern B34, what do you need?¡± ¡°C-can I get some fresh air?¡± Her voice cracked¡ªembarrassment followed. So much for trying to act tough, she thought. ¡°Leaving confinement is not allowed.¡± She stood silently behind the door and clicked her tongue. ¡°Then when can I get paid? It''s been two weeks¡ªtoday¡¯s paycheck day!¡± ¡°The money has already been added to your digital wallet,¡± he retorted. ¡°Check again.¡± She frowned. Did they just get around to updating everyone¡¯s paychecks? She walked back to her desk and opened her HPP profile. Employee Name: Julie-Anne Kafka Employee Codification: B34 Status: Intern Employment Date: Friday, April 19th, 2041. Department of Mythological Affairs The Cyberhawks [Division 004] Soul Weapon: N/A The same information she¡¯d seen countless times. She scrolled down to the financial section. Balance: $14,243 Her jaw almost dropped. She knew the HPP paid well, but seeing the number still amazed her. This was only the amount for two weeks worth of pay¡ªnot even her monthly salary. I am going to get so many SSR pulls with this¡­ Her mouth was salivating at the prospect of burning through all that cash. No wait, I need to send some back to my mother¡­ She then remembered there was still no way to contact her. Julie sighed. And there was something else to be sad about as well: her PC had no games installed on it. Shit¡­ She sank into her seat even further. Even with the amount of money she was making, there was no point to it if she couldn¡¯t spend it on the things she wanted to spend it on¡­ This quarantine is killing me! Julie wasn¡¯t even sure why she was being kept here. Yes, she did get marked by IRE A-1549, but even now, a week later, she had still not shown any of the symptoms common in other victims. In fact, she was perfectly sane. The only thing she could think of that was abnormal were her dreams. This was one of the reasons why her insomnia was so bad, aside from the workload. Ever since that incident, she had been marked by weird dreams about a large space filled with¡­ Things? Incomprehensible things. She had no idea what she was looking at half the time. Even with the lucidity of it all, she couldn¡¯t make out anything or even remember what she sees after she wakes up. The only thing that was consistent between each of these hallucinations was the silhouette of a man hung on a cross. She couldn¡¯t make out his details, but a sinister smile was always present on his face, and a simple quote always radiated in her mind the moment she noticed his presence. ¡°Reality breaks where fiction is created.¡± Seriously, what the hell is up with that guy. Her cheeks puffed with annoyance. Why the fuck would you drag me into those stupid dreams only to speak to me in riddles. At least have the decency to tell me what you want if you plan on ruining my sleep. She sighed. There was no way she could consult the organization about this. There was no telling what they would do. Heck, just a simple suspicion of being corrupted landed her in a week long quarantine¡ªthere was no way in hell she was going to risk facing a worse fate if she revealed more to them. But on the other hand, there was little she could find out about this on her own. She had considered asking Dr. Miguel countless times, but even with his kind smile, Julie knew that he too couldn¡¯t be trusted. No one in this god forsaken organization was truly kind¡ªall of them had their own twisted histories. I¡¯m probably the most normal person in HPP, she chuckled to herself. Suddenly, her monitor flashed with light, startling her. She squinted her eyes while staring at the screen. Weirdly, it had changed away from her company profile page on its own. It was only after she read the words being displayed that she understood what was happening. ¡°Scribe-of-Worlds!¡± She glanced at the domain name: scribe-of-worlds.com. It was the same as the one she had seen on Soren¡¯s computer that day. ¡°Fuck!¡± Just as she was considering running away, the screen changed again. A simple window popup appeared before her with the following words. Quest: Unlock your Soul Weapon. Time Limit: 23:59:49 Failure Penalty: Death Chapter 43: Phantasm Initiation

Chapter 43: Phantasm Initiation

She stared at the monitor as cold sweat dripped down her cheeks. What the¡­ Scribe-of-Worlds had given her a quest. She had heard about this from the case file she had read. Members of the website were occasionally given random quests. According to the records on file, these ranged from simple acts like obtaining and selling ritual items on the site to other users who had requested them, to more sinister crimes like murder and rape. She glanced back at the time limit offered. Time Limit: 23:57:23 It¡¯s real¡­ I am not hallucinating¡­ This was extremely worrying. From what she understood of IRE A-1549, the quests it granted start off fairly tame and only progressively get more and more perverse as the user continues their interactions. And what was worse about her situation was the penalty it offered. Death. Although she did hear that some quests did have such clauses added to them, they usually only appeared to users once they interacted with the website a lot. For her first ever quest to have this extreme of a penalty was completely unprecedented. Julie cursed her luck. What do I do now¡­ She watched as the timer slowly ticked to zero. Only 24 hours before her inevitable death. She needed to make a decision fast. Should she consult the organization about this? Or continue to keep it a secret. After a few more agonizing minutes of thinking, the choice became obvious: snitch on herself and hope for the best. There was no way she could solve this problem on her own. And, she also theorized that her current containment showing no results would simply keep her isolated forever. After all, the HPP¡¯s core tenant was prevention was better than cure. If isolating her until she dies meant preventing the spread of corrupted anima, then it was a sacrifice they were willing to make. She doubted they would ever free her unless it provided them some sort of benefit. Think of the bright side, Julie. She thought to herself. If you gain a Soul Weapon, whatever that means, you¡¯ll get stronger! She did hear the term once before, but she still had no idea what exactly it meant. All she knew was that PTF-0 was composed of people with Soul Weapons. If I gain a Soul Weapon, would they add me to PTF-0? The prospect both excited her and terrified her. Don¡¯t get ahead of yourself, she reminded herself. Glancing back at the metal vault door preventing her exit, Julie stood up and slowly walked toward it, making sure to stomp out any of her remaining hesitation with every step. By the time she reached the reinforced door, her breath had hiked significantly. She took a deep breath before knocking. Annoyed, the officer asked what she wanted. She took a second to reply, ¡°I would like to speak with Dr. Miguel. A new development just occured¡ªIRE A-1549 has entered my computer screen and conversed with me.¡± The officer paused for a second before radioing someone¡ªit was too muffled for Julie to understand what they were saying. A second later, sirens began to blare all around the facility. Julie almost panicked, but held herself together. She stood there before the metal door mulling over her decision. Was it the right choice? She didn¡¯t know. A few agonizing seconds later, the door busted open, startling her. Colossal soldiers that towered over Julie stormed inside, armed with countless strange weapons. They wore ominous, rounded masks with two small holes for their eyes. Their clothing was also very strange¡ªtrench coats paired with black trousers¡ªweapons hidden beneath them most likely. PTF-0, ¡°The Black Watchmen¡± squad. This was a squad of PTF-0 that dealt with IREs that hold a codification of Alpha (Anomalous). Unlike the group she faintly saw arriving at Soren¡¯s house during their investigation of the ritual he had conducted, this group looked to be much more specialized. Her senior colleague, Eve, once called them the executioners of the Mysterious World. Rather than finding ways to contain the IREs, they were usually deployed to missions in which the goal was destroying the enemy completely. This was especially scary for Vagrant Occult Activities. In one of the stories she heard, a group of amateur astrologers tried to undergo a group divination technique that had roots in demonology. The Black Watchmen were apparently deployed to that location. The aftermath? A complete bloodbath. A colleague of hers described seeing brain matter all across the floor¡ªnot even the children of the people involved were spared. All traces of their existence and lineage were destroyed. Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon. When she heard of this story, she was completely mortified. Eve tried to justify it by saying that the people involved in that ritual were being misled by a demon. If they had undergone the ritual they assumed would help them understand Runology, their flesh would be sacrificed and morphed into a vessel for the demon''s descent upon the world as a Pandaemonium class IRE. Still, the story left a mark in her. She vowed to never mess with those bastards, or even get close to them. Who would have thought they would come to her first? It was truly comical. The one leading the pack held a strange revolver in his right arm that pulsed in a dark red energy, as if it was alive. He glanced over at her monitor screen and walked toward it, violently shoving Julie to the side. She winced in pain¡ªher shoulder had been bruised just from a slight shove from him. She wanted to curse him out but held her tongue. The masked man scanned the information displayed on the monitor screen before nodding to himself. A second later, Julie watched in horror as he robotically aimed his strange revolver toward the monitor screen and shot several shots nonchalantly. Frozen in shock, Julie witnessed the now destroyed screen flash with light. She swiftly covered her eyes before glancing back out again¡ªcountless golden butterflies were swimming out from the monitor screen, forming a flock of flying ethereal insects. They rushed out of the steel-reinforced door. ¡°After them,¡± the man ordered¡ªhis voice sounded more alien than human. The others in his squad silently rushed out of the room and back into the hallway to chase after the butterflies. Sirens were once again blaring all across the facility. Julie couldn¡¯t believe her eyes. That man¡¯s revolver¡­ it definitely did damage to the IRE! It was different from when she first encountered Scribe-of-Worlds. Her method of engaging it was similar, but her pistol yielded no results and instead got her into even more trouble. She had been mulling it over ever since¡ªwhat if she had simply run away rather than confronting it? Would her situation have changed? ¡°Get up,¡± the cold and alien voice startled her back to reality. She looked up at him in fear. Is he going to kill me now? She had been marked by a rogue IRE that had somehow even snuck into HPP Facility 004 just to meet her again. Her situation was definitely dangerous¡ªif even the organization couldn¡¯t detect its presence, who could? And this dangerous IRE was somehow deeply tied to her. Disposing of her would definitely be a great solution to the problem. ¡°I have orders from Direct 004,¡± he declared. ¡°You will be escorted to Site A3 to meet him.¡±
Facility 004 was a large, underground metropolis built underneath New York City. It was apparently once a nuclear bunker meant to survive in the event of World War 3 that got acquired by the organization after the Cold War ended. The facility went deep underground, forming multiple layers labeled F through A. Julie and the Black Watchmen captain who was responsible for escorting her were currently riding down the elevator to floor site A3, the lowest layer on the A floor. She straightened her collar and hesitantly glanced over to the colossal man. Earlier, she couldn¡¯t really get a good glimpse of his features¡ªthe situation was too hectic. Observing him closely, Julie noticed a strange symbol of a spade surrounded by a spider web tattooed to the backside of his neck. His skin looked caucasian and he had black jet-black hair. She couldn¡¯t tell his age, but it was most definitely above 30. His stature was also very well built¡ªshe could basically see the outlines of his muscles through his trench coat sleeves. Julie shook her head, this isn¡¯t the time to gawk¡­ ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± he interrupted her thoughts. The elevator slowed its descent and came to a stop. The reinforced door slid open, revealing a large, expansive void. Julie was shocked at what she was seeing. This is site A3? She had never been here before. The entire location was pitch black, except for a single narrow path that led from the elevator into the distance. There were no railings on each side¡ªJulie couldn¡¯t even tell how deep the chasm was. One wrong step and it''s over¡ªgoodbye. ¡°Move it,¡± he ordered, his voice was even more visceral this time. ¡°S-sorry,¡± she replied. Julie scurried in front of the man and walked across the narrow path surrounded by darkness on both sides. Looking toward the horizon, she couldn¡¯t even see the end of the road ahead. Regardless, there was no way she could complain right now¡ªnot with a damn super soldier right behind her who could blow her brains out before she even realized what had happened. She continued to walk and walk and walk. It felt endless. And yet, she also knew she was most definitely getting closer to something. It was only five minutes later that her eyes focused on the end of the path. The narrow platform expands into a large circle. And on that circle¡­ Was it a silhouette of a man? Director 004. She finally pieced his identity together after her eyes refocused some more. The darkness made it really hard to tell who it was until they got closer. ¡°Intern B34. You¡¯ve arrived.¡± She straightened her posture and saluted him, ¡°Yes sir!¡± ¡°Site A3¡­¡± He spoke in a mellow yet husky voice. ¡°Do you know what this location is called?¡± ¡°N-no sir.¡± He paused for a moment before answering. It was only then that she noticed that he wasn¡¯t wearing his signature thin, rounded glasses. His eyes were deep crimson, as if his irises were orbs filled with blood. He stared coldly at her while frowning. Julie could feel her skin crawl as his gaze landed on her. ¡°The Echo Chamber of Ascension¡ªthat is what the previous 004 Director called it. I gave it a new and more fitting name according to our new sheet of standards. ¡°Soul Weapon Forge.¡± Her eyebrows lifted. ¡°T-this is where Soul Weapons are forged?¡± He slowly nodded his head in response, though, she was sure there was more to it than that. ¡°Intern B34. You will be undergoing Phantasm Initiation as outlined by Article 3, clause 4 of the Human Preservation Project¡¯s Protocols & Guidelines Handbook. ¡°Failure to comply with this order will result in immediate execution. ¡°Do you understand?¡± Julue gulped down her hesitation the moment she heard what the penalty was. ¡°Yes sir!¡± Chapter 44: IRE Classification

Chapter 44: IRE Classification

Julie sat at the center of the circular platform with her feet crossed, as instructed by Director 004. The Black Watchmen captain stood to the side of him with his arms crossed¡ªhis ominous mask obscured what exactly he was thinking at that moment. Julie gulped down her hesitation and decided to ask, ¡°What do I do next?¡± Almost immediately, director 004 tossed her a pill. She clumsily caught it and glanced at it curiously. ¡°What is this?¡± ¡°Ingest it.¡± I hope it''s not cyanide¡­ She took a deep breath and did as she was bid. There was no point in resisting after coming this far. Almost immediately, she felt the effects. Her vision began to blur and her sense of direction became flimsy. But her mind¡ªit felt sharper than it had ever been. The voice of Director 004 echoed into her ears in a muffled tone, as if she was hearing him from underwater. ¡°Close your eyes and stay completely still.¡± She did as she was told. Director 004 glanced down at the center of the platform and spoke two word, ¡°AGI. Activate.¡± A series of symbols began to manifest themselves on the stone marble circular platform, surrounding Julie on all sides. A massive spellform layered in even smaller spellforms. Its complexity bogged the mind of most magi scholars. Even now, the Headmaster of the Clocktower Mage Society continues to research its secrets. It was ancient magecraft that traced its roots to the Age of Regression. Director 004, however, cared for none of that. All he wanted was the results. And AGI being the only one capable of utilizing this enormous spellform was already good enough for him. Humans dabbling in sorcery beyond their circles never ended well, after all. A few minutes later, the ancient runic symbols began to dim. The magecraft spell had ended. Julie during those few minutes felt her mind being invaded. It was extremely nauseating¡ªher vision had turned crimson red as blood poured from them. Her nose wasn¡¯t spared the bleeding either¡ªsame with her ears. She dizzily glanced upward at Director 004 who wasn¡¯t paying attention to her. She couldn¡¯t make out what had happened, but the pain she was currently experiencing couldn¡¯t be good. ¡°Am I going to die?¡± Oddly enough, she couldn¡¯t even feel sadness or panic. Even the pain itself had numbed. She suspected that pill might have something to do with it. ¡°You will be fine,¡± said the PTF-0 Squad Captain. Julie doubted it but decided to stay silent. Seconds later, she noticed a strange menu screen hologram pop up right next to Director 004. He was reading the information being displayed. ¡°Web of Dominion?..¡± His frown deepened as he reread what was being shown to him. Julie couldn''t understand why he said that, but it shocked her. She had never seen him this full of doubt before. The Director glanced over at her and spoke faintly, ¡°My hypothesis was true. You have obtained an Abstract Rune. ¡°But unless you merge with it, you will die.¡± With the drug still in effect, Julie voiced her question fearlessly, ¡°What¡¯s an abstract rune? And why do I need to merge with it?¡± ¡°Abstract Runes are powerful entities that exist metaphysically. They represent certain concepts in the world. ¡°Merging with one will grant you a Soul Weapon. But it is extremely dangerous. Though, in your case, even if you decided not to merge, after a while, the potent anima contained within the rune will consume your existence. ¡°You either learn to live with it, or perish. Decide now, Intern B34. ¡°If you choose to not undergo the procedure, I will have Deatheye grant you a painless death.¡± He glanced over at the Squad Captain who nodded in response. Julie silently sat on the platform as her facial orifices poured red ichor. What should I do? The decision might seem obvious, but a part of her at that moment wanted to give up. She didn¡¯t know whether it was an effect of the drug she had consumed or if her insomnia from the past week had finally caught up to her. Regardless, a bigger percentage of her mind wanted to continue living. Woo to democracy, she thought. ¡°Let¡¯s do it,¡± she said, as her bloodied lips faintly curved into a smile. Director 004 nodded in response. ¡°Go help her get up,¡± he ordered. The squad captain moved toward her and roughly grabbed her shoulder, leaning her against him for support. With her mind still in delirium, Director 004 walked back toward the narrow path toward the elevator¡ªthe PTF-0 agent followed suit with Julie in tow. Before her eyes fully shut from exhaustion, her vision honed into the bottom of the dark-filled chasm beneath the platform they were walking on. A strangely eerie change had occurred¡ªone that was not there when they first entered Site A3. All the way at the bottom of the chasm, a colossal eye appeared. It was massive¡ªshe could almost imagine it being the diameter of the entire building itself. Its iris was shaded in green, but she could see strange symbols moving within it dynamically, as if it was reflecting something. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. This has to be a hallucination¡­ She decided to ask: ¡°what is that thing down there?¡± Director 004 answered her bluntly, ¡°that¡¯s classified.¡±
Julie was now in the infirmary. The organization doctors explained that she had suffered from a bit of brain damage from that magecraft that was cast on her. Still, they reassured her she would be fine in a few hours¡ªwhatever ¡®fine¡¯ meant to them anyway. She sighed to herself, why did I involve myself with this organization again? She was beginning to regret her decisions. When she was looking for internship opportunities at her college¡¯s job fair, an agent from the organization had approached her with a deal she couldn¡¯t resist not taking. For the past couple of months, she had been struggling with finding a job. Turned out, being a history major wasn¡¯t a very secure role to be in. She had worked countless shifts at the local museum, but the pay she was getting was less than desirable. And even worse, she hated the fact that she wasn¡¯t getting anything done with her degree¡ªshe was working more as a tour guide for the museum rather than a proper historian or researcher. So when she got approached by the HPP, she couldn¡¯t contain her excitement. A proper investigative role for a company that was looking into countless historical sites across New York. And she was promised not only a massive salary with benefits, but also the chance to one day lead her own team. It all sounded too good to be true. And it turned out, her gut feeling was right. After making her sign some sort of magical contract, Julie was bound to the company. At least, that¡¯s what Eve had told her anyway. Why am I so unlucky? Did I piss off someone in my past life or something? Regardless, she had to make due with her decisions. And even if she had technically been coerced into this role, the pay was still good and the benefits they had told her about before had also not been complete lies. Yes, she had been separated from her family and placed under close surveillance, but they had promised her that was temporary. After all, the HPP knows that simply threatening their employees into submission was not an effective tactic. As she slept on the sickbed, staring up at the white ceiling of the disinfected room, her thoughts spun like yarn, thinking about the future. What will happen to me now, she thought. Apparently, the abstract rune she was partially merged with was called Web of Dominion. The doctors didn¡¯t know any of the details¡ªall she knew was that she would need to figure out a way to merge with this rune properly or else its anima will take over her soul¡ªwhatever that means. She spent the next few hours mulling it over. She couldn¡¯t move from her bed and aside from the heart beat monitor and the IV drop attached to her wrist, there was no one to keep her company. Suddenly, she heard a knock on the hospital room door. A familiar figure stepped inside. It was a petite woman that looked no older than twenty five¡ªshe was wearing a white blouse paired with a black mini skirt and stockings that reached her thighs. She was extremely beautiful¡ªher luscious golden blonde hair cascaded down to her waist. She brushed it past her ear as her glistening blue eyes focused on Julie¡¯s figure. Eve Taylor, her senior colleague at the Cyberhawks DoMA sub-division. ¡°How do you keep getting yourself in these situations?¡± She sighed. Julie chuckled, ¡°I told you¡ªmy luck is truly rotten. ¡°Not even the pity system in gacha games can save me.¡± Eve shook her head. She walked toward the sickbed and sat on the seat next to it. ¡°I heard what had happened from the Director. You somehow obtained an Abstract Rune¡­ I don¡¯t know if I should be scared or happy for you.¡± ¡°How about both?¡± They both giggled. ¡°What happened with IRE A-1549? Did they catch it,¡± Julie asked. Eve shook her head. ¡°The Black Watchmen chased after it all across the facility. In the end, two researchers ended up getting infected by its corrupted anima. Unlike you, they were instantly consumed by the madness. They were immediately executed.¡± Julie stared up at the ceiling. ¡°Is this my fault?¡± Eve sighed. ¡°I wish I could say it isn¡¯t, but I honestly don¡¯t know. We still haven¡¯t figured out what IRE A-1549¡¯s goals are. It seems to be very sporadic, as if its personality changes with each interaction. There¡¯s been talks about raising its codification to Psi-class (Pandaemonium). But the Director¡¯s Council is still arguing about this. I think it will mostly just stay in Alpha.¡± Julie remembered the IRE classification sheet she was given. According to it, there were 5 main classifications an IRE could identify as. These were Safe (Sigma), Unstable (Upsilon), Anomalous (Alpha), Warden (Omega), and Pandaemonium (Psi). At first, the organization classified 1549 as U-class (Unstable), since they believed its behavior was static and that they could contain it easily if they simply blocked its access from major ISPs. But this plan ultimately failed. Between her case and Soren¡¯s, that perspective has changed. If Scribe-of-Worlds simply disrupted their plans of imprisoning it by bypassing all ISP firewalls, they would have kept it as U-class. No, what really set their alarms was the incident that caused Soren¡¯s disappearance as well as its strange interaction of marking her and escaping pursuit from countless PTF-0 squadrons all hunting it down simultaneously. It was only because of these feats that it went from being called IRE U-1549 to IRE A-1549. ¡°I heard they might try to deploy the assistance of IRE O-568,¡± Eve added. ¡°HQ hasn¡¯t given the greenlight yet.¡± A Warden class? She had heard about these sorts of IREs before¡ªIrregular Runic Entities that, despite being captured by the organization, possessed abilities so invaluable they were repurposed as tools for apprehending other rogue IREs. These entities typically had powers that directed countered other, more dangerous IREs, making them indispensable in countless combat scenarios. However, O-class IREs were primarily used as a defensive measure, ensuring that particularly dangerous entities within the Upsilon and Psi classifications remained securely contained, preventing any potential breaches. However, IRE O-568 was different from many of them. She had read its case file before. It went by the name, ¡°Anima Disruptor.¡± This IRE manifests itself as a small, metallic orb that was void of any imperfections. It was perfectly round¡ªas if it was manufactured with exact precision. However, its history was more than likely ancient. Most of the information about it was classified¡ªall she really knew was that it had an ability that allowed it to create a field that disrupted the flow of anima in a certain area or range. It did have side effects, however: the users who activate it will have their own anima disrupted as well. It had no way of differentiating foes from enemies. And even worse, they were not able to control the level of disruption it causes¡ªthat was up to the IRE¡¯s own whims. According to the case file, there was once an incident when a PTF agent used IRE O-568 against a group participating in Vagrant Occult Activities. They were apparently conducting a ritual to summon a Chaos God¡¯s spawn. The PTF agent threw IRE O-568 at the ritual¡¯s spellform to disrupt its anima flow. Much to his relief, the ritual was stopped in its tracks¡ªthe IRE had done its job. But it did its job too well. Its field of anima disruption was so strong, the very souls of the people involved in the ritual shook violently, as if an earthquake had struck their very essence itself. Many of them died from the initial impact, while others struggled on the floor with foam overflowing from their mouths until they died slowly and painfully. The only person who survived was the PTF agent who was standing further away from the ritual area, but he too suffered a major blow to his anima. The fact that this kind of IRE was being deployed to capture IRE A-1549 spoke volumes about its abilities¡ªthe organization was pulling out everything they could to get rid of it. ¡°Regardless of that, I think you should worry more about yourself,¡± Eve said with her arms crossed. ¡°You have a Soul Alchemy Ritual to do.¡± Chapter 45: Philosopher鈥檚 Stone

Chapter 45: Philosopher¡¯s Stone

¡°You have a Soul Alchemy Ritual to do,¡± Eve said as she handed Julie a sheet of paper. With all her strength, she lifted her arm and held it. Her eyes refocused on the instructions being outlined. Notice of Phantasm Initiation #70432 Employee Name: Julie-Anne Kafka Employee Codification: B34 Status: Intern Department of Mythological Affairs - Cyberhawks Division. The employee outlined above is instructed to head to Site B5 for Soul Weapon forging. Article 3, clause 4 of the Human Preservation Project¡¯s Protocols & Guidelines Handbook states that any employee or agent with B status clearing or above that is found in possession or partially fused with an Abstract Rune must report said incident to the Department of Internal Affairs or Site Director personnel. The employee outlined above has complied with this protocol. In accordance with this established procedure, the employee outlined above must first be connected to the AGI network and undergo Phantasm Initiation under the supervision of Soul Chemist Dr. Zerkin. Please report to Site B2 for a pre-initiation assignment. Julie¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Who is this Dr. Zerkin? I¡¯ve never heard of him before.¡± ¡°A nutjob,¡± Eve sighed. ¡°He¡¯s the head of the Soul Alchemy sub division, Soul Vortex. ¡°I guess he got really curious by the rune you acquired. That Web of Dominion or whatever it was called. I read over the case file the researchers have done on it from the data they gathered earlier today. It seems to represent the concepts of dominion over spiritual beings? I am honestly not too sure, and neither were they. I guess they left it to the head of the department to figure out. The pre-initiation phase usually entails researching the rune as well as dealing with setting up the ritual itself. Dr. Zerkin will help you with that.¡± Julie silently stared at the ceiling¡ªshe didn¡¯t know whether she should say this or not. ¡°Eve¡­¡± ¡°Yes?¡± They locked eyes. ¡°Does the organization see me as disposable?¡± ¡°......¡± Eve didn¡¯t know what to say. ¡°Are you guys just trying to use me? To fish for IRE A-1549? You kept me inside that quarantine chamber for a week straight, and yet you still assigned work for me. I thought I would join the Hand of Relics division, but instead, I was sent to the Cyberhawks. ¡°IRE A-1549¡¯s interactions only happen through digital devices. Isn¡¯t this too much of a coincidence, considering the organization knows of my connection to IRE A-1549?¡± Eve¡¯s frown deepened as Julie sharpened her gaze. What she was currently asking was something that she had been thinking about for the past couple of days. It was only after her recent interaction with IRE A-1549 that caused her suspicions to rise. And after what she went through in Site A3, all sorts of doubts began to cloud her mind. ¡°Answer me, Eve!¡± She shouted. ¡°What the hell do you guys want from me?! Why are you barring me from seeing my own mother?! ¡°Why do you want me to go through all of this! You don¡¯t even allow me to quit!¡± Eve stood up from her seat¡ªa shadow was cast over her face as she walked toward the door leading out of the infirmary. ¡°I am glad you voiced this to me and no one else. ¡°I can¡¯t answer your questions¡ªthe things I know about your case file is what you yourself already know¡ªthe rest is classified. Only Dr. Miguel and the other department heads know. ¡°But I do know one thing. Never ever say what you just said to me out loud,¡± her eyes sharpened as she stared back into Julie¡¯s eyes. She could tell the poor girl was trying to hold back her tears. ¡°If you had voiced this to someone else, they might not be as lenient as me. I¡¯ve seen Director 004 execute researchers like they were flies. So yes, you are disposable, and so am I and everyone else in our department. ¡°Keep your head down, and pass through this as you were instructed. You have no choice. ¡°None of us have a choice.¡±
Several hours had passed since her conversation with Eve. She had been dismissed from the infirmary¡ªher internal injuries had healed to ¡°sufficient¡± levels, according to the doctors. Even though she was still partially exhausted, she was instructed to follow the procedures outlined in the sheet of paper she was given by Eve. Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator. The pre-initiation assignment, as it was called. She walked down the hallway of site B. This area was even more heavily monitored than the upper offices she was familiar with. Countless PTF agents roamed around, leading researchers and other personnel to different areas. She was no different¡ªa man roughly 8 feet tall holding some sort of rifle guided her toward Dr. Zerkin¡¯s office. It didn¡¯t take much longer for her to find it¡ªa nameplate was attached to the door that had his name on it. Taking a deep breath, she knocked three times. ¡°Come in,¡± she heard someone say unenthusiastically. Julie creaked open the door slowly in response. The first thing she noticed was the odor¡ªa repugnant scent entered his nose¡ªone that felt like a mix between vinegar and piss. She gagged in response. A single lightbulb was turned on in the entire room, leaving it very dim. Her eyes immediately refocused on the man sitting behind the desk. He was an old man with an arched back. His gray white hair was receding horribly and uncombed. His face had an oddly shaped chin that was very pointy and his eyes were halfway closed, as if he was going to doze off any minute. Without even glancing in her direction, the old man continued to type away at his keyboard, his hands almost blurring from the speed he was going. ¡°Ahem,¡± she coughed. ¡°Intern B34, Julie-Anne Kafka has arrived for the designated pre-initiation assignment.¡± She spoke as she glanced back at the Special Services agent who had escorted her to the office¡ªhe was closing the door to leave. ¡°Julie¡­¡± He muttered under his breath as he continued to work on his computer. Suddenly, his eyes widened. ¡°Julie! Ah yes, the intern that acquired that interesting rune!¡± He stood up from the desk while staring at her. She glanced back at him uncomfortably. ¡°Y-yes, sir.¡± He walked around the desk toward her, ¡°Truly marvelous! A rune with some kind of subjugation property is truly rare! You are one lucky intern, I¡¯ll tell you that!¡± He leaned in closer to her and grabbed her by the shoulders tightly, ¡°How did you acquire it?! Is it true you hold a special relationship to IRE A-1549?! The higher ups won¡¯t tell me anything!¡± Julie shoved his hands away, ¡°That¡¯s classified. Please do not ask anything of me that could jeopardize the procedures outlined by Director 004.¡± The old man clicked his tongue, ¡°I bet that woman Eve taught you to say that¡­ ¡°No matter. I will uncover the secrets of that rune regardless.¡± Julie didn¡¯t like the sound of that. He walked over to his desk and picked up a stack of paper, ¡°Stop standing around, come and read these over!¡± Julie sighed and did as she was told. ¡°Before we begin the ritual,¡± he said. ¡°A few things are needed. Items that hold spiritual symbolism in the Beyond will be needed to facilitate the merging of your soul with the abstract rune. But before even that, we need to make sure your Soul Chain is created.¡± He walked toward the door of his office and stepped out, ¡°take the sheets of paper with you and follow me.¡± Julie followed him out the door, ¡°Soul Chain? The Beyond? What does any of this mean?¡± He glanced back at her, perplexed. ¡°You mean they didn¡¯t tell you anything?¡± ¡°No¡­¡± She sighed. ¡°I am just an intern¡­¡± The old man pummeled his palm into his forehead, ¡°These bastards and their stupid red tape¡­ They always love making my work more difficult¡­ ¡°No matter, I will explain it as we head to Site B5. Screw procedure.¡± He began to explain to her what the Beyond was, and how it was tied to runic existences and a person¡¯s soul. She was undoubtedly shocked. ¡°You mean to tell me an entire other dimension of reality exists? And it overlaps ours?!¡± ¡°Che, if only it was that simple.¡± He skillfully walked around the agents crowding the hallway with Julie only a few steps behind. ¡°The Beyond is truly incomprehensible. It exists infinitely across the universe and holds truths from both the past and the future simultaneously. It exists outside the bounds of our three dimensions of space and one dimension of time and is governed by a universal law.¡± ¡°Universal law?¡± Julie tried to keep up with him as he maneuvered the busy facility. ¡°What is it?¡± He shrugged, ¡°Who knows. That¡¯s the question every magi on Earth has been searching for since forever. Not even the few manuscripts we have from before the Age of Regression say anything about it. However, we do know it exists¡ªwe can observe its influence on astral anima regardless of where you are on Earth. ¡°Ah, and don¡¯t ask me what astral anima is. I am too lazy to explain that.¡± Julie clicked her tongue. Moments later, they arrived before a metallic door with a strange lock pad to the side of it. Dr. Zerkin slid his access card and waited for it to grant him permission to enter. It only took a second for the indicator to flash green, and the latch clicked open, swinging the door with it. Julie followed him inside. She was instantly shocked by what she found within the closed off chamber.The room was filled with bookshelves full of ancient looking tomes that were enclosed with cobblestone walls right out of a 16th century castle. At the center was a stone altar surrounded by candles that produced dim lighting. A purple gem was embedded at the center of the stone altar with symbols etched on its surface all around it. It felt alien to her¡ªhow could an ancient room like this be a part of the sleek and modern facility she was familiar with? ¡°Stop gazing and come here,¡± Zerkin said. ¡°This room is a replica of something we found in the deepest dungeons of Neuschwanstein Castle in South Germany. It belonged to a cabal of witches. Even so, its value is immense.¡± He pointed at the purple gem embedded at the center of the altar. ¡°This is called a Philosopher¡¯s Stone, a true rarity in the world of magecraft.¡± ¡°Philosopher¡¯s Stone?!¡± She glanced at the purple gem again. ¡°Yes, but not in the way you think of it. It won¡¯t turn things to gold, like in the legends.¡± Julie turned away in disgust. ¡°So it doesn¡¯t create free money? Useless.¡± Dr. Zerkin frowned¡ªhe karate chopped her on the head, ¡°Stupid girl! This thing is worth more than any mineral on Earth! Without it, you can kiss creating your Soul Weapon goodbye!¡± She rubbed the top of her head, lips pressed into a slight frown, ¡°How does it have anything to do with my Soul Weapon?¡± she asked. He pointed at the carvings etched into the altar. ¡°This right here is a magecraft spellform called Soul Morph. The first step to merging with an abstract rune entails the creation of a Soul Chain. ¡°This is somewhat complicated, but what you need to know is that we will be morphing the shape of your very soul, and a Philosopher¡¯s Stone is needed for this.¡± ¡°My soul¡­ Will be morphed?...¡± She did not like the sound of that. His smile widened into a crazy grin. ¡°Why of course! That¡¯s the very essence of Soul Alchemy afterall!¡± Chapter 46: Web of Dominion

Chapter 46: Web of Dominion

¡°Go to the altar and place your hands in the designated slots,¡± he ordered. Julie sighed and walked toward it. It was only after she approached it, that many of its details became apparent. The Philosopher¡¯s Stone was faceted to the center of the stone altar. Strange, runic symbols were etched into it, forming a circle around the purple gem. On each side of the altar, the symbols curved into smaller, circular patterns, creating distinct indentations where her hands were meant to rest. Julie took a deep breath and leaned toward the altar, placing her hands on the designated areas outlined by the spellform. Almost immediately, the runic symbols flared to life¡ªemitting a purple white light that glowed faintly in the candle-lit room. ¡°W-what is happening?!¡± ¡°Relax,¡± he said. Dr. Zerkin closed his eyes and expanded his Soul Realm toward the altar. He imagined a spellform in his mind¡¯s eye and projected it out into the spiritual zone. ¡°We will now begin the process of analyzing your soul. I want you to look squarely into the Philosopher¡¯s Stone and imagine yourself entering inside the reflection shown to you.¡± She took a deep breath and did as she was bid. Her emerald green eyes focused onto the magical stone. What reflected off its glass-like surface was a strange geometric shape that continuously morphed, as if it was a fractal trapped within a crystal. She focused her imagination on it to picture herself leaping inside the stone itself. All of a sudden, the numerous scattered scented candles began to flicker. A strange breeze brushed past her skin that gave her goosebumps. She could feel the air changing, as if the altar was responding to her thoughts. She tried her best to focus. Then, something strange happened. Her vision began to blur and unblur rapidly in a constant pulse. It felt as if she was continuously phasing into and out of existence. ¡°I will begin shifting the crystal,¡± Zerkin said. ¡°I want you to tell me to stop when your vision unblurs completely.¡± He began turning the crystal telepathically within its stone altar mound. Every subtle shift changed what Julie was seeing. Sometimes it was blurry, other times slightly more clear¡ªit was entirely random. A faint yet misty haze always covered the pictures being shown to her. ¡°It''s still blurry,¡± she voiced. ¡°Focus! Just tell me when to stop. We need to calibrate your Runic Existence¡¯s position in the Beyond! Talking will break your focus!¡± Julie listened to him and kept quiet. Her vision continued to shift randomly into different scenes of the same blurry fractal, shifting its shape constantly. After ten entire minutes of this, her hands which were stuck to the altar were beginning to get tired¡ªthey had almost slipped out of position due to her sweat. Still, she had to continue this¡ªit would be a waste to stop now. It was only fifteen entire minutes later that her vision changed to what Dr. Zerkin was talking about. Unlike previously, the mysterious geometric shape had come into total focus¡ªher vision was no longer blurry. ¡°Stop,¡± she ordered. Zerkin did just that. ¡°Alright, now that it has been calibrated, let me project it.¡± Another spellform took hold in his mind¡¯s eye. Suddenly, strange symbols began to manifest from all the books on the shelves surrounding the altar. It was as if raw knowledge was being pulled from within these ancient tomes. They began to gather above the Philosopher¡¯s Stone from countless directions, like fish following a river¡¯s stream. An image began to manifest itself above the altar, flickering like a cheap hologram. Zerkin smiled back at Julie, who¡¯s eyes were still laser focused on the purple gem at the center of the altar. ¡°You can see it, right?¡± He asked. ¡°The strange fractal morphing in shape.¡± Julie simply answered back with a, ¡°yes.¡± She could see it in all its glory now¡ªwhatever it was. ¡°That thing is your Runic Existence. At least, a projection of how your mind understands it. We as third dimensional beings cannot perceive it fully. ¡°Essentially, it is how the Beyond represents your soul.¡± Her eyes widened, but she kept her focus. ¡°My¡­ Soul?¡± He nodded. ¡°More specifically, it is your soul as projected from the Beyond. How our natural world views consciousness and how the Beyond views consciousness are two different things, after all. This story originates from a different website. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there. ¡°But what you really need to focus on is what surrounds the soul.¡± Julie squinted her eyes. She noticed a strange bubble or field surrounding the ever shifting fractaled Runic Existence. ¡°What is this¡­ Energy?¡± ¡°That is your anima,¡± he answered. ¡°More specifically, the anima that is produced from your existence within the Beyond. ¡°We will be making a change to that anima. And a massive one. It will help us in creating your first node in the soul chain.¡± Dr. Zerkin snapped his fingers¡ªthe philosopher¡¯s stone and the magecraft on the altar deactivated. Julie¡¯s vision returned to that of the natural world. She grasped for air, like a fish out of the water. ¡°Take your time, piercing the veil into the Beyond is a very difficult task. I am pretty impressed you were able to hold on for that long¡ªmost end up knocking themselves unconscious before the calibration ends.¡± He glanced up at the hologram which was still flickering randomly, ¡°since we have calibrated the coordinates of your soul, this magecraft will continue to display it for us above.¡± Julie stared at her Runic Existence once more. ¡°How fascinating¡­ To think a human¡¯s soul looks like this¡­¡± Zerkin nodded while grinning his twisted grin and showing his crooked teeth. ¡°Indeed, that is why I study them! There are so many secrets to unfold¡­ ¡°And your Abstract Rune is one such mystery! Now that we have completed the pre-initiation assignment, all the data should have been collected properly. We¡¯ll be needing it to obtain the items of influence you need to forge your Soul Weapon. ¡°... The data should come in any moment now¡­¡± He glanced at his watch momentarily. Out of nowhere, a light-blue hologram appeared before him, displaying a screen. A similar one appeared in front of Julie, causing her to almost trip backwards and land on the stone altar. Luckily, she caught herself before causing a catastrophe. Squinting, she glanced at the menu screen that had appeared for her. ¡°Pre-initiation has been completed! Data has been forwarded.¡± Huh? She was about to read the message again when the screen changed. Abstract Rune Data Name: Web of Dominion Fragments: 1 (Insight) Concepts: subjugation, arachnid¡¯s ensnarement, traps. Materials of Influence: Obsidian Fangs [6%], Shadowroot [24%], Demon Spider Silk [45%], Spirit Familiar Ashes [25%] Soul Weapon Class Probabilities: Augment [10%], Object [5%], Elemental [5%], Abstract [30%], Summon [50%] Soul Alchemy Ritual: Arachnid Web of Spirits Julie wanted to rub her eyes to check if she was hallucinating. ¡°Can you explain what the hell just happened?¡± Dr. Zerkin ignored her and continued reading the information displayed for him. This continued on for a few more minutes until he finally lifted his head away from the holographic screen. He glanced over at Julie and smiled crazily. ¡°How truly marvelous. Your Soul Weapon is going to really interest me! I cannot wait to help you forge it!¡± ¡°That¡¯s cool and all,¡± Julie interrupted. ¡°But what the fuck is this floating screen?!¡± ¡°Ah¡­ That.¡± He glanced back at the screen and swatted it away, causing it to disappear. ¡°That screen you see is called the Arcane Gnosis Interface, or AGI for short. It is a system that is connected to all members of the organization that undergo Phantasm Initiation. ¡°Think of it as an interactive heart monitor, but for your soul. I¡¯m surprised they didn¡¯t tell you about this either¡­ What did you think you were doing in Site A3 then?¡± She tilted her neck in confusion, ¡°they said nothing about what that magecraft that was cast on me was¡­¡± ¡°Ugh, damn bureaucrats¡­¡± She could taste the salt escaping his tongue. ¡°That magecraft spell you had to undergo not only discovers traces of your soul, but it also creates a mark on your soul that allows it to connect its anima to you directly. We call this anima marking the AGI network. That is the main purpose of the Soul Forge facility.¡± ¡°So then I can simply call upon this interface whenever I would like? What other features does it have?¡± ¡°Everything,¡± he smiled. ¡°It¡¯s basically a more advanced smartphone that you don¡¯t even need to carry around. AGI is very convenient to us Phantasms who receive missions all the time¡ªwe can be notified immediately if something occurs. And it is also invisible to everyone but those who have been marked by it, meaning only Phantasms from the organization could see it. ¡°But its most important feature has to be its ability to monitor your Soul Chain.¡± ¡°Soul Chain?¡± Julie crossed her arms. ¡°I still haven¡¯t even forged mine yet¡­ Why would monitoring the Soul Chain be important?¡± Dr. Zerkin sighed. ¡°Because Soul Chains are prone to collapse upon themselves.¡± ¡°What¡­¡± ¡°A Soul Chain, especially ones at the foundation level, usually collapses onto themself in a year or two. Others are less lucky¡ªtheirs might even collapse within a month of unlocking a Soul Weapon. The only solution to this problem is forging the next node in the Soul Chain and fusing with another abstract rune. This will restabilize the Soul Chain for a time, but the process will need to be repeated for the third node, the fourth, and each one after that. ¡°This is why forging a Soul Weapon is usually called the path of no return. Once you embark on this journey of reforging your own soul, there is no turning back. And even if you continue forward, salvation may not exist at the very end of it all.¡± Chapter 47: Arach-Koth

Chapter 47: Arach-Koth

¡°So then¡­¡± She thought for a moment before asking her question. ¡°Then, does this mean I will be cursed to continue advancing down a path I know nothing of? What will happen if I don¡¯t unlock the next node in my Soul Chain? Or what if I can¡¯t find another Abstract Rune to merge with?! Didn¡¯t you say they were rare? ¡°Will I be condemned to just struggle endlessly?¡± Dr. Zerkin chuckled dryly. His parched lips curved into a maddening smile. ¡°That is the fate of us Phantasms. To chase after illusions, after things that shimmer in the distance, even as they crumble in your hands. ¡°We are all nothing but fools condemned to climb higher and higher¨Cclawing our way toward the next rung, knowing full well the summit we reach promises nothing but more misery.¡± He walked up to Julie who¡¯s face had sunken lower than it has ever had. His smile twisted even further as he leaned in closer to her ear. "Would you like me to kill you? I can make it seem like an accident right now. Then, you won¡¯t need to go through with this if you don¡¯t want to. I''ll take your Abstract Rune and study it for myself.¡± Julie immediately pushed him away. ¡°No.¡± ¡°Oho?¡± He crossed his arms. ¡°Why? I thought you wanted to give up? What made you change your mind.¡± ¡°You did.¡± She glared at him. ¡°There¡¯s no way in hell I''m letting a bastard like you toy with my soul. That¡¯s a fate worse than death.¡± She walked over toward the altar. ¡°Let¡¯s begin the forging process. I wanna get it over with.¡± He tilted his head to the side, ¡°so you are okay with the struggle? You are fine with knowing that there might be no salvation if you continue down this path?¡± Julie closed her eyes and sighed. ¡°Of course not. I hate uncertainty more than anything. But even so, life itself is full of uncertainty, regardless of my decision here. ¡°I can complain all I want about it, but the better choice is still the better choice¡­¡± Zerkin nodded. ¡°Very well then. Before you begin, however, we still need to gather the materials of influence associated with your ritual.¡± She glanced back at the AGI status menu screen. ¡°I did see that being mentioned¡­ What are these listed items? And why is there a percentage associated with each one?¡± Zerkin pondered for a moment before answering. ¡°It¡¯s a bit hard to explain if you aren¡¯t familiar with ritual magecraft¡­ But essentially, materials of influence act as a pointer or a pseudo concept within the beyond. Each item has an associated meaning, one with symbology that anima interacts with. ¡°As you know, anima is essentially willpower personified. And willpower is the driving force behind ideas, concepts, dreams, and¡­symbols. In the world of mysticism, these symbols act as conduits for different kinds of anima, and when combined in certain ways, can represent a concept or higher idea.¡± Julie recalled the ritual Soren had done in his home. From what they investigated of that incident, the ritual he had conducted involved the usage of burning moth wings, as well as the usage of ink to form a sigil. She wondered if that too was a form of invoking pseudo concepts that point toward something¡­ Suddenly, a beeping sound coming from the door startled them. A special services agent carrying a cardboard box handed it to Dr Zerkin and left. ¡°Speak of the devil¡­¡± He glanced back at Julie, ¡°it seems your case is a lot more high profile than I thought. It would usually take a few more hours before the damn Department of Internal Affairs starts processing our request.¡± ¡°Is that a good or bad thing?¡± Julie asked. ¡°Who knows,¡± he shrugged. ¡°But this does mean we can start immediately, just like you wanted.¡± ¡°Before that,¡± she interrupted him as he was pulling the items from the box. ¡°That magecraft spell they cast on me inside Site A3¡­ What exactly did it do to me? Is it really just to implant a mark on my soul so that I can be connected to the AGI network?¡± She remembered Director 004 calling it the Soul Weapon Forge, but that confused her. Dr. Zerkin had clearly stated that they would be needing the Philosopher''s Stone that was currently in the room with them to morph her anima into a Soul Chain. In fact, they were going to conduct the rest of the forging process in this room, according to him. Dr. Zerkin smiled, ¡°great question. But you don¡¯t need to worry. AGI is the Soul Weapon Forge in of itself. That system is intrinsically tied with your soul now¡ªthe magecraft you conducted at Site A3 is what allowed this to happen. When we begin molding your Soul Chain, AGI will come very handy. Ah, Soul Chains need to be formed immediately before the rune merging process. The two forces oppose themselves so they''ll create a balance that is most stable. How long that stability lasts though, is hard to say. But yes, AGI will be a key player in all of this.¡± Julie didn¡¯t trust his explanation. It wasn¡¯t because she thought he was lying, but she felt like he was withholding information. Although she did understand that AGI had the capabilities of monitoring and obtaining crucial information about her soul, that information was most likely not something available to just her. She knew that the organization was most likely harvesting that data for themselves as well. It scared her. Now, she was not only bound by contract to continue working for the Human Preservation Project, but her very soul is constantly being monitored as well. And there was no telling what they would do to her if AGI reported about her possible corruption by IRE A-1549 or if something more drastic happened to her soul. That also got her to think about something else¡­ ¡°Say,¡± she interrupted him again as he was working on preparing the ritual. ¡°Let¡¯s say my Soul Chain does destabilize¡­ What exactly happens after that? Do I instantly die?¡± A slow chuckle rolled out, one that demonstrated his age. ¡°No, a fate worse than death happens. Your Soul Weapon will take over your soul and puppeteer your flesh for you. You will become an IRE.¡± ¡°An¡­ IRE?..¡± A chill ran down her spine. ¡°Are all IRE¡¯s¡­¡± ¡°No,¡± he cut her off. ¡°Not all IREs are Phantasms that have lost control over their Soul Weapons. But a portion of them are.¡± She remained silent as he continued his preparations for the ritual.
Julie watched as Dr. Zerkin continued to tweak and change the stone altar that had the Philosopher¡¯s stone embedded into it. Before he began working on it, he told her to finish asking him whatever else she needed to know and to stop bothering him while he worked on the process. Julie didn¡¯t hold back with the questions. Aside from wanting to know what plans the HPP department heads and Director 004 had in store for her, she was much more interested in finding out what her Soul Weapon will look like as well as the other information about the ritual AGI had listed for her. The first thing that drew her attention was the mention of Soul Weapon classes. Dr. Zerkin explained that Soul Weapons came in five different flavors, and each one had different advantages and disadvantages. They were known as Object, Augment, Elemental, Abstract, and Summon. He didn¡¯t have time to fully discuss each one, however, he did highlight the one class Julie needed to keep an eye for the most. Summon. Her Soul Weapon¡¯s probability of becoming a Summon-type Soul Weapon was fairly high, according to AGI. Julie sat on the leather chair, watching as Dr. Zerkin continued to work on the stone altar. She sighed¡ªshe really hoped AGI¡¯s calculations were wrong. According to Dr. Zerkin, Summon-type Soul Weapons were the most dangerous class of Soul Weapons to wield. There was a fairly simple reason for it¡ªSoul Weapons of this type manifested a personality of their own. It shocked her at first, but the name made it pretty obvious. A Soul Weapon of this class needed to be commanded to battle, not utilized directly. While some Summon-type Soul Weapons manifested themselves in the form of tools, they almost always had nasty personalities that conflicted with the interests of their hosts. And there came the problem. A normal Soul Weapon already had the inherent tendency to try and take over the souls of their hosts as their Soul Chain weakened. So a Soul Weapon with the capability to think on its own from the very beginning could accelerate this process as it worked against its own master. Please be Abstract¡­ Please be Abstract¡­ She hoped with all her heart that her Soul Weapon wouldn¡¯t manifest as a Summon-type. It was already a big enough hassle dealing with a regular Soul Weapon¡­ Let alone one that could scheme behind her back. And Abstract-type Soul Weapons were very rare as well, so it could be very beneficial in determining her standing within the organization. There¡¯s a 50% chance of my Soul Weapon being a Summon type¡­ But a 30% chance of it being Abstract as well¡­ It''s not completely far-fetched¡­ Even if her Soul Weapon didn¡¯t turn out being an Abstract-type, she didn¡¯t mind it being something else entirely. As long as it didn¡¯t come out as a Summon class. If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Whatever gods exist in this world, please grant me a sliver of pity and make my life a bit easier¡­ Please¡­ She leaned back against the bookshelf. I hope I didn¡¯t attract a chaos god with that prayer¡­ Please be a benevolent god¡­ According to the HPP databases, gods did exist, but she had no clue about their true nature at all. And she doubted anyone in her division, let alone the entire department knew. That information must be highly classified. ¡°Alright, we can finally begin!¡± Dr. Zerkin¡¯s voice startled her. ¡°Already?¡± It hadn¡¯t even been thirty minutes. She stood up and walked toward the altar. Glancing down, she noticed the markings had changed. Aside from the old runic symbols carved into the altar itself, a few new additions were there as well. Across the edges of the altar, five dark black fangs were placed equidistant from each other. Wrapped around the fangs was a strange, dark red silk rope that connected to each of the five fangs, forming a distinct pentagram symbol covered the entire altar¡¯s surface. At the center, the familiar Philosopher¡¯s Stone stayed the same as it was before. The only difference she noticed was the strange, jet-black plant fibers placed above the crystal. It looked to be a bundle of uprooted roots of some kind.There was also some sort of dust or powder sprinkled all across the runic symbols and the rope pentagram formation. ¡°This is the formation AGI described to me for the Arachnid Web of Spirits ritual you will be conducting today. The materials of influence are laid out in this formation, which should give us the best chance of forming a pseudo concept similar to your Abstract rune¡¯s concepts.¡± ¡°Why do we need to create a pseudo concept anyway? What¡¯s the point of trying to create symbolism similar to my rune?¡± Zerkin chuckled, ¡°to trick the rune, of course.¡± She tilted her neck, ¡°trick?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± he nodded. ¡°Why do you think Soul Chains are unstable? It¡¯s because they are traps designed to lock the abstract rune in place, and use its concepts to influence the anima within the Beyond as you see fit. Obviously, the Abstract Rune will try to leave this ¡®trap.¡¯ It wants to dye you in its colors, just as it allows you to dye the world in its colors when you use your Soul Weapon.¡± ¡°So then¡­ Does this mean the pseudo-concepts we create with these formations are meant to lure the Abstract Rune into the correct place?¡± ¡°Correct.¡± He patted her shoulder. ¡°The Beyond, you see, is a dimension of concepts and information. Everything around us is represented with its own Runic Existence inside that reality. That includes inanimate objects. And when you configure these objects in certain ways and imbue meaning to them, they form symbolism that the Beyond recognizes. Since Abstract Runes are the origin of certain concepts, they will naturally be attracted to areas within the Beyond that are closely related to them, including ones that are artificially made with rituals like these.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± She glanced back down at the altar. ¡°So then, should we start?¡± He nodded. ¡°Like you did previously, lean your hands against the two designated areas on the altar. Make sure you don¡¯t knock the Demon Spider Silk and the Obsidian Fangs out of position¡ªany slight deviation in the formation and the ritual will fail. If that happens¡­ I¡¯ll have to put you out of your misery.¡± She gulped. Julie slowly lowered her hands toward the altar, making sure not to touch the formation. The runic symbols immediately flared to life. She took a deep breath and focused her vision onto the Philosopher¡¯s Stone at the center of the formation. ¡°Good, just like that,¡± he cheered. ¡°Now just like before, you will need to use the Philosopher¡¯s Stone to astral project into the Beyond. Imagine leaping into the crystal once more.¡± Julie did just that. It was surprisingly easy this time¡ªshe had already gotten somewhat used to the process. But also, there was no need to calibrate the stone this time. She could immediately observe her soul and its fractal geometry perfectly. However, there was a change to her soul. More specifically, the anima surrounding it. ¡°You can see it, right?¡± He asked. ¡°That¡¯s the anima that represents you in the Beyond. It¡¯s different from before, isn¡¯t it?¡± She wanted to nod, but that would break her concentration. What she was currently seeing wasn¡¯t just a field of anima surrounding her soul. No, it was much more complicated than that. There were strange markings etched into that anima that went all the way around her fractaled Runic Existence. Dr. Zerkin pitched in, ¡°those markings were created by AGI. More specifically, the magecraft spell that marked you inside the Soul Weapon Forge. You can think of them as a mold¡ªthey outline how you must shape your anima to form the shape of your Soul Chain as well as its connection to your Abstract Rune and your very soul. ¡°We are finally at the hard part now. You¡¯re going to need to up your concentration, and with the help of the Philosopher¡¯s Stone, morph your anima into the desired shape! Your anima will desire to resist this change so once the node is created, we have to immediately lock the abstract rune in place!¡± But how? She wanted to ask. It was easier said than done¡ªevery time she tried to command her anima to change its shape, nothing would happen. The Philosopher''s Stone, she remembered. She needed to use it somehow. ¡°Your soul is directly under the grasp of the Philosopher¡¯s Stone! That is why we calibrated it in the first place! The stone altar is connected to you currently! So don''t order your anima around, order the Philosopher¡¯s Stone to do your bidding for you!¡± Julie heard his muffled words. She remembered how she managed to see her soul to begin with¡ªshe needed to imagine herself leaping into the stone to astrally project her vision. What if I do the same thing and imagine the desired shape in my mind¡­ She began testing her theory. She observed the outline being presented to her by AGI and tried to memorize it. Then, with a deep breath, she closed her eyes and imagined the ring-chain shape as shown to her. A small circular indentation was present in the ring, forming a large hole. She assumed that was supposed to be the first node. Just as she finished imagining its shape in her mind¡¯s eye and sending those thoughts toward the Philosopher¡¯s Stone, a change occurred around her soul¡¯s anima. It began to quiver faintly as it compressed in some areas and contracted in others, morphing its shape like clay. Slowly, it was beginning to solidify exactly as the outline AGI had envisioned. Even so, it was extremely unstable as Dr. Zerkin had warned. Every time the shape took form, different areas would slip out and she would need to restart her concentration. One thing that did concern her a bit was the strange spider web that covered the ring-hole portion of the Soul Chain. The AGI markings denoted that it was normal for them to be there. She assumed it was probably the pseudo-concepts from the ritual, meant to lure the abstract rune into the node. Though, she wasn¡¯t entirely certain. Just as the final pieces of her anima moved into place to form the unstable Soul Chain, something from the corner of her eye caught her attention. She glanced back up at her fractal-like soul. A strange, black spider with a crimson eye attached to its back was crawling on her Runic Existence and nibbling on it. What the fuck?! She wanted to scream. ¡°Web of Dominion!¡± Dr. Zerkin cheered. ¡°We¡¯ve finally seen what the abstract rune looks like! How remarkable! So this is how the Beyond represents its existence?¡± He glanced away from the holographic projection. ¡°Julie, continue what you are doing! It¡¯s going to sense the presence of the pseudo-concepts soon! It should move toward them!¡± Just as he said, she observed the strange spider moving toward the newly shaped Soul Chain. A few minutes later, it had managed to reach the periphery of the node. The pseudo-concepts within it began to quiver. Sensing the symbolism, the spider entered the Soul Chain node. There was only one way to describe the process: pain. Immense pain. Her mind felt as if it would shatter at any moment. Every pang disrupted her focus, leading to the shape of the Soul Chain wavering, and every time it happened, she would need to reimagine the shape and mold it back into place. ¡°Hold on for just a bit longer!¡± Zerkin blurted. ¡°This is Conceptual Resonance! Your anima is using the symbolism from this ritual to disguise itself with conceptual ideas similar to the abstract rune! But this is also causing your anima to be influenced by the Abstract Rune heavily! You are going to slowly be corrupted! ¡°But that is okay! Ignore the corruption and simply focus on trapping the Abstract Rune inside the node!¡± Julie grit her teeth. She had to succeed. She needed to continue living. Who else would take care of her mother aside from her? Besides, she only just got her paycheck. There was no way in hell she was going to allow that money to just sit there after all the hard work she spent earning it. Come on, Julie. Just focus for a bit longer¡­ It took a few more minutes of tussling around, waiting for the Abstract Rune to enter fully inside the node. Her headache was getting worse and worse¡ªsame with her focus. This continued on for what felt like hours. Some times, the abstract rune would wander away from the node, leaving her helpless. Other times, her Soul Chain would lose its shape. It was a constant back and forth that seemed to last forever. Even so, she knew she had to keep going. Success was just around the corner. And that success finally came. The moment the spider entered the node, Julie used her imagination and shrank the ring-hole around it. With the Philosopher¡¯s Stone¡¯s help, her anima morphed into the desired shape and closed in on the Abstract Rune. Almost immediately, a change occurred. Her Soul Chain solidified completely and shifted into a dark black color with clouds of dark red shifting across it. The concepts governing the Web of Dominion rune now held influence over her anima in the Beyond. She observed the Soul Chain as it spun slowly in orbit around her fractal-like soul. A Sense of joy filled her heart¡ªI did it, she thought. Suddenly, she felt her senses shifting again¡ªher astral projection had ended. ¡°You did it,¡± he exclaimed. However, she was too busy with something else to pay attention to him¡ªa pulsing pain was coming from her ring finger. Glancing down in her delirious state, her eyes widened in horror. A strange black spider with a crimson eye on its back was wrapping around her finger like a ring. She was about to freak out when Zerkin interrupted her. ¡°Relax, that is your Soul Weapon.¡± ¡°That¡¯s¡­. My Soul Weapon?¡± It creeped her out. She hated insects. It took her entire being to not scream when she witnessed the spider crawling around on her soul. But now¡­ A similar spider was attaching itself to her ring finger. And even worse, it was hurting her¡ªshe could tell it was biting her or something¡ªthe pain was unmistakable. ¡°C-can I kill it?¡± She really wanted to slam her hand against a nearby wall. ¡°Stupid girl, you can¡¯t kill your Soul Weapon¡­ That¡¯s not how it works. ¡°Anyway, stop being silly and activate AGI. It will show you some information about it.¡± Julie took a deep breath to calm herself and did as she was told. It was taking her entire being to stand upright. A bright blue holographic screen appeared before her displaying her information. Status Name: Julie-Anne Kafka Race: Human Age: 21 Vocation: Ensnarer Soul Weapon: Arach-Koth (Unique) (Tier 1) Class Type: Summon Skills: [Ensnare] (Rank 1) - Create spirit webs that can trap spiritual entities. [Arachnid Wisdom] (Rank 1) - Obtain the heightened senses and capabilities of a spider. Rune Collection: Web of Dominion Even though what she was reading felt very exciting, she still couldn¡¯t help but frown. ¡°Summon-type? Really?!¡± The gods refused to pity her. Chapter 48: Proposals & Missions

Chapter 48: Proposals & Missions

Dr. Miguel walked toward a metallic door at the end of a hallway. Robotic machine guns lined each side of the walkway leading up to the entrance. It was a large, imposing gate that stood to be 20 meters tall. An electronic key reader was placed toward the side of it. Miguel¡¯s signature smile slowly faded away the closer he got to it. Swiftly, he slid his ID card against the reader machine and watched it blink green. The pistons attached to the metallic gate fired up, cranking it open slowly. Site A2 - Oblivion Hold. IREs at the highest danger levels of Upsilon class were contained here. Magical wards, adamantium walls, and even countless Warden-class IREs were used to make sure none of the dangerous entities kept inside were ever allowed to escape. Even with all of these protections, however, breaches did happen. Stepping inside, Dr. Miguel felt his lungs fill up, as if he had sunk beneath a deep ocean. It was almost impossible to breathe. He had already expected this however¡ªclosing his eyes, he spoke two simple words: ¡°AGI, activate.¡± A status window appeared within his mind¡¯s eye. Employee Name: Dr. Miguel Pierre Employee Codification: F049 Status: Department Head [Division Leader] Department of Mythological Affairs - Hand of Relics Division. ¡°Entry to Site A2 is restricted. Lift Restriction?¡± [Yes] [No] He chose ¡®Yes¡¯ with his mind. AGI recognized his thoughts. ¡°Escalating Privileges¡­ ¡°Access Granted. ¡°Welcome, Dr. Miguel. Site A2 anomaly behavior has escalated beyond normal thresholds. Proceed with caution. ¡°The Eyes of God are watching you.¡± He exhaled slowly¡ªhis ability to breath had finally returned to him. Straightening his collar, Dr. Miguel slowly walked inside the dim corridor. A strange, tar-like miasma covered the air, but it didn¡¯t inhibit his ability to move at all, unlike earlier. On either side of the walkway, metallic doors stood at precise intervals from each other, stretching down into the depths below and rising up into the infinite, star spangled ceiling above, as though the walls themselves were anchored within an endless void. Beneath his feet, the floor was transparent¡ªit looked as if he was walking atop a shallow, murky ocean. The eerie and infinite corridor extended out beyond his own vision. He continued walking, and walking, and walking¡ªripples forming beneath every one of his steps, hiding incomprehensible shapes that stood just out of direct sight. He ignored them all and continued walking forward¡ªhis face frozen like a statue. It was only after he reached a certain point that he stopped and turned to his left¡ªone of the doors lining the corridor came into view, with a placard attached to it: ¡°IRE O-4001¡± Miguel placed his palm over its surface¡ªit slowly faded away, revealing a whitish-gray fog that cascaded downwards toward the murky ocean-like floor. He took a deep breath and stepped inside the wall of mist. What greeted him on the other side was unlike the dim and eerie corridor. It was a regular room with an office desk and bookshelves. A window was positioned behind the desk, dripping sunlight into the office space. To the left side of the desk was a black leather couch and a coffee table, with the coffee machine placed on a shelf just next to the sitting area. He sighed and glanced at the leather office chair which was turned away, facing the window. ¡°Director 004. Why do you always use this office space¡­ Site F13 already has an office for you¡­¡± ¡°Because it calms me,¡± he replied. The office chair slowly turned around, now facing the old researcher. A man wearing a dark black suit with rounded glasses covering his crimson irises was sitting behind the desk. His signature frown was easy to recognize from a mile away. Miguel frowned. ¡°Is it because of the strange activities of IRE S-8181? The anomalies stored in this sector of Oblivion Hold are clearly not complying with their containment procedures. Even AGI has recognized this.¡± Director 004 reached for his cup of coffee on the office desk and took a sip. ¡°Indeed. Site A4 is also having similar issues.¡± ¡°Site A4? The Oneiric Vault? Impossible¡­¡± He commanded AGI to activate and began searching for recent case files on Site A4. What Director 004 was saying was true. Strange activities have been cited. ¡°But this is impossible,¡± he said. ¡°Site A4 and Site A2 are completely separate realms! It would need to breach the time-space Mysteries that govern those dimensions! And to do it without even a single ward or O-class IRE detecting these rogue anima signals is preposterous!¡± ¡°This is Solomon we are talking about,¡± the Director reminded. ¡°If not for his desire to cooperate, he would already be classified as a Pandaemonium class IRE. Even if we combined the capabilities of every HPP facility in the west coast of the United States, we would still be no match for HIm, probably. If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. ¡°A simple spatial barrier is nothing but childs play to Him, even in His currently weakened state.¡± Miguel sighed. ¡°So what did you bring me here for, then?¡± He suspected their conversations to be highly classified, but for the Director to be this precautious and use IRE O-4001 to isolate himself from everyone else in the facility¡­ Was highly suspicious. ¡°IRE A-1549,¡± he said with his eyes glowing crimson. ¡°It may have some connections to IRE S-8181.¡± ¡°What?!¡± He continued. ¡°Your department¡¯s 004 division was ordered by HQ to investigate a set of ruins found in Rome, Italy. It was fairly close to the Vatican¡¯s borders¡ªI wouldn¡¯t be surprised if the underground labyrinth extended inside their territory. I suspect that the strange activities from IRE A-1549 and S-8181 have something to do with it.¡± Dr. Miguel crossed his arms. ¡°Does this ancient labyrinth relate to Solomon in some way?¡± ¡°Mythologically, yes. That is why your team was called for this mission. Your flight to Rome has already been scheduled.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± He glanced over at AGI which updated with the information regarding his new task. He glanced back at the Director, his gaze now more focused. ¡°I assume you¡¯d want me to bring Intern B34, Julie-Anne Kafka with me? She no longer belongs to the Hand of Relics division, but her involvement will most likely be crucial.¡± The Director nodded. ¡°Promote her to Investigative Agent. She no longer needs to be classified as an intern. ¡°Also, use your authority to deactivate AGI¡¯s soul tracking on her. Let her roam free without any monitoring.¡± Miguel¡¯s eyes widened. The Director gave him no chance to ask why, however. ¡°Excessive monitoring will get in the way of IRE A-1549¡¯s actions.¡± ¡°So you want to use her as bait?¡± Dr. Miguel¡¯s frown deepened. The Director leaned forward, elbows resting on the desk, fingers interlocked tightly as his gaze sharpened while staring at the jaded researcher. ¡°For the sake of humanity, no price is too great.¡±
Soren leaned against the skyship¡¯s railing and admired the glistening sun as it made its descent over the distant horizon. It has been two days since they departed, and they have yet to even leave the Feylith Forest¡¯s borders. As the skyship continued to sail North, the sacred Spirit Blossom Willow became smaller and smaller. And yet, even now, two days later, the golden crown of leaves was still as enchanting as ever. Aside from the exquisite views and the delicious food the ship¡¯s cook made for them each night, most of the crew discussed the Vynasians and their armada of skyships. He had been eavesdropping on their conversations¡ªaccording to them, that legion was heading away from Yadria, into the North West where the expansive black sand desert resided¡ªThe Eclipse Moor. Soren had no clue what exactly was going on in the Eclipse Moor for the Vynasians to be this interested in it¡ªhe was simply glad they weren¡¯t headed for Yadria. The day the sky shattered, Soren couldn¡¯t help but think the world was about to end. Although no one panicked onboard the deck, he could instantly tell that the mood had shifted. There was an air of nervousness that continued to linger, even now. Soren sighed with a smile. At least I obtained something useful, he thought. He opened his Soul Weapon again toward the correct page. Voidstar Voyagers (Mechanica + Magecraft + Mystery) A colossal skyship capable of navigating The Rift. A strange and powerful magecraft spellform lines the hull of the ship, allowing it to levitate. It is also primed with countless wards and defenses that protect it from the echoes of the rift. Unknown technology is used in its craftsmanship. He stared at the page with a wide grin. At the time, while everyone else was startled by the emergence of the Vynasian armada, Soren got the idea to use [Eyes of the Fairy] on one of the skyships. Although it was risky, he knew the benefits were worth it. And, he wasn¡¯t wrong with that assumption. Not only did his Soul Weapon [Record] fifty percent of the schematic to create the ship, it also chronicled the magecraft wards and spellforms for allowing the ship to levitate as well as its other defenses. But by far the most important aspect had to be the strange Vynasian magecraft spellform for navigating the Rift. This was a huge piece of information to secure, especially since one of his own titles listed on his Soul Weapon gives him protection from the rift. Soren had always planned on eventually traveling back to Earth at some point¡ªhe needed to do so if he wanted to uncover the truth about Scribe-of-Worlds. This could prove to be a crucial step in that direction, especially since it allowed him to compare different methods for protection. He couldn¡¯t trust nor rely on just the title Mr. Unknown had granted him. Still, this didn¡¯t come at no cost. Aside from the usual brain damage, the biggest side effect of [Eyes of the Fairy]¡ªtime dilation¡ªhad activated once again. According to Myrin, Soren had been frozen, suspended in animation for an entire day. To him, it felt like using [Record] on the Vynasian skyship only took a few minutes, but for everyone else, his body was frozen in time. This somewhat bothered him. If every time that effect activated, his body froze in place, how was he able to navigate the forest when he was running away from the Headless Ogre? It all didn¡¯t make any sense to him. Still, he knew he would probably be able to piece together a theory sooner or later. He just needed to continue using the ability enough times to fully understand the trigger mechanism behind it. Just as he was about to flip the page to a diagram showing the internal components of the Vynasian Voidstar Voyager, a hand swiftly wrapped around his neck¡ªMyrin. The handsome elf smiled brightly as the wind blew his hair apart. ¡°What are you doing?¡± He asked joyfully. Soren sighed and closed his Soul Weapon. ¡°Just reviewing the information I''ve recorded so far.¡± He wasn¡¯t lying, but he also wasn¡¯t entirely telling the truth. After the countless conversations with Myrin, he had figured out a way to somewhat counter his ability. Since Myrin required reading the tunes of his soul through his Echo of Mind, Soren simply focused on telling half truths whenever he spoke with him. This allowed him to focus his thoughts on the truthful portion of his statements, making it hard for Myrin to differentiate between which ¡®Echoes¡¯ were the truth and which weren''t. Myrin sighed, ¡°there you go again¡­ You do know I don¡¯t have my Soul Realm activated right now, right? I am not snooping around your thoughts.¡± ¡°I know that,¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°I am mainly doing it to screw with you.¡± ¡°How petty¡­¡± Soren ignored his complaints. ¡°I want to ask you something important. ¡°Myrin, will you allow me to join Star Fate Guild?¡± ¡°.....¡± Myrin stayed silent¡ªhis hand still wrapped around Soren¡¯s shoulder. Soren didn¡¯t say anything¡ªhe waited patiently for his answer. ¡°Soren, did Tina ever tell you what our goal is?¡± He shook his head. ¡°All I know is that your leader, Mistress Sienna, deploys you guys on certain missions.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± He rubbed his chin. ¡°Let me explain it to you then. ¡°Mistress Sienna¡¯s goal is kickstarting the next Age of Fantasia. ¡°An age where the Celestial Orbits of Fate turn once more.¡± Chapter 49: Distrusting His Own Book

Chapter 49: Distrusting His Own Book

¡°A new age?¡± Soren looked at him with a puzzled expression. Myrin simply nodded. ¡°Yes. Mistress Sienna plans to reset the course of Yarian¡¯s fate.¡± Soren stayed silent, unsure of how to reply. Myrin sighed and unwrapped his arm around him. ¡°It is fine if you cannot make a decision¡ª¡± ¡°I¡¯ll do it.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Myrin lifted his brow. Soren¡¯s lips curved up into a wide smile. ¡°I¡¯ll join Star Fate Guild. Your goal seems fun, I¡¯ll take part in it.¡± ¡°B-but, you don¡¯t even know what correcting Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate means?¡± Soren retorted, ¡°So what? Do I need to know the intricacies to understand what seems interesting and what doesn¡¯t? ¡°I¡¯d much rather take part in something thrilling than live a boring but safe life.¡± Myrin stared at him for a few seconds, lost for words, before bursting into laughter. ¡°By the blossoms, why are you so reckless? I heard from Tina you told her something similar as well, haha. ¡°I truly don¡¯t understand you. How can you be so logical yet so illogical at the same time?¡± Soren shrugged, ¡°It''s a matter of balance. I strive to be both stupid and smart at the same time.¡± Myrin sighed while smiling. He glanced back at the now distant Spirit Blossom Willow, ¡°Back then, when you were taking the Saintess¡¯ test. You considered it, didn¡¯t you? ¡°Contracting with a demon.¡± Hearing this, Soren¡¯s eyes widened. He wasn¡¯t expecting this question. ¡°Your reaction tells me I was right?¡± Soren sighed. He leaned his arms against the wooden railing, glancing down at the enchanted forest below without replying. Myrin did the same. ¡°You know, I am somewhat jealous of you. ¡°I know if I was in that situation, I would not have been able to make a choice like you did.¡± Soren glanced at his elf companion. His lips were frozen in place, neither a smile nor a frown. His thoughts churned back to when he first met him. It had been a week since the first time he¡¯d heard him play the flute, but Soren had already noticed a slight change from the Myrin he¡¯d known back then. ¡°Are you sure about that?¡± Soren asked. ¡°Weren¡¯t you also presented with a similar choice to mine?¡± He had heard snippets of what had happened during his conversation with Saintess Sylia. Myrin was presented with an opportunity to return back to his luxurious life in Yadria, and yet he refused. ¡°You didn¡¯t make that decision purely out of loyalty to your Mistress, did you not? You too desired freedom.¡± Myrin chuckled, ¡°Am I that easy to read?¡± Soren shrugged in response. ¡°I¡¯m still not as good as you when it comes to mind reading.¡± ¡°Still,¡± Myrin retorted. ¡°Our decisions cannot be closely compared. I could trust that my decision was the right one, because I knew that our Mistress, as well as Tina, Tryrel, and the others in Star Fate Guild that you haven¡¯t met yet have my back. They are all family to me and they too see me the same way. ¡°You on the other hand¡­ You have no one to call family, and nowhere to call home.¡± Soren couldn¡¯t hide his smile any longer. ¡°Calling me a homeless bum would have been better, you know.¡± He chuckled softly, but there was no humor in it. ¡°You still don¡¯t fully trust us, right?¡± Myrin sighed. ¡°Although we couldn¡¯t exactly hear your conversation with the demon back then because of the magical seals placed in the Subterranean Shunning Grounds, we could still see you through the projected screen. ¡°You didn¡¯t give up on the demon¡¯s offer because you believed we would come save you. You simply decided to resign to your fate to die at that moment. I could tell from your actions.¡± Soren opened his mouth but no words came out. He didn¡¯t really know how to respond to his question. He continued staring out into the distant Endless Sea horizon¡ªthe once shattered skies were clear blue once more. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong,¡± Myrin said. ¡°I am not offended at all by this. And neither would Tina or the others be as well. It just¡­ Made me curious. The fact that from the two options you had, both signing a contract with a demon and believing in us to rescue you were equally bad choices for you at that moment interested me.¡± ¡°You said you were jealous of me earlier, correct?¡± Soren glanced over at him. ¡°You probably think this because of how little effort it took me to make my choice. ¡°But believe me, I am more jealous of you than you are of me.¡± Myrin glanced at him with a perplexed expression. ¡°Why is that?¡±Enjoying the story? Show your support by reading it on the official site. ¡°Myrin, as much as you want to say you fully trust the other members in Star Fate Guild, you don¡¯t actually believe that. No one in this world can be one hundred percent certain of something, especially when that something is the human heart. ¡°After all, isn¡¯t it because of my lack of regret in my choice that we are having this conversation? To stay in Yadria, or to return to Star Fate Guild¡­ Deep within you, a seed of doubt had slowly been growing. You are unsure whether the choice you made back then is the correct one or not. You envy me for my lack of doubt in my own decisions¡ªthat I was able to resign myself to death at that moment without much care. ¡°But believe me when I say this, it is me who needs to learn from you, not the other way around. Even with that doubt and uncertainty, you still chose to believe in your friends. ¡°As for me? Heh, I simply ran away from deciding at all.¡± Myrin stayed silent¡ªhe watched Soren slowly make his way to the staircase that led to the cabin. Right before going down, Soren turned to face him and smiled, ¡°I hope you won¡¯t regret adding a distrustful person like me to your guild.¡±
As soon as Soren entered his cabin, the first thing he did was immediately jump into his bed. While staring up at the ceiling of his room, he couldn¡¯t help but sigh as his lips curved into a deep frown. How exhausting, he thought. Ever since his arrival on Yarian, his life had certainly been anything but normal. From stumbling his way through an enchanted forest trying not to get killed, to meeting a group of weirdos that dragged him into a mission across a nation of elves, to finally arriving on this skyship by almost selling his soul to a demon¡­ Not even the drugs I took back on earth were this adventurous¡­ He chuckled to himself. Glancing over to his side, a large ancient tome that was held together in ragged purple leather was reflected in his eyes. He lifted his Soul Weapon up effortlessly. Is it finally time? Ever since his trip inside the Heart¡¯s Shroud and observing what his True Self had looked like, Soren had been hosting an experiment with himself. One that only now could be finished as planned. Ever since he¡¯d unlocked his abilities, a certain question had always plagued him: was the information he was [Record]ing factually true? Could his Soul Weapon lie? His perspective on this had continued to shift as he continued to learn about the Mysterious World. At first, he believed that it was possible for the info being chronicled to be wrong. After all, his first usage of [Record] was simply based on information he had gathered and inferred through his five senses. However, this perspective shifted once he had learned of the Beyond. This aspect of reality, by its nature, stored and spread information, concepts, ideas¡ªall of it regarding the nature of this world, and his [Eyes of the Fairy] pulled this information and made it available for him to use. Once he began exploring what the Beyond had to offer, his perspective swiftly changed, however. Although the Beyond contained a vast amount of information¡ªsome of which could even be used to infer the future using divination techniques, it was still not all-knowing. There were many concepts that could dwarf it¡ªthings like the Nameless Mist or the Dragon Vein¡¯s Aether. These existences clearly held a higher status compared to the Beyond itself. There were also the interactions he had with the Nameless Culprit which turned out to be the store owner of the shop him and Tina had visited. The fact that his affinities in Illusionary Magecraft were so potent, that the entire Court of Nightshade assassins couldn¡¯t detect his presence for so long was enough proof that the Beyond could be fooled, and most likely has been in the past. All of this led him to a conclusion: he needed to experiment with his abilities and find out whether lying to his Soul Weapon was possible. To do this, he employed several methods. One such method was simply mass [Record]ing things on his trip inside his book, as well as in himself. Since his discovery of his True Self, Soren had realized that [Record] wasn¡¯t an ability meant to chronicle things inside The Records alone¡ªit could also be used to [Record] things inside himself as well. His ability to learn Vinuan, Yasini, and Yadrian was enough proof for this. Because of this discovery, a clever idea had struck him. What if he chronicled information in both himself and The Records and then compared them once his memories of that information slowly left him? And so, ever since their departure from Point Sylvia, Soren had been busy chronicling everything he could see. From birds, insects, snakes, and spirit beasts, to plants, mushrooms, trees, leaves, and moss. Not even rocks and sediments were left untouched. The process was immensely painful, but relatively easy considering the powers of his Soul Realm¡¯s inherent ability which allowed him to scan entire areas all together. The plan was to [Record] all of this information, but to never review it. To never open it or demand to look at it. He simply requested the information subconsciously into himself using [Record]. This allowed him to gain the knowledge, but with no way to apply it, it would slowly wither away. Unlike his Soul Weapon which seemed to have the ability to not only chronicle infinite amounts of knowledge, but also be able to retain them for an eternity as well, a human¡¯s mind was flawed. Even he, who was insanely skilled at memorization, would not be able to keep the information he had learned but never applied in any way from degrading within his brain. ¡°The corrupted data,¡± he said to himself while smiling. His memories of the things he had [Record]ed inside his brain were finally hazy enough to start the experiment. Either his Soul Weapon would deny the information because of its untruthful nature, or it would allow itself to be chronicled. It would create a conflict between his own flawed knowledge on the subject and the more detailed information stored in the book. Almost immediately, his Soul Weapon flared to life. The pages shifted to an empty one, and a mystical fountain pen covered in a mysterious fog slowly moved on its own to write in strange, blocky symbols that somewhat resemble Mandarin Chinese. He¡¯d been curious about their nature one time and asked Myrin if they had any connection to Scripted Runic, which Myrin instantly denied. Even he had never seen them before¡ªthis was another mystery he would need to uncover some day. Regardless, what he was more interested in seeing was the result of his experiment. A few minutes later, the fountain pen disappeared. Soren ordered his Soul Weapon to turn the page on an interesting piece of information he had chronicled from when this experiment had first started. It was about an object he had grown very familiar with¡ªTina¡¯s silver gauntlets. Avalonian Silver Arc (Sacred Treasure + Mystery) A bow that is made up of liquid silver that is stored within someone¡¯s gauntlets. It will automatically move and merge on its own, forming a crescent shape filled with deadly anima that a person can shoot like a bow. The arrows it manifests are pure anima, condensed into a powerful and raw attack that could take out most low-level Phantasms. Its crescent shape holds the symbolism favored by the Mother of Silver, a radiant and orthodox deity that traces Her history far back into the olden Avalon Empire. The description continued on and on. Soren was shocked. Every piece of that information was factually true. None of it was a lie. His ¡®corruption¡¯ test had failed¡ªno, it had in fact succeeded. Chapter 50: Dungeon Door #1

Chapter 50: Dungeon Door #1

Soren was puzzled. Although he expected the information to fail at being chronicled since the original info about the subject was much more detailed, he didn¡¯t expect it to not change in the slightest. He ordered his Soul Weapon to bring up the event log. Event Log New Entry Updated: [Blue Apricot Grass] (Herbarium) New Entry Updated: [One-Eyed Chest Ogre] (Bestiary) New Entry Updated: [Glowthorn Leaves] (Herbarium) New Entry Updated: [Whisperwillow Wood] (Herbarium) New Entry Failed: [Moss Eater] (Bestiary) New Entry Failed: [Emberbloom Shrooms] (Herbarium) New Entry Failed: [Horned Goblins] (Bestiary) New Entry Updated: [Lunarite] (Sciences) New Entry Failed: [Abyssite] (Sciences) New Entry Recorded: [Void Levitation] (Magecraft) New Entry Failed: [Whispering Winds] (Magecraft) New Entry Recorded: [Demonology Contract] (Magecraft) New Entry Updated: [Aether] (Mystery) New Entry Failed: [Avalonian Silver Arc] (Mystery) New Entry Updated: [Spatial Bracelet] (Mystery) . . . The event log continued to list more and more things¡ªfrom magecraft spells he had seen on the battlefield during the Nightshade raid, to more random things such as cups and other silverware that he had seen in Floramere Keep. There was so much information being chronicled that the list went to several more pages before stopping. Aside from his amazement, he was also fascinated by what the Event Log was listing. ¡°New Entry Failed¡­¡± That message was repeated countless times. It seemed that only a fraction of the information he had stored in his mind was actually chronicled into the book¡ªthe rest was discarded. How interesting¡­ This did, however, confirm his theory. His Soul Weapon had some sort of filter or mechanism that allowed it to discard false information and only keep what was useful or new. It also meant that pages or sections could theoretically be added to. What was even more fascinating, however, had to be the pages that did get amended. Sacred Treasures (Mystery) A Sacred Treasure is a mystical item that had once been a Soul Weapon. These weapons come from ancient Phantasms who either left them behind after falling in battle without their Abstract Runes being reclaimed, or whose Soul Weapons themselves rebelled and took control of their wielder¡¯ bodies. Addendum 1: A Sacred Treasure can only be born under very strict conditions. Most Phantasms who die do not have their Soul Weapons solidify into objects in the real world. This condition is rare and tends to only happen to Soul Weapons of the Object-class. Abstract-class Soul Weapons could also be transformed into a Sacred Treasure through ritualistic magecraft or some other form of Mystery. In all cases, the Phantasm¡¯s soul that once hosted the Abstract Rune governing the concepts of their Soul Weapon will need to be safely hijacked by the Abstract Rune itself, allowing the Soul Weapon to come to life as a Sacred Treasure. Addendum 2: A Sacred Treasure user must establish a contract with their chosen Sacred Treasure, binding their souls to it in a manner similar to how a Phantasm forms a Soul Chain. The primary advantage of Sacred Treasures over normal Soul Weapons is that users are not at risk of being corrupted by their weapon. Additionally, a user can contract with multiple Sacred Treasures simultaneously, allowing for greater versatility. However, their biggest drawback is that they cannot be upgraded; a Sacred Treasure remains fixed at the tier it was originally forged at, with no potential for growth. The descriptions about Sacred Treasures truly surprised him. When he first used [Record] on this information, only the original paragraph listing what a Sacred Treasure was had been chronicled. The ¡°Addendum¡± sections were entirely new. The first Addendum was obtained from the Nightshade Raid¡ªthe Memory Void Corruptors, as they were called, had a similar description to how Sacred Treasures are born. After all, the Nameless Mist was essentially hijacking the soul of the Phantasm then piloting the person¡¯s flesh with this higher authority anima through their Soul Weapon. In a sense, the Memory Void Corruptors were essentially Sacred Treasures in their own twisted way. The information was added right after he made this connection, which meant that information through personal inference could be obtained¡ªnot everything was handed to him immediately. A case of theft: this story is not rightfully on Amazon; if you spot it, report the violation. The Second Addendum, however, was information he had acquired from the first floor library of Floramere Keep. He had scoured countless books and tomes, using [Eyes of the Fairy] on whichever ones Myrin had told him were safe to scan. Still, keeping this information only in his mind had certainly degraded it a bit. Now that he had learned about his Soul Weapon¡¯s ability to filter through false information, he could let go of his doubts about his own Soul Weapon. One of his biggest fears when it came to overutilization of his abilities, had to be that of misinformation polluting the ¡®database¡¯ of The Records. This became an even bigger worry for him when he met that Knowledge Demon, Tazzith. Not only did he have the capability to grant information according to his affinities, he was also very deceitful. The fact that he was able to somehow bypass him and directly add things into his Soul Weapon terrified him. What if one day, he tries to utilize a magecraft spell he had previously chronicled, only to find out that the spellform had certain issues, causing it to fail at crucial moments? An even scarier thought emerged¡ªhis map. If the information on it was maliciously altared, he could follow down a path that could lead to his own death and he would be completely oblivious to it until it was too late. This experiment helped quell this distrust he had, but it did introduce another question to him: how was his Soul Weapon filtering the truth from fiction? He had no way to find out about this, at least not yet. All of a sudden, Soren heard a faint bell sound echo in his ears. His gaze shifted to the door¡ªthere was a visitor. Soren immediately got up from the bed and closed his Soul Weapon shut. He walked to the door and opened it slowly¡ªa woman with ginger hair and blue eyes greeted him¡ªTina. ¡°Wow, you were the last person I thought would show up at my door.¡± She rolled her eyes, ¡°get yourself ready. We are about to disembark.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± His eyes widened. ¡°Already?!¡± ¡°No duh,¡± she said sarcastically. ¡°We¡¯ve already reached Dungeon Door #1.¡±
Soren hadn¡¯t realized it, but a couple hours had passed while he was huddled inside his room. The sun was close to setting¡ªit was just above the horizon, casting a beautiful gradient of oranges across the sky. Stepping back out into the deck with Tina, Soren noticed a lot of the ship¡¯s crew were scrambling around, moving crates and other belongings. He glanced over at where Myrin was standing¡ªhis signature white robe and hat was easy to identify. ¡°Did you get enough rest?¡± He said with a devilish smile. Soren tilted his head, ¡°Yes, the room was fairly comfortable, I''d say. Tina told me we¡¯re approaching our destination?¡± Myrin nodded, ¡°The air is going to shift slightly, so keep that in mind.¡± Soren didn¡¯t know what he meant by that, but he assumed it might have to do with Dungeon Door #1. Even now, he still had no idea what exactly this location was. All he heard was that it was apparently some sort of teleportation device¡ªsomething Myrin called a Spatial Gate. ¡°Nevermind that,¡± Tina interrupted. ¡°Soren, when the skyship stops, I want you to hide your Soul Weapon. Do not even think about showing that book in public anywhere. ¡°Do you understand me?¡± Although she was always very harsh with her words, he could feel her seriousness this time. Soren nodded. It wasn¡¯t like he couldn¡¯t understand why she¡¯d request this of him, anyway. Unlike Yadria, Phantasms weren¡¯t a commonly known thing in Aellora. Most citizens who weren¡¯t involved in the Mysterious World only knew of the existence of Magi¡ªthey had no way to differentiate between magecraft and Mysteries. He nodded, ¡°understood.¡± ¡°As long as you understand¡­¡± She smiled and glanced over at Myrin. ¡°And you, don¡¯t even try to be funny or wander somewhere again, you hear me?!¡± Myrin flinched, ¡°can¡¯t I at least visit aunt Luna¡¯s bakery stand?¡­¡± ¡°No, we will be heading straight for Star Fate Guild. We need to make sure no one is tracking us back to our hideout¡­¡± Hearing this, Soren couldn¡¯t help but be confused. Why was it such a big deal that they couldn¡¯t even roam around Celestine Citadel? Who exactly would be tracking them down? ¡°B-besides¡­¡± Tina interrupted. ¡°We can always visit aunt Luna later in the day¡­¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but want to laugh. She can¡¯t even be honest with her own stomach¡­ ¡°All hands, prepare to disembark! We¡¯ve reached Dungeon Door #1!¡± Soren heard the lookout of the skyship yell. ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Myrin said before heading for the boarding ramp¡ªTina and Soren followed after him. The skyship tilted its course, and almost immediately, something appeared in his line of sight. Right in front of him by a meter or so was a regular looking panel door, levitating in the sky. Soren couldn¡¯t help but stare at it in awe. The door was completely made from rotten wood¡ªSoren couldn¡¯t help but think it might fall apart by the next swing. The doorknob itself was extremely rusted as well. Even in its dilapidated state, however, the door stayed frozen in the air¡ªunaffected by any winds or gusts, making it even more unsettling than it already was. ¡°That door leads to a dungeon, you see.¡± Myrin answered. ¡°Long ago, a dungeon explorer opened it thinking it was going to lead him to a treasure room. But the moment he took one step inside, he plummeted from the sky to his death. ¡°This Dungeon Door is a common trap within most labyrinths. Doors that lead to unsavory places are everywhere in dungeons. But this one was a bit special. After its discovery, it was repurposed into a skyport.¡± Tina decided to weigh in as well, ¡°As you know, Soren, the relationship between Yadria and Aellora is very rough. It would be a diplomatic nightmare to allow a Yadrian skyship into Aelloran airspace. And the same could be said about Yadria¡ªthat was why we needed to go there by foot. ¡°This Dungeon Door not only acts as a checkpoint between Yadria and Aellora, but also as a neutral ground. The spatial gate doesn¡¯t reside in either of the nation¡¯s borders, so disputes over its ownership have not occurred, and will probably never occur. After all, keeping a discrete communications channel even if they are hostile to one another is important.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± Soren answered while glancing at the door. Myrin glanced back at the crew who signaled them to enter. He smiled and looked toward Tina and Soren. ¡°Alright, let¡¯s meet up on the other side then, shall we?¡± Chapter 51: The Labyrinth Shroud

Chapter 51: The Labyrinth Shroud

Only one word came out of his mouth the moment he entered through the Dungeon Door: ¡°Fuck!¡± His knees swiftly gave out as a strange aura weighed down on his body¡ªgoosebumps ran up and down his skin. Strangely, this aura wasn¡¯t so much an energy, but a feeling. A disgusting feeling. It felt as if thousands of invisible maggots were crawling through every orifice of his body. He could almost sense them moving in waves, wrapping around his neck before slowly slithering into his throat and nose, before coming out of his ears. His eyes began to water as his gag reflex activated¡ªthrowing up the delicious meal he just had on the skyship. Ugh! He painfully glanced around¡ªTina and Myrin were slumped to the side of a wall, panting heavily, though their situation was still far better than Soren¡¯s. Taking a deep breath, Myrin held his devilish grin as he glanced over at Soren, who was trying his best to get up from the ground. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you the air was going to shift slightly?¡± He clicked his tongue mockingly, ¡°you should have been more prepared.¡± ¡°How the fuck is this ¡®slightly¡¯?!¡± He tried not to choke on his own vomit. Myrin burst into laughter. ¡°Don¡¯t worry, you¡¯ll get used to this feeling. Every dungeon explorer does.¡± Tina stumbled forward and grabbed Soren by the shoulder. ¡°Ignore that idiot. You resisted better than most¡ªMyrin shit himself when he first entered a dungeon.¡± ¡°I was 12 years old at the time! And how the hell do you even know this story?!¡± Tina grinned, ¡°you told it to me yourself when you were drunk.¡± ¡°I said something this embarrassing?!¡± At that moment, Myrin didn¡¯t mind dying in the dungeon and being forgotten forever. Tina glanced over at Soren, who was still reeling from the experience. The sensation had not ceased at all, but he was slowly getting used to it¡­ Somehow. ¡°Anyway, watch your steps. Although this area is cleared, it''s still a dungeon after all.¡± In between the nauseousness, he asked her a question. ¡°What the hell is this¡­ anima?¡± He couldn¡¯t exactly identify what he was feeling, but the pressure from it¡­ It was terrifying. He couldn¡¯t be anymore thankful that his body was slowly adjusting to it. ¡°It is something that dungeon divers like to call the Labyrinth Shroud. It¡¯s not fully understood, but out of the five main labyrinths of Yarian, the Avalon Ruins is filled to the brim with it. Many scholars suspect it to be the anima generated by the core of the labyrinth itself. Others on the other hand think that it¡¯s the work of a 10th Circle magecraft spell that spans the entire continent. ¡°The truth doesn¡¯t really matter though. All you need to know is one thing: ¡°Never ever venture into a dungeon alone!¡± His brow lifted, ¡°why?¡± ¡°Because a dungeon doesn¡¯t just test your strength; they also test your mind.¡± ¡°The Labyrinth¡¯s Shroud¡­¡± Myrin murmured. ¡°This insidious anima¡¯s biggest effect on explorers is mental erosion. The more you stay within a dungeon, the more it eats at your Heart¡¯s Shroud. The effect is even more horrifying for mortals. Those who have not unlocked a Soul Realm or Soul Weapon will instantly become suicidal¡ªand there is no fix to that.¡± Soren didn¡¯t doubt their words at all. Even now, he could feel his mind¡¯s desire to scream. Though, he couldn¡¯t tell if that was due to his initial reaction to entering the dungeon, or his previous anxiety regarding his life or death situation. Myrin continued, ¡°This is why dungeons and ruins are banned by the Aellora Kingdom unless one has a license. Though, that doesn¡¯t stop many fools and other shadow guilds from going in them anyway.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes slowly adjusted¡ªjust to the right of him, a flickering flame could be seen; it was a torch of some kind. They were currently in a cobblestone corridor that lead toward the darkness in either direction. Behind him was the door they had emerged from¡ªits frame was covered in a sheet of darkness that was flickering slowly. He assumed this was the spatial magecraft that gave the door its mystical effects. ¡°To think that a person could take one step through that door and immediately fall to their deaths¡­ Who the hell designed these dungeons and their cruel traps?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but be at awe and also somewhat afraid. Tina laughed. ¡°I am not sure who made it, but whoever it was, they had to be a massive asshole. Especially the person who created this trap¡ªonly a psycho would think of creating something like this.¡± ¡°I agree,¡± both Myrin and Soren nodded in unison. She glanced over to their left¡ªthe corridor stretched out before her eyes. ¡°I believe going west will lead us to the exit, if I remember correctly?¡± Myrin nodded. While they were conversing, Soren took slow breaths to calm himself¡ªthe sensations had slowly dwindled away, though his anxiety was still growing by the minute, which he suspected was the effect Myrin was speaking of. While leaning against the wall, he foolishly decided to try using [Eyes of the Fairy] again in his currently delirious state. He didn¡¯t know when the next opportunity to visit a dungeon would come, after all.If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. Event Log New Entry Failed: [Labyrinth Shroud] (Mystery) New Entry Failed: [Dungeon Door #1] (Mystery) His eyes blinked rapidly as he read the page. It failed? How was this possible? Although he had seen the failed message appear in the backlog last time, that was due to the information itself being filtered out for being wrong, not because his Soul Weapon itself was incapable. ¡°Interesting¡­¡± He murmured to himself. ¡°My Soul Weapon is not omniscient. There are things I can¡¯t [Record]...¡± Although many would find this disappointing, Soren was actually excited. This meant that his ability might still have room to grow. After all, his status sheet did list both [Record] and [Eyes of the Fairy] as simply Rank 1. Logically, that would mean a Rank 2, 3 and even beyond must exist. Though, more than that, he was much more fascinated by the prospect that there are things in this world that somehow prevent information about themselves from spreading. Even though he had heard about the wards some grimoires use to sense a person¡¯s intentions, these were simply external methods to keep prying eyes away. What he was currently witnessing was different¡ªit was a power that simply eclipses his. Whoever designed this labyrinth must be extremely powerful. Breaking his reverie, Soren witnessed many of the crew members of the skyship emerge from the Dungeon Door¡ªmany of them were holding crates and other items. Soren finally realized why Tina and Myrin were waiting around. He walked over to Tina and asked, ¡°what¡¯s in the crates?¡± ¡°Supplies I had purchased¡­ ¡°... As well as souvenirs¡­¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°She means to say food. Her current calorie intake isn¡¯t enough.¡± Soren watched in fear as she glared into Myrin¡¯s soul¡ªit was fair to say he regretted saying that. Sensing the awkwardness, he decided to change the subject, ¡°I guess we should get going?¡± Myrin nodded and walked (sprinted) down the corridor nervously. Soren and Tina followed behind him¡ªthe other crew members holding their belongings also did the same.
After just a ten minute walk, the corridor ended at a large cobblestone hall. Unlike previously, there were several armed guards positioned here. Each one was plated in heavy armor that went down to their hips and ended with a tunic skirt. They each held on tightly to a purple-painted, large rectangular shield. In their other hand was a spear, each one adorned in countless golden decorations. At first, it confused him. Why would the guards be posted here and not where the Dungeon Door was. It only made sense to him after Tina explained it. ¡°Those are the Custodes Aureum, loyal dogs that serve and protect the interests of the Brilliant World Church.¡± He could feel the salt rolling out of her tongue. Sensing her mood, Myrin decided to continue on her behalf. ¡°What she means to say is, they are a group of Holy Phantasms nurtured under the graces of He Who Weighs the Scales, The Gold-Giver. Though the public largely doesn¡¯t know that¡ªthey only see them as an elite group of soldiers. Phantasms aren¡¯t something the public is aware of, as you may know. ¡°As for why they weren¡¯t directly protecting the Dungeon Door¡ªthat¡¯s because it''s indestructible. No one has ever succeeded in even giving it a scratch, and this applies to everything inside the Dungeon.¡± He pointed at the nearby cobblestone wall, ¡°even if you attacked this with a 5th Circle magecraft spell, all it will do is cause damage to your own ego, and not the wall.¡± Soren almost couldn¡¯t believe it, if not for the fact that not even his information scanning abilities were working on it. If it was enshrouded in near-unbreakable obscurity, then it should also be nigh-impenetrable to attacks. ¡°And also,¡± Myrin continued, ¡°there¡¯s no need to guard the Dungeon Door itself, since most who enter it only have two paths to follow. ¡°Either coming here, or heading deeper into the dungeon. And if you do the latter, your chances of survival are slim to none¡ªnone of the Aelloran officials will need to do anything when that happens¡ªsaves them the paperwork.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± While Tina ordered the crew members carrying the boxes around, Myrin approached one of the guards. ¡°Greetings gentleman,¡± his right hand reached underneath his robe as he bowed to them. The guard squinted his eyes with a frown. ¡°State your name, purpose, and affiliation.¡± ¡°Myrin Zinrie, me and my companions belong to a School of Thought from Luvinica. We are returning home from a long trip elsewhere.¡± Myrin sneakily inched his hand closer toward the guard¡ªseveral shiny gold coins were dangling in his palm shamelessly alongside an identification badge. Myrin smiled as he leaned in closer to his ear. ¡°Our trip has been very perilous¡ªme and my companions are fairly exhausted and hope to return home quickly. May the blessings of wealth shine upon you.¡± The guard smiled and took the bribe. ¡°May wealth linger beyond your grave.¡± He stepped aside, signaling for them to pass through. Trying to hide his shock, Soren walked through the hall toward the corridor the guards were watching over. Tina and the others followed from behind. ¡°So much for being Holy Phantasms¡­ I thought they would be more honest¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s just how the Brilliant World Church operates,¡± Tina corrected. ¡°You¡¯ll see what I mean soon, all of them are nothing but pigs lusting for material gain.¡± ¡°Now, now,¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you not to bad-mouth them? They are still a major orthodox religion. Almost forty percent of Aellora worship the Gold-Giver.¡± ¡°Hmph,¡± she was definitely not listening to him. As they walked, slowly, a small flicker of light became visible. After a lot more walking, they had finally made it to the end of the tunnel. Almost immediately, he squinted his eyes as the blinding light of the setting sun became visible again. And yet, not even in his delirium could he choose to ignore what he was seeing. Tina tapped him on the shoulder and smiled, ¡°didn¡¯t I tell you? The Nations of Disorder might have some amazing places, but so do us humans.¡± Chapter 52: Celestine Citadel

Chapter 52: Celestine Citadel

Soren watched as the sun set over the horizon¡ªa sprawling metropolis was scattered beneath its crimson hues. The high balcony he and the others were standing from gave him a direct vantage point of the entire city below. The buildings were all made from high quality marble that were carved into towering support columns and intricate capitals that glinted in the sun¡¯s final rays. He could see massive domed structures and open-air theaters could be seen in the distance with large plazas for people to move in. Celestine was full of life. The narrow, winding streets spread like veins across the city. All of it reminded him faintly of ancient Greece back on Earth¡ªat least how it was described to him in history class. Though, none of this even compared to where he was currently standing. The balcony overlooking the city was connected to an elongated staircase which wrapped around the building¡ªall of it was carved from marble. Judging by the elevation, he guessed they were currently on the side of some tall mountain. ¡°That¡¯s wrong,¡± Myrin corrected while reading his thoughts again. ¡°We aren¡¯t standing on the edge of a mountain¡ªwe are standing on the base of Celestine Citadel.¡± ¡°Celestine Citadel?¡± He had heard Tina talk about it before. It was apparently a colossal castle that matched Floramere Keep in scale. When he heard this the first time, he didn¡¯t believe her. Now he does. As he leaned over the railing of the balcony, Soren glanced upward while squinting his eyes. It was difficult to see, but Myrin was correct. They were at the base of a colossal castle made of the same stone that lined the city¡¯s walls. Colossal pillars jutted from the ground with domes at the top. From what he could see from his limited vantage point, the castle was divided into three sections¡ªeach one was a miniature castle on its own. Walls and bridges connected each of them together, forming what he could only assume to be a triangle. It was as if multiple castles were stacked together to form an even bigger structure, all of it carved from stone. ¡°Incredible¡­¡± He murmured. Myrin smiled and walked toward the staircase connected to the balcony. ¡°Alright, it''s time to go. I''ll take you to sightsee around the city later.¡± Soren nodded and followed after him. Tina on the other hand ordered the crew of the skyship to just leave their belongings near the balcony¡ªwithout identification, they weren¡¯t allowed to leave the next checkpoint. She considered hiring someone to pick them up, though in the end, she decided to just do it herself. After stretching her arms, she swiftly stacked all four crates above one another and picked them all up simultaneously. Soren couldn''t believe his eyes at first. He knew she was strong, but this was a first. Myrin on the other hand didn¡¯t look surprised at all. He considered asking her if she needed help, but decided against it¡ªthere was no telling how she would react, but anger would probably be his best bet. Just as they moved down the staircase, Soren caught a figure from the corner of his eye. It was an elven man with pointy ears and green seaweed for hair. He looked to be roughly in his forties, with a rough stubble across his chin. It was very odd¡ªSoren had not fully memorized everyone on the skyship''s crew, but he was at least familiar with them somewhat. The man he was looking at now looked oddly familiar, and yet he didn¡¯t recognize him as someone that was boarded with them on the skyship. Suddenly, the seaweed-haired man jumped on top of the railing of the balcony. Soren¡¯s eyes widened, ¡°What the¡­¡± The elven man dangerously leaned over the edge, as if priming himself to jump. It was at that moment that Soren realized who it was, and it seemed the man also recognized Soren¡ªhe was staring at them coldly from the corner of his eye. ¡°Virion,¡± Tina filled in. ¡°The Court of Nightshade¡¯s captain.¡± Just as she finished her sentence, he leaped out of the balcony¡ªSoren ran up toward it to get a look of where he went, but like a ghost, he had already vanished. ¡°When I said we need to be careful because we might get tracked, this is what I meant.¡± With the boxes stacked one above the other, Tina turned back around and went down the stairs. ¡°Let¡¯s go. Myrin, activate your Soul Realm to keep track of any changes.¡±
Soren couldn¡¯t believe he was thinking this, but he was secretly glad to be back in a city full of humans. He had always hated how crowded New York City was, even in the hottest of the summer days¡ªnot to mention the insane amounts of freaks and weirdos that lined every corner of the subway system. Something about the metro system attracted the most unhinged people for whatever reason. But even with these negatives, Soren couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit¡­ Homesick? The feeling disgusted him. He had no love for that city or Earth in general, but walking through the streets of Celestine and seeing the faces of people as they headed back home from work was oddly¡­ Therapeutic. He felt like a hypocrite for it. The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation. Along the way, they rented a wooden cart to transport the crates Tina was carrying. They didn¡¯t know it at first, but in retrospect, it should have been obvious that a petite five-foot-six woman carrying a stack of four large crates that were taller than her would attract a lot of attention. He decided to take the responsibility of pulling the cart around¡ªTina and Myrin walked in front of him. ¡°That Virion guy,¡± he asked. ¡°He¡¯s the person who confronted us on that roof isn¡¯t he? During the Nightshade Raid.¡± Tina nodded, ¡°Yes that¡¯s him. He¡¯s the captain of the Court of Nightshade. Extremely powerful Holy Phantasm. That night, I was honestly planning on surrendering, but I had no way to verify he was a real person or an illusion made by the culprit behind the incident¡­ ¡°In a way, I am kinda glad I brought you with me,¡± she smiled at Soren. Soren turned away in embarrassment, ¡°I¡¯m glad I helped a little, I guess¡­¡± ¡°Still,¡± Myrin interrupted. ¡°The fact that he showed himself at the end there is very suspicious. He must have been riding along with us the whole time on the skyship, and yet we never noticed his presence. It was only after we disembarked that we got to see him briefly before he disappeared again. ¡°That had to be on purpose.¡± Soren nodded, ¡°I agree. If he had the skill to hide himself for that long, he could have most likely continued hiding himself forever, and we wouldn¡¯t have noticed.¡± ¡°Something is still fishy, though.¡± Tina said. ¡°He leaped out of the balcony probably because the next checkpoint at the end of the staircase would entail passing through a magitech device that could detect if someone was a Phantasm or not. Our identification badge gives us some immunity from these searches¡ªhe on the other hand doesn''t. He must have known that and decided to just skip the entire entry process altogether. But that still doesn¡¯t explain how he managed to escape through jumping from the balcony. ¡°There is an entire magecraft spell that is active all around the perimeters of Celestine Citadel. The fact that it didn¡¯t detect his presence is concerning¡­ Should we report this incident to the officials?¡± Myrin shook his head, ¡°it¡¯s better not to do that. Virion isn¡¯t just some common criminal¡ªhe holds an important role in Yadria. Offending him might break the relationship between Aellora and Yadria even further. I am fairly certain he knows this too.¡± Tina crossed her arms while dodging another pedestrian walking the other way. ¡°Are you saying he showed himself to us as a way of granting himself permission for his actions? He wants us to let him go?¡± He shrugged, ¡°Most likely, but he could also have another goal I am unaware of. I am not completely certain, but I am sure Mistress Sienna will know more.¡± Tina nodded and followed after him¡ªSoren did the same thing, but the weight from the wooden cart was finally starting to drain his stamina. The fact that Tina was able to carry all of that weight without even breaking a sweat baffled him. ¡°I wonder,¡± he murmured. ¡°Is Tyrel back in Celestine?¡± Tina shook her head, ¡°I doubt it. His march from the border toward the nearest village will take him a few days, and that¡¯s being generous because he¡¯s leading a group of exhausted refugees. And even once he gets to the village, he¡¯ll still need to head westward¡ªCelestine is all the way on the other side of the kingdom from where he would be at.¡± Soren was a bit disappointed, ¡°I see¡­¡± As they moved along the crowded streets toward Star Fate Guild, Soren decided to take in the views. One thing that surprised him the most was how diverse Celestine was compared to Yadria. Even though Aellora was a human nation, it seemed to not mind other races at all. He could see people with animal ears, dwarves, and even those with horn-like antlers resembling twisted branches, adorned with sprouting leaves. The race that fascinated him the most, however, has to be the Drakar¡ªhumanoid beings covered in dragon scales paired with reptilian-like tails. Even though the majority of the population seemed to be human, it was still incredibly rare to find a single bar, store or any sort of location that wasn¡¯t a mixed bag of different races. ¡°Don¡¯t get the wrong idea, Soren.¡± Myrin murmured while reading his thoughts again. ¡°This sort of situation is rare in Aellora¡ªit''s only common in Celestine and maybe Cinta Bay which gets a lot of travelers from the Sinlar Kingdom.¡± Tina nodded while embracing the hubbub of the city. ¡°Yes, you can thank the Outward Movement for what happened here. There was a brief renaissance period of new art and literature some 80 years ago. This city became the hub for that¡ªmany foreigners call Celestine the ¡®City of Passions and Art.¡¯¡± Soren nodded, ¡°I am guessing that caused a lot of exchanges in culture?¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°This city has become much more diverse due to that. But as I said, this does not mean Celestine is not prone to intolerances. Elves are still viewed negatively in many circles even in this city. Not to mention, there¡¯s still a lot of grudges that many hold against the neighboring Staterra Kingdom, so watch what you say.¡± Soren didn¡¯t doubt that in the slightest. As for Tina¡¯s claims about the city¡¯s history, that too was quickly proven to be true. Food stalls and ambulatory vendors lined the streets, with countless bards donned in jewelry dancing at every corner, plaza, or road. Groups of exotic dancers did their routines over finely decorated carpets as onlookers tossed coins at them. Every few stalls, he would spot claymakers, sculptors, painters¡­ Truly a city of passion. The urge to wander the streets aimlessly had never been this difficult to resist. After another ten or so minutes of walking, Soren finally got exhausted. Just when he was about to ask Tina to pull the cart instead of him, he heard Myrin¡¯s ecstatic voice. ¡°We¡¯re finally home¡­¡± Chapter 53: The Library

Chapter 53: The Library

Soren glanced up to see a large, marble stone building with hundreds of steps leading up toward its entrance. The roof of the building was made entirely out of stone and was supported by countless columns. At the front of the building stood a grand yet eerie mural portraying an apocalyptic battle, with angel-winged beings descending from the sky with swords in their hands battling against beings with horns holding spears. At the center of the battlefield, a depiction of an open book was shown, surrounded by six gems that formed a circle around it. Beneath the mural, the words ¡°Public Library¡± were inscribed in Vinuan script, elegantly carved into the stone facade. ¡°This is home?¡± Soren was a bit perplexed but also shocked. Did Star Fate Guild seriously own this entire building? Its size was enormous, and the amount of people flowing in and out had to be in the hundreds. Myrin chuckled¡ªhis hand lay on Soren¡¯s shoulder. ¡°No way, we are immensely broke. Our Mistress works here as the Head Librarian though.¡± He walked past Soren who was still staring up at the grand structure in awe while looking silly and went up the steps. ¡°If you¡¯re this shocked just by seeing the outside, I can¡¯t wait to see what you¡¯ll say about the inside. Follow me.¡± Tina said nothing and simply went up the steps as well. He grit his teeth and slowly dragged the wooden cart full of crates to the side of the steps where the ramp was. Reaching the top, Soren¡¯s neck cranked back all the way as he took in the full sight of the grand marble columns supporting the building. Each one had to weigh almost as much as the skyship they rode. Their circumference alone was larger than some of the trees he had seen in the Feylith Forest. He continued moving toward the grand entrance where he found Tina and Myrin had stopped. A guard was present there, checking their belongings. ¡°You are also with this group?¡± Soren nodded. ¡°I will need to look over everything you are bringing in with you. Flammable materials are not allowed within any Aelloran Archive. Failure to comply with this rule will result in fines or even imprisonment.¡± ¡°I see,¡± he said, ¡°look over everything.¡± The guard did just that. Soren was worried he would discover his Soul Weapon since he was still hiding it, but the guard simply assumed it was a regular book. As for the crates, they weren¡¯t allowed to bring the cart with them inside, so Tina decided to go back to showing everyone how much of a superhuman she was. Stepping inside the library, Soren finally realized why Myrin was curious about his reaction. If the outside looked imposing, the inside was short of majestic. The library was hollow, with a vast, open chasm that plunged tens of floors below them. Each floor had a stone railing that went across the edge of the chasm, providing a way for someone to lean in and glance at the floors below them. Soren could see countless bridges connecting each segment of the balconies to each other, with hundreds of scholars flowing across them. ¡°Wow¡­¡± His mind almost couldn¡¯t comprehend it all. ¡°Follow me,¡± said Myrin, who walked toward one of the bridges just in front of them. The words ¡°Floor One North¡± were inscribed into the stone floor. It seemed to him that each floor¡¯s bridges were shaped into plus-shaped patterns that allowed for someone to head toward each of the four cardinal directions on each floor. Reaching the center, Soren noticed a strange circle etched into the floor that Myrin stepped inside. Tina followed and did the same, prompting him to also do so. Without warning, the floor began to shake and slowly descend. The circular platform was magically dropping them toward the next floor. Soren wanted to be shocked, but he had already seen a similar mechanism before. There were platforms just like this that sent people toward Floramere Keep. He did notice something odd, however¡ªthere were no visible rune markings he could see etched into the platform. Still, that didn¡¯t stop his fear of heights from not kicking in. The fact that the platform also had no railings only made it even more terrifying. If I tripped here¡­ The thought played in his mind as he stared down the chasm. His legs shook slightly. ¡°Don¡¯t throw up on me, I¡¯ll kill you.¡± Unauthorized duplication: this tale has been taken without consent. Report sightings. He straightened his back and stopped looking down. His fear of Tina immediately canceled out his fear of heights. Their slow descent continued on for a while. Soren assumed they would only need to make it a few floors down, but even after the first dozen, the magical platform didn¡¯t stop. ¡°Where exactly are we heading here?¡± ¡°Star Fate Guild, of course,¡± Myrin answered. ¡°Our guild isn¡¯t exactly legal nor is it licensed, you see. Our hideout needs to be well hidden. Luckily, our Mistress has a lot of sway in the library¡ªleaving a few rooms empty for our activities isn¡¯t difficult.¡± Soren agreed with this line of logic. ¡°So basically, you¡¯re all a bunch of criminals masquerading as bookworms. Got it.¡± Myrin laughed out loud. ¡°You aren¡¯t exactly wrong. Though, half of us do like reading. Our activities revolve around archeology after all. To uncover the future of Yarian¡¯s fate, we must dive into its past.¡± ¡°You¡¯ll grow to appreciate this place, Soren.¡± Tina said. ¡°Your abilities were practically made to leech off places like this. If anything, you¡¯re the biggest bookworm here, you damn hypocrite.¡± Soren¡¯s lips twitched. He wanted to refute her, but couldn¡¯t. Soren had seen just how powerful his [Record] and [Eyes of the Fairy] abilities were in Floramere Keep¡¯s library. The only reason he wasn¡¯t able to obtain even more information freely was due to the monitoring as well as the fact that he was limited to only a small subsection of the first floor. But here? He was standing in the middle of an archive filled with all kinds of knowledge about this world¡ªnone of which will ever be denied access to him. Still, that didn¡¯t mean he shouldn¡¯t be selective of what information he chronicles. One of the biggest flaws that [Record] and [Eyes of the Fairy] had was time. Information processing was not instantaneous¡ªwhenever he needed to use [Eyes of the Fairy], he didn¡¯t just need to hone into the unseen and focus on what he wanted to see most. That process alone took a bit of time to process correctly, but then you also needed to factor what he was seeing with the unseen. Depending on its complexity, he would need to keep [Eyes of the Fairy] active for longer to process it. And then there was the [Record] aspect of it. Whenever he needed to use [Record], his Soul Weapon would need to manifest a mysterious fountain pen that wrote down that information in some sort of ancient script he had no understanding of yet. That writing portion wasn¡¯t instantaneous either. He had seen this flaw in full display at the Floramere Keep library. He had tried chronicling an entire book, but realized that at the pace it was going, not even a few hours would suffice. It seemed that there was a clear indication being drawn here: Soren, just like The Records itself, needed to act as a filter for information. While The Records sifted through lies and deception, Soren would need to sift through quality of information. He would need to seriously examine the information he wants to chronicle and pick out the significant parts from the insignificant. Why would he spend several hours trying to chronicle the existence of five thousand different species of ducks, when he could simply chronicle their overall existence or pick out the ones that needed to be known about the most? Still, that didn¡¯t mean that this limitation was permanent. It was obvious that his skills could be upgraded somehow. Eventually, his [Eyes of the Fairy] should in theory, be able to process things quicker. The same could be said about [Record]. As the magical yet not so magical elevator platform lowered itself even beyond the scope of what he could first see from the first floor balcony, Soren heard Myrin say, ¡°We¡¯re here.¡± They had reached the bottom floor of the immense library chasm. Soren¡¯s eyes widened when he saw it. Broken chandeliers, lamp-posts, trash¡­ It was a mess. Entire mountains of books, papers and other material were stacked haphazardly. It looked like a landfill. He wondered how this could have even happened, but he instantly got his answer. Books were tumbling from the floors above, raining down in a chaotic cascade. Each new addition sent the piles shifting and growing. The first thing that came to his mind was, ¡°Why?¡± ¡°The Graveyard,¡± Myrin said. ¡°This is a restricted floor in the library. Books that contain falsehoods get discarded here. Though it has also became somewhat of a trash dump in recent years,¡± he chuckled. ¡°Watch your head,¡± Tina interrupted. ¡°Let¡¯s go.¡± Without any time for answers, he followed them from behind¡ªhis hands placed above his head to shield himself from any falling academic materials. He watched them maneuver across countless piles of garbage and knowledge, until they arrived before a large, imposing wooden gate. Strange symbols which he could only attribute to be Scripted Runic, were positioned into a circle. Myrin reached out and placed his palm at the center. The symbols flared, as the door began to shake. Dust fell from the rusted metal frame as friction made itself heard¡ªthe gate inched open before them. Myrin turned around to face Soren, ¡°Welcome to Star Fate Guild.¡± Chapter 54: Star Fate Guild

Chapter 54: Star Fate Guild

Tina and Myrin slowly strode inside¡ªSoren followed after them. ¡°This area used to be a part of the dungeon we were in earlier, you see.¡± Myrin spoke joyfully. ¡°The dungeon?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but be confused. ¡°But why would they build a library above it¡­¡± ¡°The keyword here is ¡®used to¡¯, Soren.¡± Tina replied. ¡°Dungeons, as you may know, tend to shift around¡ªtheir layouts never stay the same. The Mystery behind that is still being studied, but that¡¯s not important to know right now. ¡°All you need to know is that this area is a discarded dungeon fragment. Sections of a dungeon that are no longer connected to it.¡± His eyes couldn¡¯t help but widen. He decided to use [Eyes of the Fairy] on the nearby cobblestone wall. Dungeon Cobblestone Bricks (Masonry) Walls made of a special kind of cobblestone generated by a dungeon. It no longer flows with power. So it turned to regular stone? It kinda disappointed him, but it also made him realize that the things he was trying to [Record] inside the dungeon earlier that day were not that special either. The real contributor to what makes a dungeon, a dungeon, seems to be that strange energy that permeates the air. He wondered how the Labyrinth Shroud even worked. They walked along the elongated corridor that basked in the violet light of strange crystals hanging from the ceiling. The air was thick, oppressive, but not in the same way as the dungeon he¡¯d been in that was under Celestine Citadel. The Labyrinth¡¯s Shroud was not present in the slightest, which was definitely something he appreciated¡ªhe did not like his sanity being chipped away at. And then, he heard it¡ªa deep, rhythmic clang echoing through the narrow passage. Each blow was followed by a brief, ringing silence, as if the space itself was recoiling from the impact. He could feel the ground shake under the oppressive booms, and it only got more and more pronounced the more they walked. ¡°What is that?¡± He decided to ask. The sound was almost enough to mask his voice. ¡°That¡¯s most-likely Noctharn,¡± Tina answered. ¡°You¡¯ll get used to it.¡± He wanted to ask more but decided to just wait and see. And see he did. The mouth of the corridor opened into a large, circular hall. But what was more important was who was in this hall. At the center, a colossal thirty-feet tall being sat before an obsidian-black anvil that matched his size. He wore a dark black robe that covered his face and body¡ªan air of shadows and uncertainty clung around him. He ignored the newly arrived guests and continued to hammer away on the anvil. Speaking of his hammer, it too was colossal in size. Its head was made from a void-filled metal that seemed to hunger for the darkness¡ªcompletely pitch-black, not even an ounce of light could be seen reflecting off its surface. Every time the giant brought down his mighty tool, an ear rupturing boom would eclipse the entire hall. ¡°Meet Noctharn,¡± Myrin said while covering his ears. ¡°Despite his stature and looks, he¡¯s very friendly.¡± ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± Tina said impatiently. ¡°That oaf won¡¯t hear us until he finishes hammering away.¡± She didn¡¯t wait for a response and immediately sprinted toward the next corridor which was to the right of the grand hall. As he and Myrin moved to follow her, Soren glanced around. There were massive shelves filled to the brim with weapons and tools, and to the right of the anvil was a large chimney which was probably being used to heat up metals. Soren scurried after them, entering through the second corridor. The booming echoes were slowly becoming more and more distant. ¡°I didn¡¯t think you guys had an Aretores in the guild.¡± Myrin nodded, ¡°Noctharn is very talented¡ªwe¡¯re glad to have him. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that he¡¯s here secretly, he¡¯d probably be ranked in the top ten most prestigious blacksmiths in the entire kingdom.¡± It sounded very impressive, but Soren found it comical. How the hell did they manage to hide someone this massive¡­ ¡°We aren¡¯t hiding him,¡± Myrin read his thoughts again. ¡°He¡¯s hiding himself. Noctharn is technically a fugitive from the Eclipse Moor.¡± I seriously need to find a better way to hide my thoughts¡­ He glanced at Myrin who probably read this thought as well¡ªhe was smirking. ¡°We¡¯re here,¡± Tina cut through their conversation. Soren looked up and saw a door similar to the Dungeon Door he¡¯d seen before. This one however, didn¡¯t radiate in energy¡ªit was nothing but a simple door now, not supported by the dungeon¡¯s vital energy. Tina was about to knock when it flew open on its own. A man with an annoyed expression wearing a monocle on his right eye and a greenish-white turban over his head paired with a similar colored robe stomped out of the room, shoving Tina to the side. ¡°Damn witch.¡± He cursed on his way out. ¡°Someone in the guild?¡± Soren asked.You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. ¡°Nay,¡± Myrin retorted. ¡°That¡¯s Lazaren from the Silver Vial Distillery. It''s another shadow guild.¡± They all then heard a sigh coming from the room. Shorter than even Tyrel, a small girl emerged. She was wearing a dark purple robe paired with a cone hat of the same color. Her jet-black hair cascaded past her sharp ears down to her shoulders. Soren glanced into her amber-colored eyes and frowned. ¡°Is she Tyrel¡¯s sister?¡± Tina couldn¡¯t hold it in and burst into laughter. ¡°N-no¡­¡± He watched as the little girl¡¯s face turned bright red. Oh no, he thought. ¡°I am not related to that dwarf!¡± She declared. Soren tried his best, but he couldn¡¯t help his lips curving up into a smile. ¡°I¡­ I see¡­¡± ¡°Are you making fun of me?¡± She said, her eyes filling with anger. ¡°Now, now Cassia,¡± Myrin interrupted. ¡°It was nothing but an innocent question. He meant nothing by it, right Soren?¡± He looked at him for assurance. Soren decided to play along, ¡°Yes, I apologize.¡± ¡°Hmph,¡± Cassia turned around and entered back inside the room. It was only then that he noticed her tail. It was long and sleek, overlapping in scales. Cassia flicked it around, matching her mood. A Drakar? He thought. Soren took a glimpse of the room inside¡ªit was a massive lounge, fitted with countless wooden shelves and tables. At the center was a coffee table surrounded by leather sofas, and in the far back, he could see what looked to be a mini-bar. Despite the cozy atmosphere, no one was around to enjoy it aside from the lady behind the counter tending to the mini-bar. She waved at them joyfully. ¡°How was your trip guys? Was the mission a success?¡± Myrin smiled, ¡°Glad to see you again Joyce. And yes, it turned out well. Is Candice and Nicholas here?¡± She shook her head, ¡°Nope. Those two love-birds are out roaming the city. I asked them to bring some fresh bread from aunt Luna¡¯s stand.¡± Soren took in the views as he followed behind Cassia who threw herself on the sofa. ¡°I seriously need a drink after that one¡­¡± ¡°You¡¯re still a kid,¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°Get taller than Tyrel and we¡¯ll consider it.¡± Cassia crossed her arms and turned away, not wanting to hear the lecture. ¡°What happened to that guy from Silver Vial Distillery?¡± Tina asked her while placing down the crates next to the entrance. ¡°Ah, that¡­¡± Soren decided to sit on the sofa with Myrin and the others as well to listen to the story. ¡°That bastard,¡± she cursed. ¡°He wants our Mistress to help them decipher a new recipe they found. I was trying to negotiate with him, but he kept trying to sidestep the conversation. He¡¯s clearly looking down on us so I kicked him out.¡± Tina frowned. ¡°I am guessing the terms were bad?¡± ¡°Very bad. In exchange for our mistress¡¯ help, they would give us a 40% discount on all potions we purchase from them. Arrogant bastard.¡± Myrin nodded, ¡°Indeed, that is a very bad deal.¡± ¡°By the way,¡± Cassia then turned toward Soren, startling him. ¡°Who the hell is this guy?¡± ¡°Oh him?¡± Myrin grinned. ¡°Meet our newest member! Soren Andersen!¡± She squinted her eyes, sizing him up. ¡°He looks pretty weak.¡± You¡¯re one to talk, he wanted to say, but decided to stay silent. Myrin chuckled. ¡°You¡¯re not wrong. But his abilities lie elsewhere. He¡¯s a Vagrant Phantasm just like me, after all.¡± Her eyes widened, ¡°Whaaaaat?!¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but grin like a child. Yeah, I am awesome like that. ¡°But doesn¡¯t that mean he¡¯s going to die soon?¡± She poured cold water on him immediately. This twerp¡­ Tina nodded, ¡°His situation is pretty bad, yes. But that¡¯s why we brought him with us. We hoped that maybe our mistress had a solution to his dilemma.¡± ¡°I see, I see¡­¡± He saw Cassia lean back against the sofa, deep in thought. The room fell to silence for a bit before she leaned back forward and smiled at Soren. ¡°I didn¡¯t introduce myself to you, I am Cassia, disciple of Mistress Sienna, the last Witch of Star Fate. ¡°Nice to meet you.¡± Soren was stunned for words¡ªhe didn¡¯t expect the sudden shift in attitude. ¡°Nice to meet you as well. I am Soren Andersen. A traveler and scribe.¡± He went by his vocation and title on his status sheet. She nodded before turning to face Tina, ¡°Speaking of that dwarf, where is he? Didn¡¯t he leave with you guys?¡± Tina shook her head, ¡°He split from us on a separate mission. Once the others arrive, we¡¯ll discuss what happened in Yadria.¡± ¡°Alright,¡± Cassia nodded. The girl named Joyce walked toward the table carrying plates of chocolate cake and what looked to be orange juice. Soren took note of her appearance¡ªshe was a young woman that looked to be in her mid-twenties with her most prominent feature being her pair of feline ears sticking above her luscious blonde hair. Behind her sharply pointed pupils was an emerald green with hints of gold that expanded with the dimming light. She held a warm smile as she placed the food and drinks on the table. As for her clothing, he didn¡¯t notice any kind of weapon that could hint at whether she was a fighter or not. She bore a white blouse layered underneath a black leathered apron that extended down into a skirt¡ªtypical clothing for a bartender. Myrin smiled, ¡°Thank¡¯s a lot Joyce. I missed your desserts.¡± ¡°Same,¡± Tina added, shoving a spoonful down her mouth without care. Joyce smiled at the both and sat next to Cassia, who was also taking smaller bites out of her plate. She then looked at Soren. ¡°I¡¯ve heard we had a new addition to the guild, nice to meet you. My name is Joyce Graywood.¡± ¡°Graywood?¡± Soren lifted his brow. ¡°You¡¯re Tina¡¯s sister?¡± Joyce giggled, ¡°Yes, but we aren¡¯t blood related.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± His first assumption was that they might have been half-sisters. ¡°Joyce and I belonged to the same orphanage. The Graywood Orphanage.¡± Tina said. ¡°We both graduated as certified Silver Moon nuns from there.¡± Chapter 55: The Interview

Chapter 55: The Interview

¡°However,¡± she exhaled. ¡°Let¡¯s leave me and Joyce¡¯s life story for later. There¡¯s a more important thing to discuss right now.¡± Soren tilted his head, ¡°More important?¡± He felt the air shift, everyone for some reason had turned serious. Even Cassia who was childishly enjoying her chocolate cake had put her plate down. All of them were staring squarely at him. ¡°Is there something on my face,¡± Soren asked awkwardly. ¡°So you wish to join our guild,¡± Cassia spoke in a solemn voice, unlike her nature. ¡°What is your goal in doing so?¡± Soren glanced around for a second and saw them all awaiting his answer. He sighed. ¡°I wish to get stronger. I want to become a magus.¡± She nodded, ¡°A fair and reasonable goal. But why should we allow you into our guild? The goal you speak of is something personal, however, our goal as a guild is to aid our Mistress in uncovering the truth behind Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate. You don¡¯t seem to share in that goal.¡± ¡°Who said I didn¡¯t? It¡¯s a fun and interesting goal¡ªwhy wouldn¡¯t I want to?¡± Soren smiled. He noticed Joyce who was sitting to the left of Cassia giggling, much to her annoyance. Myrin chuckled as well¡ªhe glanced at Cassia. ¡°Cassia, your logic doesn¡¯t work on him. He¡¯s a maniac that chases after thrills¡ªeven dangerous ones. I don¡¯t think he values his life enough.¡± ¡°I do value my life,¡± Soren retorted. ¡°But at the end of the day, a life full of safety but no fun is not valuable to me. I¡¯ve already spent most of my childhood listening to what other people want from me¡ªscrew that.¡± ¡°An interesting outlook,¡± Joyce replied. ¡°But what if the danger is so high, it''s improbable you¡¯ll have fun?¡± ¡°Then you simply run away and don¡¯t look back.¡± Cassia¡¯s face contorted as Myrin¡¯s laughs filled the room. ¡°How foolish¡­¡± Soren shrugged. Wiping the annoyance off her face, she continued. ¡°Let¡¯s move past this then. You said you want to be a magus. Does this mean you want our Mistress to teach you?¡± The room fell into silence. Soren could see Myrin¡¯s smirk from the corner of his eye. Not sensing an answer, Cassia sighed. ¡°Our Mistress so far has rejected every aspiring magus that had arrived at her doorstep. Even the famed scholars of Luvinica who all are a few hundred years old have begged for her teachings, and none of them were accepted as students. The headmaster of Luvinica once offered her the role of Dean and even Chancellor, and she still rejected his offers. ¡°The point is, her standards are high¡ªlike really high.¡± ¡°But you and Myrin are her students, no?¡± Soren frowned. Cassia grinned as she leaned her hands against her hips and puffed her cheeks. ¡°Why of course. I¡¯m extremely talented, you know?¡± ¡°So then it¡¯s still possible, no?¡± Myrin chuckled. ¡°It¡¯s not a matter of yes or no. It¡¯s a matter of fate. Our mistress will only accept you as her student if you are fated to be.¡± ¡°What the hell does that mean?¡± Myrin shrugged. ¡°Not even I know what machinations she follows.¡± ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it too much,¡± Tina interrupted. ¡°Even if she doesn¡¯t accept you as a formal student, that doesn¡¯t mean she won''t teach you. We have all received guidance from her. Your first goal is to pass this interview and join the guild officially.¡± ¡°I see. Well then let¡¯s carry on.¡± Soren said while leaning back against the sofa. ¡°Ask your questions.¡± ¡°I¡¯ll go first,¡± Joyce said joyfully. ¡°Are you a Phantasm?¡± Soren nodded, ¡°Yes.¡± He pulled out his Soul Weapon, its delipidated state raised her eyebrows. ¡°It¡¯s called The Records. It has two abilities, [Record] and [Eyes of the Fairy] ¡­¡± He continued his explanation. ¡°How intriguing¡­¡± Cassia commented. ¡°This could prove immensely useful in dungeon dives.¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°It¡¯s a lot more versatile than you think. He was able to navigate Yadria¡¯s illusionary barrier as well as many other stupendous feats. It¡¯s also very fitting for his goal.¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± she replied. ¡°Scholars of magecraft are usually the ones stuck compiling grimoires, while magi utilize them as their affinities see fit.¡± She smiled devilishly at Myrin. ¡°Do you see what I am proposing here?¡± Myrin nodded, ignoring the odd stares from the others. ¡°What are you two plotting?¡± Soren asked. ¡°It¡¯s fairly simple,¡± Cassia replied. ¡°A magi¡¯s number one flaw is the search for a compatible grimoire. You could have the most amazing affinities of them all, but without a grimoire fitted with magecraft you could use, your abilities are useless. And grimoires themselves are fairly complicated¡ªyou need to be able to master your understanding of material runes and its rules to create spellforms that match your affinity. And this also demands experimentation. Just simply creating a spellform isn¡¯t enough¡ªsomething that sounds good on paper might not always be practical.This novel is published on a different platform. Support the original author by finding the official source. ¡°Because of this, the magi of Luvinica that are most successful tend to be ones with affinities that are common or well known. This is called the Loringer effect, coined after Archmage Loringer who studied this phenomena. After all, if you were born with affinities that are uncommon or rare, the chances of finding a suitable grimoire are slim to none. Most tend to resolve themselves into becoming magi scholars rather than fully fledged magi; they will spend their lives researching their own affinities and compiling a grimoire out of that research. But even if they succeed, a first generation grimoire is still nothing compared to more documented grimoires. Applications of Magma Combat for example, is a famous grimoire with hundreds of copies. Do you know what edition it''s currently in?¡± Soren decided not to throw a guess. ¡°543rd Edition. It has been amended 543 times over the course of 400 years.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened in shock. ¡°I am guessing there are even older grimoires?¡± She nodded, ¡°Yes, but they are kept secret by organizations and don¡¯t have any copies. Occasionally, a secretive grimoire gets leaked somehow, which results in a bidding war, or sometimes¡ªactual war.¡± ¡°War?!¡± He couldn¡¯t believe it. There were entire battles being fought over a damn book? Tina rolled her eyes, ¡°Stop trying to hype it up so much. Our Soul Manuals are just as desired.¡± Cassia chuckled and ignored her, prompting Soren to ask. ¡°What¡¯s a Soul Manual?¡± ¡°Soul Manuals are the equivalent to Grimoires but for Sentinels.¡± Tina replied. ¡°They hold techniques that allow us to manipulate our Soul Frames in distinct ways.¡± ¡°Back to the real topic,¡± Cassia said¡ªthe attitude rolling out of her tongue smoothly. ¡°With the dilemma that I just presented, being a magus is not just about talent, it''s also a matter of luck. Without the right affinities, you are screwed.¡± ¡°But this is where you come in,¡± Myrin interrupted Cassia¡¯s flow. ¡°You don¡¯t need to care what affinities you hold. Even if they are rare, your abilities will allow you to research them much more quickly than anyone else facing the same issue!¡± Soren lowered his head. He¡¯s right¡­ It finally made sense to him why Myrin was so proactive in teaching him during his trip to Yadria. His abilities were practically made for being a magus. His heart began to race as excitement bubbled within his throat. ¡°You don¡¯t even need a grimoire,¡± Joyce said. ¡°Your Soul Weapon already is one.¡± Cassia crossed her arms and puffed her cheeks. ¡°How unfair. I want his Soul Weapon.¡± ¡°Keep your jealousy in check, I only have a few days left to live, remember?¡± ¡°Oh yeah¡­¡± She remembered. ¡°Nevermind, return to sender.¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°I assume you already have one too, correct? A Soul Weapon.¡± Cassia squinted her eyes, ¡°Very astute of you.¡± ¡°Well it wouldn¡¯t make sense otherwise if Myrin already had one and you didn¡¯t.¡± She nodded, ¡°Yes I do have a Soul Weapon. But I won¡¯t be showing it to you until you are accepted to the guild. Which leaves me with my final question. ¡°Where the hell did you come from?¡± The room fell silent once more. Even Myrin this time was anticipating an answer. Seeing this, Soren couldn¡¯t help but smile. He had already considered this countless times during his trip¡ªthat one day, he might need to disclose his origins. Although it wasn¡¯t that big of a deal to him when he first arrived, his journey across Yadria as well as his meeting with that demon changed his perspective a bit. Soren couldn¡¯t just absorb knowledge. He also needed to make sure knowledge about himself didn¡¯t get out. That demon had called him a fairy and was able to detect this obscure quality about him that he himself didn¡¯t know. And the same could be said with Myrin who could occasionally listen in on his thoughts. He hated this lack of control. He hated the fact that he was being read like an open book. But he also realized that there were times when it was best to give in rather than stubbornly clinging to one¡¯s ego. ¡°I have told Tina, Myrin, and Tyrel this before. I come from another world. A world called Earth.¡± ¡°Earth?¡± Cassia lifted her brow. ¡°I have never heard of it.¡± ¡°It is beyond the Endless Sea,¡± Myrin said. ¡°A faraway realm, similar to where the Vynasians come from. Though I doubt they share any similarities with one another.¡± ¡°Regardless of where this world is,¡± Soren replied, ¡°just know that it is a world that is highly advanced in technology and culture. Magecraft didn¡¯t exist there¡ªat least not that I was aware of.¡± Until now, he wanted to add on, but decided not to. It was obvious with Scribe-of-Worlds still being a major threat, there had to be other anomalies and mysteries on Earth that he was unaware of. ¡°No magecraft?¡± Myrin rubbed his chin. He frowned and glanced over at Cassia who was just as perplexed. ¡°Is that even possible?¡± Her eyes turned into razor sharp slits, like a predator eyeing food. ¡°How interesting¡­¡± She smiled devilishly. ¡°I want to visit this world.¡± Myrin chuckled, ¡°We still haven¡¯t even discovered where the Vynasians come from after all these centuries¡­¡± ¡°Either way,¡± she interrupted. ¡°Let¡¯s say I believe your story. If magecraft wasn¡¯t a common thing in your world, how did you arrive here in Yarian?¡± Soren frowned. ¡°A ritual. One that I found onli¡ªI mean, I found it in an archive.¡± ¡°Do you still have the details of that ritual?¡± Tina asked and Soren nodded in return. ¡°Let¡¯s leave it to the mistress,¡± Cassia said. ¡°Her expertise in Runology is far better than mine. Besides, I wouldn¡¯t want him to recite an incantation or something here, that¡¯s a bit dangerous.¡± ¡°Agreed,¡± replied Myrin. Suddenly, they heard the door leading to the lounge swing open. A bronze-skinned, middle-aged man wearing a vest paired with a white shirt underneath stepped inside. He brushed his silver hair back while frowning. A shorter woman wearing glasses followed him inside. ¡°Nicholas! Candice!¡± Cassia said joyfully. The woman walked past the gentleman and waved a bag of groceries, ¡°We brought fresh bread.¡± She glanced at who was sitting on the sofas¡ªher eyes widened. ¡°Oho? Myrin, Tina? You¡¯re back from the trip?!¡± She ran up to Tina and gave her a hug, ¡°It¡¯s nice to see you again~¡± Cassia on the other hand was more preoccupied with looking through the bag of groceries. Tina tried to form a smile, ¡°I missed you as well¡­¡± She then glanced over at where Soren was sitting, ¡°A new face?¡± ¡°Yes, and he might be joining our guild soon.¡± replied Myrin. He glanced over at Cassia who was taking a whiff of the bread inside the bag. ¡°Even the fiery little dragon witch seems convinced of him.¡± He chuckled. Chapter 56: The Mistress

Chapter 56: The Mistress

Candice took a good look at him, and Soren did the same. Her eyes, which were hidden beneath her glasses, were hazel gray. Beneath her crown of curly brown hair, she wore a fanciful auburn dress with frills that wrapped around her chest. Although her skin was fairly smooth, Soren could tell she was a bit older than the rest. ¡°The name¡¯s Soren. Soren Andersen. Nice to meet you.¡± Her eyes widened. ¡°Oh my, how rude of me. I am Candice Silvers.¡± She pointed at the middle-aged man with silver hair and skin that¡¯s been baked under the summer¡¯s sun. He was taking off his vest and top-hat and hanging them from the door. ¡°And he¡¯s my husband, Nicholas Silvers.¡± Soren shook her hand and smiled. She glanced over to where Myrin was sitting¡ªhe was gracefully taking a bite from his chocolate cake slice. ¡°So how was the trip? Clearly a lot happened, it seems?¡± Myrin chuckled, ¡°More than my stomach could handle, it seems¡­¡± He began explaining how their trip had gone. From meeting Soren at the designated place their Mistress had foretold, to their arrival at Point Sylvia, and their decision to split up with Tyrel so that he could lead the refugees away from the forest. He also told them about the spread of the Nameless Mist and the strange occurrences that had happened in Yadria alongside his own experiences in Floramere Keep and meeting the Saintess of Dreams. ¡°All of that happened?!¡± Cassia¡¯s jaw dropped. ¡°I should have come with you guys! This is unfair!¡± She puffed her chest with anger. ¡°Now now,¡± Candice said. ¡°You had other duties to attend to¡­¡± ¡°Hmph,¡± Cassia crossed her arms and looked away. Myrin continued, ¡°Alongside the materials Tina had gathered, I too managed to contain a few samples of the Nameless Mist for study. I''ll be giving a few of them to the Aelloran authorities once they give us the summons to the Citadel.¡± ¡°That is definitely a good idea¡­ Actually, I also have some news to share.¡± Cassia and the others glanced over at Candice. The man named Nicholas also sat on the sofa next to her. ¡°It seems that a peace agreement has been negotiated between Aellora and Staterra. For the first time, they plan to cooperate in diving deeper into the Avalon Ruins.¡± Myrin¡¯s lips curved into a smile, ¡°How interesting¡­ Does the Silver Moon Church agree with this?¡± Nicholas spoke for the first time, ¡°I believe they plan to not interfere¡­ But that doesn¡¯t really mean complete approval.¡± ¡°By Her silver grace¡­¡± Tina clenched her fists. ¡°If they decided to cooperate, that must mean that whatever they discovered has to be something Aellora couldn¡¯t handle on its own¡­¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°The timing is also very¡­ Impeccable. The Church of Nature¡¯s ritual to the Greenfather is also going to be hosted fairly soon, and under the negotiation agreement with Yadria, they too will probably be participating in the Dungeon Dive. I honestly can¡¯t believe it; this is the first time in probably 500 years that Aellora, Yadria, and Staterra have ever collaborated on anything together.¡± Cassia finished her cake and gulped down the last of her drink. She swiftly stood up and smiled playfully. ¡°Alright, enough chit-chat.¡± She glanced at Soren, ¡°You¡¯ll be coming with me now.¡± Soren squinted, ¡°To where?¡± ¡°To meet mistress Sienna, of course.¡±
Soren walked down the dimly lit corridor behind Cassia who swung her tail happily as she hummed joyfully under her breath. They had left the lounge area and everyone else in Star Fate Guild behind.Love this story? Find the genuine version on the author''s preferred platform and support their work! ¡°Uh, Cassia¡ª¡± ¡°Call me Miss Cassia.¡± ¡°Miss Cassia,¡± he corrected. ¡°Why did you decide to take me to meet the mistress? I know you said the interview was over, but I thought you said she was busy?¡± She slightly corrected her cone hat as she glanced back at him, ¡°It¡¯s because the mistress told me to bring you.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Cassia continued walking, ignoring his confusion. The corridor ended at a fork¡ªshe took the tunnel to the left. Soren followed after her. For a while, all he could hear was the sound of their footsteps as she led him toward her mistress¡¯ chamber. After ten or so minutes of walking, the mouth of the corridor opened, and his eyes widened to what he was seeing. The end of the tunnel had widened into a large luscious garden, filled with glowing trees, enchantingly long mushrooms, and flocks of fireflies roaming freely. A miniature Feylith Forest. Even though they were deep underground and it was eerily dark, the flora flourished under a veil of moonlight. He looked up at the ceiling, which reflected a false night sky with its own stars and constellations. A subterranean biosphere¡ªone that bogged his mind. Cassia ignored his reaction and kept walking. He didn¡¯t know what to say so he simply followed after her. Soren took in the views¡ªit was beyond beautiful. Between the trees, he spotted cyan eyes staring back at him¡ªhe assumed it was some sort of deer or other creature. Perhaps a Spirit Beast? Hard to say. They kept walking and walking, until they reached what felt like the center of this underground eden. A meadow came into view. Soren spotted what looked to be a stone canopy at the center, surrounded by stacks and stacks of books scattered across the cyan grass. Inside the canopy was the enchanting visage of a woman¡ªher hair fluttered on its own, as if being blown by an invisible wind. Her star-filled eyes stared into the distance, as if enamored by visions only she could see. Her snow-white skin glowed from the light emitting from what Soren could only describe as a miniature star. It floated freely above the woman¡¯s palm, spinning swiftly. She donned a simple cyan robe paired with a cone hat of the same color, though a silver crown went around its brim, glittering in the starlight. ¡°Mistress Sienna,¡± Cassia took the strands of her robe and pulled them apart, took a graceful step forward and curtsied a slight bow. ¡°I have brought to you the one in your prophecy, as instructed.¡± The ethereal woman glanced at them and smiled. Her nebulous, silver hair fell down to her slim shoulders, no longer carried by the invisible wind. Even the mysterious miniature star had vanished, casting the canopy back into dimness. ¡°My dear, come closer.¡± Cassia did as she was bid while Soren stayed where he was. She patted her on the head and pinched her cheeks. ¡°What did I tell you about not eating too many sweets?¡± Cassia turned red, ¡°J-joyce offered it to me!¡± Sienna giggled and turned back to where Soren was standing. ¡°You may approach me as well, Soren Andersen.¡± His brows lifted, ¡°You know my name?¡± He slowly walked toward her. ¡°I know more than just your name,¡± she replied. ¡°Your arrival in Yarian was something this world¡¯s destiny had foretold¡­¡± Soren stepped inside the canopy. Taking a closer look, he was surprised to see that his initial observation wasn¡¯t incorrect¡ªthere were stars swimming in her eyes, dancing faintly, as if her irises hid another universe. ¡°World¡¯s destiny¡­ Are you saying I am some sort of chosen one or something?¡± It felt embarrassing just saying the words. She shook her head. ¡°Nay, nothing so simple. The machinations of fate do not choose favorites. You may have a role to play in this world, but what that role is, is not rigidly defined. Mayhaps you will be the catalyst of its destruction, a gear in its progress toward something, or something in between the first two. But more than likely, it may relate to Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate.¡± ¡°I keep hearing about this Celestial Fate,¡± he stated with his arms crossed. ¡°What does it mean?¡± She chuckled while petting Cassia who was now sleeping on her lap. ¡°Fate is divided into three layers. Epoch, World, and Celestial. You can think of these ¡®Fates¡¯ as celestial objects orbiting around a center. Each represents a certain concept but all of them together are what we astrologers call the Orbits of Fate. The final orbit, Celestial, defines the meaning of this world¡¯s movements in relation to other realms. ¡°Ever since Yasini¡¯s Demise more than a millennium ago, this orbit had ceased all of its movements and hidden itself. Occasionally, glimpses of it appear whenever the rift opens its jagged maw. Especially when the Vynasians and their rift crossing fleets arrive here. But no movement, no hint, no glimpse has ever been so deliberate as the one you caused by arriving here, Mr. Traveler.¡± His eyes widened in shock. ¡°H-how do you know that title?¡± Her enchanting smile widened as the stars in her eyes stirred, ¡°Don¡¯t worry about Cassia. She had already fallen asleep.¡± Chapter 57: An Accord

Chapter 57: An Accord

¡°As for how I know of your supposed title, I have my ways of course¡­¡± Her eyes glanced up and down his body. ¡°But nothing is more telling than your very soul. I can sense a deep yet obscure anima hidden within you. One that is foreign to your body. ¡°It seems to be a blessing of some sort. One that even I cannot remove.¡± ¡°A blessing?¡± Soren wondered. Mr. Unknown did grant that title to him. Its effects gave him some protection from the echoes of the rift. He did question its effectiveness, however. After all, the memories of what happened to him at the very end of his journey to the Heart¡¯s Shroud still continued to haunt him. He considered his words carefully before replying. ¡°Mistress Sienna¡­ I do not want to rely on the help of an outsider, especially one I have no relationship with.¡± She propped her elbow on the railing of the canopy and leaned her head against her palm, ¡°Oho?¡± Her lips curved into a warm smile. ¡°Will you take me in as a student?¡± He asked. For a moment, the only thing Soren could hear was the sound of his own heartbeat as well as the swaying of branches in the surrounding garden. She continued observing him for a few more agonizing minutes before the silence broke. ¡°Show me your Soul Realm,¡± she commanded. ¡°Yes, Ma¡¯am.¡± Soren did as he was bid. He slowly expanded his will around him, covering the entire marble canopy in a bubble. Sienna glanced up and observed. He didn¡¯t know what she was seeing and decided to wait for her to tell him herself. ¡°Hmm.¡± She thought. ¡°How interesting. Your anima seems to overlap both the natural world and the beyond. Actually, can I even call it your anima?¡± Soren¡¯s brow lifted. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°It means your Soul Realm which is a representation of your inner self and your Runic Existence which is a representation of your Soul within the Beyond are practically one in the same.¡± Soren remembered his experience within the Heart¡¯s Shroud. Should I tell her? He was still hesitant about revealing what his Inner Self looked like. He decided to just stay quiet. She continued to observe his Soul Realm before commenting again. ¡°Still, this isn¡¯t bad. Managing to unlock your Soul Realm with only a few days of training is not only highly impressive, but very dangerous as well. As for the Mystery regarding your anima¡­ That will be something you¡¯ll need to discover on your own.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve been wondering,¡± he said. ¡°My Soul Realm is currently in the nascent stage. How exactly should I go about upgrading it?¡± ¡°You¡¯re asking the wrong question,¡± she answered. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°A Soul Realm¡¯s mastery isn¡¯t just about improving its quality¡ªthat is something that will require you to build upon your Three Layers of Self and is something most magi never accomplish in their lifetimes. What you need to focus on right now is mastering your control over what you have. How long can you keep your Soul Realm expanded for?¡± Soren frowned, ¡°Only 30 something seconds¡­¡± He was very embarrassed by this. He had assumed that with his constant usage of the ability, he would slowly get used to it. But that turned out not to be the case. Ever since unlocking his Soul Realm a week or so ago, there had been no improvements at all. ¡°Makes perfect sense,¡± she said. ¡°You still haven¡¯t manifested a single Channel of Willpower.¡± He heard that term before. ¡°Myrin had mentioned this to me¡­ But he refused to disclose any info on it even when I tried to pry it out of his tongue.¡± It pissed him off the more he thought about it. What was the point of unlocking a Soul Realm if he wasn¡¯t going to teach him how to improve it? ¡°Myrin had a very valid reason for this, so do not blame him too much.¡± ¡°A reason?¡± He tilted his head. She nodded. ¡°Yes. The whole purpose behind unlocking your Soul Realm was due to him wanting you to regain control over your Echo of Mind. Your Soul Weapon had been creating many contradictory thoughts within it, ones that Myrin was able to pick up. In theory, if you were able to take back control of your Echo of Mind by manifesting a Soul Realm, you would automatically create another obstacle in the struggle between you and your Soul Weapon, or more specifically, the Abstract Rune that powers it.¡± She crossed her arms while keeping her innocently warm smile. ¡°Myrin however, didn¡¯t account for one other factor when it comes to how you were able to survive this long.¡± One other factor? He tried to theorize what it could be but came empty handed. Sienna realized and decided to give the answer. ¡°The law of Mirrored Influence. That is what we magi call it. For every amount of influence exerted on the natural world through Mysteries, the same amount of influence is reflected into The Beyond.¡± She chuckled, ¡°There¡¯s a common saying that is taught in Luvinica. It goes like this¡ªthe more one interacts with the Beyond, the more it changes¡­ What many of those scholars don¡¯t know, however, is that this statement originated from an ancient Empyrean. They were His last words. The Law of Mirrored Influence is far more ¡®influential¡¯ on Phantasms than it is on regular magi.¡± Soren pondered over her words slowly. ¡°Are you saying that my usage of [Eyes of the Fairy] which interacts with the Beyond has an influence on my lifespan? B-but how¡­¡± This novel''s true home is a different platform. Support the author by finding it there. ¡°Simple, really.¡± She replied. ¡°It has to do with how Abstract Runes function. But this is a discussion we can have much later. Right now, I want to gauge your answer about something.¡± Suddenly, the air shifted¡ªher face had turned semi serious. ¡°Soren,¡± she said solemnly. ¡°I would like to offer you an accord.¡± ¡°An accord?¡± He frowned. ¡°Demonology?¡± She shook her head, ¡°It¡¯s very similar to that field, but no. An accord uses the same logic and parameters as contractual magecraft, but the difference is, rather than a bond between souls, it is a vow you uphold upon yourself¡ªone that is witnessed by a person who dictates the edict in question.¡± The words floated around in his mind chaotically¡ªhe didn¡¯t understand what any of that jargon meant. ¡°How should I explain it,¡± she pondered. ¡°Essentially, you are creating a promise to yourself, and I, to uphold a certain edict. You can think of edicts as rules that are manifested from the authority of a certain concept. When it comes to your case, the Accord I am proposing will entail an edict formed from the concepts I administer¡ªStar Fate. ¡°To put it in simple terms, you will be vowing under the rule of my edict to freeze the fate of your Soul Chain.¡± ¡°Freeze¡­ My Soul Chain¡¯s fate?¡± His face was filled with confusion. She nodded. ¡°From what I have observed so far, it seems the way you merged with your Abstract Rune was very unnatural. I am unsure what method you utilized¡ªyou spoke of a ritual of some kind, but no Soul Alchemy Ritual is as simple as the one you described. It is most definitely concerning. ¡°Tell me, Soren. Have you ever tried to use your [Eyes of the Fairy] ability on yourself?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°More specifically,¡± she followed, ¡°on your Soul Weapon.¡± Soren squinted and looked down at the ancient tome he was holding¡ªits cracked leather looked dilapidated even from this distance. ¡°Now that you mention it¡­¡± Why didn¡¯t I think of that? It should have been an easy conclusion to make¡­ ¡°You¡¯re probably thinking, why didn¡¯t I think of that right now, aren¡¯t you?¡± He nodded. ¡°Yes¡­¡± Her smile crept up her cheeks. ¡°It¡¯s not that you didn¡¯t think of it. You for certain did. It was just erased from your mind. ¡°More specifically, you steered yourself away from that thought. And when I say you, I don¡¯t mean the you standing here right now¡­¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened as he stared at his deactivated Soul Weapon. ¡°You don¡¯t mean¡­¡± ¡°Yes. Your Soul Weapon has been subtly influencing you, steering you away from this conclusion. Still, your ability to manifest a Soul Realm greatly thwarted this outcome. Usually, those who undergo Soul Alchemy Rituals tend to be already well established Magi and Sentinels¡ªtheir Soul Realms and Soul Frames give them an edge in fighting against the corruption of the Abstract Rune. You on the other hand became a Phantasm prior to even knowing what magecraft even was. It¡¯s already a miracle you weren¡¯t taken over completely.¡± ¡°So then¡­ What do you propose I do¡­ Should I peer into my own Soul Weapon using [Eyes of the Fairy]?¡± She shook her head. ¡°No. Although your Soul Weapon steered you away it, that doesn¡¯t automatically mean that its something you should do. At the end of the day, your Soul Weapon is still a part of you. You are its host¡ªits sustenance. Your purpose is to spread its influence upon the world. It may want to harm you, but that¡¯s only for the sake of gaining more control and leverage over you. It is outside a Soul Weapon¡¯s interests to harm you in a way that doesn¡¯t benefit it, so it steering you away from the thought of using [Eyes of the Fairy] might be its way of self-preservation, not just deception. ¡°A far better method would be undergoing a Soul Dive test. It will most likely offer the same results but with a thicker layer of protection, especially with my magecraft acting as a filter.¡± Soren nodded, ¡°I see¡­ But then why does this mean I need to put a pause upon the fate of my Soul Chain¡­ What does this even mean, really?¡± ¡°Good question,¡± she smiled. ¡°The accord you will be agreeing to will freeze your Soul Chain¡¯s fate in place. This will accomplish two things. First, it will put an end to its instability, and two, it will be immune to all changes within yourself and the Beyond. Obviously, such a change will also prevent you from unlocking the next node in your Soul Chain, and even the influence you accumulate within the Beyond will build up, meaning your fragments of insight won¡¯t increase.¡± His eyes widened, ¡°So then I won¡¯t be able to grow as a Phantasm?¡± ¡°Nay, you can still grow.¡± Her smile turned devilish. ¡°The accord will last 1 year. After that year is up, it will unbind itself and your fate will resume once more.¡± He rubbed his chin, ¡°That doesn¡¯t seem so bad¡­¡± Even so, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a hint of suspicion. ¡°There¡¯s more to it than that, though, right?¡± Sienna giggled softly. ¡°Very astute. Yes, after the accord ends, the fate of your Soul Chain will resume as it once did a year ago. But there is one key difference. Remember how I mentioned that fate has layers to it? This accord deals with the innermost layer, Epoch. We are essentially pausing time itself around your Soul Chain, preserving it in its current state. The problem with this method, however, is that the other layers of fate also orbit¡ªspecifically, World. The World Fate, as its called, will continue its orbit and movements. That means that the moment the accord ceases its edict, its fate will begin to course correct in order to ¡®catch-up¡¯ on all the accumulated fate it needs to bring its orbit back in the correct position in relation to the World Fate.¡± ¡°I¡­ I didn¡¯t understand much of that¡­¡± Soren rubbed the back of neck awkwardly. ¡°But essentially, you are saying that my Soul Chain will experience everything it should have experienced in the duration of that year the moment the accord ends? Am I understanding this correctly?¡± She nodded, ¡°Yes, and it will happen instantaneously. That means all your accumulated corruption, instability, growth, influence¡­ All of it will impact your Soul Chain at once. As you currently stand, your instability is combating against the influence you are creating within the Beyond to break your Soul Chain, but your rate of influence is dwarfed by its rate of instability. You should technically have only a few days left before your Soul Weapon fully takes over your body. So picture what would happen if a year from now, the accord ends, and all the instability that you should have gained gradually over a year¡¯s length is suddenly added back to your Soul Chain.¡± ¡°It would instantly break apart and I¡¯ll lose control¡­¡± Soren answered as his voice slowly lowered in defeat. She nodded, ¡°Correct.¡± He glanced back up at her ethereal figure. ¡°So then¡­ What should I do after this year is up? Will I be doomed?¡± ¡°Most likely, yes.¡± She sighed. ¡°Your goal a year from now should be to focus on immediately unlocking your next node and merging with another Abstract Rune. That will reset the instability again. But as I stated, it will be extremely dangerous. You will have to undergo a Soul Alchemy Ritual while your Soul Chain breaks apart. You won¡¯t even have that much time to undergo the ritual itself¡ªmost likely only a minute or two before your Soul Chain shatters into pieces. That means the window of opportunity is pathetically small¡ªif you miss it, that will be the end of you.¡± Soren felt his shoulders weaken. He couldn¡¯t blame himself for feeling dejected. Throughout his journey to Yadria, he had constantly dreamed about this very moment¡ªmeeting this supposed Witch of Star Fate. His delusions spun tales of her casting away this supposed issue with his Soul Chain easily, of him journeying this world without any issues. Wake up, Soren. He thought. Nothing in this world comes easy or cheap. Soren looked up at Sienna¡ªlooking directly into her star-filled eyes. ¡°I agree to this Accord. Let us do it.¡± Her smile widened, ¡°I knew you¡¯d make the correct choice.¡± Chapter 58: The Next Steps

Chapter 58: The Next Steps

Soren walked behind Sienna as she led him through the garden. He glanced back at the now somewhat distant stone canopy filled to the brim with books and scrolls. The more he looked at it, the more he yearned to stay¡ªit was just that beautiful. There was an air of calmness and tranquility that imbued itself across the entire garden that he just couldn¡¯t understand. It felt as if all his worries were nothing but dust sprinkled across his raincoat¡ªones that he could simply blow away. ¡°Are you sure we should leave Cassia there?¡± He asked. She was still sleeping in the canopy. He glanced back in front of him, the cyan robed woman¡¯s silky white hair draped down to her bare feet, fluttering with the wind as she took step after step. She giggled faintly, ¡°Leave her, she will wake up on her own. She has homework to do in that canopy anyway.¡± Soren nodded. They continued to walk in silence for a while longer. His thoughts were churning, thinking about everything that has led to this moment. Everything that he must do from now on. What he was attempting was outright suicidal. And this wasn¡¯t something only he believed¡ªeven Sienna herself had made the choice seem fairly bleak. And there was also the matter regarding his ¡®Fate¡¯. For whatever reason, his arrival in this world was purposefully planned¡ªhe had some sort of role to play in Yarian. He had no idea what this supposedly meant for him, but it did make him afraid a little. The notion that he was nothing but a pawn in some celestial game that he had no understanding of only added to his worries. He had thought that maybe he could take comfort in that fact, since it might mean that his survival was guaranteed if he had a role to accomplish, but the same couldn¡¯t be said if his failure to control his Soul Chain¡¯s instability a year from now was a part of this grandeur plan. The words Mr Unknown had told him rang faintly in his mind, Explore, Dream, Discover. That was the goal of his journey. Does it have anything to do with that question? He pondered. It was the question that led him on this transmigratory trip to begin with. A question not even the ritual he performed had an answer for. Soren sighed as he kept his pace with Mistress Sienna. Whatever fate had in store for him, he needed to prepare for it. And that question as well¡­ He needed to look more into it. ¡°Say,¡± he spoke faintly. ¡°Since you are offering me an accord, does this mean you are willing to accept me as a student?¡± Her feet glided across the cyan grass, flickers of starlight flashing faintly beneath them with every step. She chuckled, ¡°Nay.¡± ¡°Nay?¡± Soren frowned. ¡°How can I accept students when I myself am a student?¡± She retorted. Soren couldn¡¯t help wanting to gasp. ¡°You? A student?¡± It felt like a lie. She giggled, ¡°My teacher, Archmage Solyara, had not yet given me permission to accept students.¡± ¡°B-but¡­¡± ¡°Myrin and Cassia? They aren¡¯t formal students. I am nothing more than a tutor for them. They are talented enough to reach the 3rd Circle on their own.¡± She glanced back at him and smiled, ¡°And you too, have the skills to reach their level without my help. In fact, you¡¯re probably the most likely to not need my help.¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but blush a little¡ªhe scratched his hair. ¡°Still, more than once, they called you their teacher.¡± She sighed, ¡°I guess I did teach them a lot when I first invited them to my guild. Especially Myrin.¡± Her lips curved into a smile, ¡°He was such a fool when I first met him. Continued trying to learn artfully useless magecraft, even when it didn¡¯t match his affinity. Watching him felt like seeing a fish that was hoping to fly. Maybe it''s this same obsession with music that eventually led him to obtaining that abstract rune¡­ ¡°But I digress. They may call me teacher, but I do not think I deserve such a role.¡± Soren nodded. More blackmail on Myrin, he thought. ¡°But even so,¡± she followed. ¡°That doesn¡¯t mean I won¡¯t tutor you. Whenever you feel stumped, feel free to come to me for assistance. And I will still be assigning you books to read¡ªyou have a lot to catch up with, unlike other aspiring magi your age.¡±This content has been misappropriated from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. ¡°That doesn¡¯t sound too bad,¡± he replied with a smile. ¡°My abilities are practically made for reading.¡± She glanced back at him, her star-filled eyes were a lot sharper this time. ¡°Are you sure about that?¡± ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°From what I understand of your [Eyes of the Fairy] ability, as well as [Record] which acts as a bridge between you and your Soul Weapon, they are not omniscient. And I don¡¯t mean that in regards to information reliability¡ªI am not sure whether it has the ability to filter through lies¡ªif it did, that would be absolutely spectacular. I mean it in the sense of information assimilation.¡± ¡°Assimilation?¡± His head tilted sideways. Mistress Sienna nodded. ¡°Hearing and memorizing information does not equate to mastering it. Aren¡¯t you speaking Vinuan right now? You most likely learned it using your abilities. Are you completely fluent now?¡± Soren frowned. ¡°Nay,¡± he answered. His language skills had definitely improved from where he was a week ago, but it was still somewhat unnatural. Even now, there was a clear and distinct accent in the way he talked. Some words were harder to roll off the tongue then others. To fix this, he had tried using [Eyes of the Fairy] a few more times to listen in on conversations from Myrin or Tina, but that proved to be ineffective¡ªnothing new could be [Record]ed. ¡°No matter how fast you can acquire knowledge, there will always be a limitation. Your mind may know the words to speak, but your tongue is still not used to saying said words. Your hands are not used to writing Vinuan script. That is an obstacle that can only be overcome through practice. ¡°The same applies to concepts in magecraft. Even if you are able to [Record] entire codexes of knowledge, none of it will matter if you aren¡¯t able to apply said knowledge correctly.¡± ¡°I see,¡± he murmured. ¡°Then I will take things slow.¡± She nodded, ¡°Good, good.¡± By now, they had walked to the edge of the underground forest. A stone corridor leading into the cliffside of the cave was only fifteen or so away from them. It was different from the one Cassia had led him through¡ªthey were heading in a different direction entirely. ¡°Say, you didn¡¯t tell me where we are heading? Does it have to do with the accord?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± she nodded. ¡°Before we conduct the accord between us, I will first be casting a magecraft spell on you.¡± ¡°Directly on me?¡± ¡°Indeed. It will be one that will give you an edge a year from now when you begin to fight against your instability once more.¡± She¡¯s adding guardrails, he thought. It should have been obvious to him. The moment the freeze on his Soul Chain¡¯s fate ceases, his instability will return to him at full force. Any form of protection, even if it was just enough to stall for time, would be helpful. ¡°The pain you will be experiencing will be immense, Mr. Traveler. This magecraft spell will have a mechanism that activates it automatically the moment your Soul Chain unfreezes. It should give you a bit of protection, but how long that lasts¡­¡± She stayed silent for a few more seconds. ¡°... I estimate it will only give you another minute at most. Maybe even less if the instability had grown drastically more than what I could predict.¡± Soren smiled, ¡°That will be more than enough, thank you.¡± Even though he said that, he couldn¡¯t help but want to bury his head under a pillow. His prospects were truly bleak. ¡°During this year, your biggest challenge will most likely be finding an Abstract Rune to merge with. Your second node demands one. Just one insight fragment is enough.¡± He had heard about this from Myrin. A Soul Chain¡¯s stability relies heavily on the Abstract Rune it binds. While a Soul Chain exerts force on an Abstract Rune, the Abstract Rune exerts force on the Soul Chain. It was through this balance that stability could be found. But that stability could only last for so long¡ªanother Abstract Rune must be added as a new counterweight. Still, he had no idea why this process was even as hard as Myrin described it as. ¡°Abstract Runes have distinct personalities,¡± she said. ¡°They hold influence over certain concepts and ideas, and these ideas may not mesh well with others. Sometimes, two different Abstract Runes can hold contradictory beliefs that make them inherently opposed to one another. And then there¡¯s also the matter of Soul Chain compatibility. ¡°The point is, simply finding an Abstract Rune isn''t enough. You need to find one that already meshes with your Soul Weapon and the current set of runes that govern its existence. This get¡¯s more and more difficult as you unlock more of your nodes¡ªyou will be subject to the criteria of multiple runes, all of which have a say in what new rune you merge with.¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but despair. This is going to be a tough year, he thought to himself. She giggled faintly at his silent reaction. ¡°Which brings me to my next point. Before I cast that magecraft spell, I think it''s best we conduct a Soul Dive test.¡± Chapter 59: Soul Dive Test

Chapter 59: Soul Dive Test

Soren walked through the stone corridor that was dimly lit with glowing crystals and flickering torches. Mistress Sienna was still leading him from the front. ¡°Say,¡± he voiced. ¡°Why did you choose to make this accord specifically for one year? Couldn¡¯t you continue to freeze my fate indefinitely?¡± She nodded, ¡°I definitely can.¡± Sienna then turned her neck back slightly, her eyes sharper. ¡°But is that really what you want?¡± His lips twitched. She was right¡ªthat wasn¡¯t what Soren wanted. If his Soul Chain was eternally put in stasis, he would have no opportunity to grow as a Phantasm. He would permanently be stuck with his current abilities with no way to upgrade his Soul Weapon. Maybe to a regular person, that was already good enough. But just the mere thought of stagnating when he had been gifted such an amazing Soul Weapon disgusted him. It was a waste not to risk his life on the sliver of a chance he has to move past his current limits. ¡°As for why I chose one year,¡± she followed. ¡°That is the maximum amount of time I can grant you without having your soul disintegrate from the corruption and instability. I made sure to calculate exactly how much corruption you will accumulate over a one year¡¯s length. The amount is just barely under the threshold of total failure.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± They continued walking down the lonely corridor for what felt like an eternity, until a wooden door presented itself before them. It was placed at the center of a fork in the road. The corridor had split into two¡ªleft and right of the entrance. ¡°Let¡¯s enter inside,¡± she said, cranking the door knob and pushing slightly¡ªheaps of dust fell from the hinges. It was clear to Soren that the room hadn¡¯t been used in ages. Entering inside, he was shocked once again. The room expanded outward into a circle. The floor extended down below their feet, creating a large basin filled with some sort of shimmering liquid. The basin stretched from one end of the room to the other, leaving only a little bit of space to walk in at the outer perimeter. Soren couldn¡¯t exactly tell what the liquid was, but he could feel that it was special. The more he stared at it, the more his eyes felt droopy. It shimmered slowly and peacefully, as if a thin layer of icy-white fog covered its surface. ¡°This is called a Soul Mirror. It¡¯s been a while since we¡¯ve had to use it. There¡¯s a magecraft spell beneath the surface of the pool that powers it.¡± Sienna walked up to the basin and smiled back at Soren. ¡°All you really need to know is that it has the ability to reflect Runic Existences as seen in the beyond, into reality.¡± Soren rubbed his chin, ¡°Interesting¡­ So this is what we¡¯ll be using for the Soul Dive test?¡± She laughed. ¡°Unlike your [Eyes of the Fairy], this method is far easier to utilize. And I have many wards placed around this room that filter out anything that might be¡­ Unpleasant.¡± Soren assumed she was speaking about the corruption originating within his abstract rune. ¡°So then¡­ How do we begin?¡± He asked. She smiled, ¡°Easy. Simply toss your Soul Weapon into the pool.¡± Soren glanced down at the ancient tome in his hands. Won¡¯t its pages get wet if I do that¡­ He thought. He didn¡¯t know why, but it felt as if The Records was also looking back at him. Screw it, he said to himself. I''ll trust the mistress. He took a deep breath, stretched out his arms and let go, dropping the Soul Weapon into the murky pool. Almost immediately, a change occurred. Within the ripples, a bead of water was coalescing. In the blink of an eye, it stretched upwards from the pool, shooting to his arm¡¯s length in height, as if mirroring how his Soul Weapon was dropped. Soren blinked a few times at what he was seeing. In front of him, a strange projection had appeared. It was a ring of some sort, with facets that formed strange geometry. Looking closer, Soren noticed that the ring was formed from millions of tiny butterflies, all flying in unison in that same constant shape. Confused, he glanced at Sienna who was standing next to him, but even she looked fairly perplexed. ¡°What am I looking at right now¡­¡± He was met with no answer. Sienna only broke her silence a minute later. ¡°That¡­ Is supposed to be your Soul Chain. But this is very strange¡­ Truly strange¡­¡± His confusion only grew. He wanted to question her, but her expression told him to be patient¡ªshe was clearly still trying to come to a conclusion. A minute later, she sighed and glanced over at Soren. ¡°Your Soul Chain¡­ It¡¯s not real.¡±Ensure your favorite authors get the support they deserve. Read this novel on the original website. ¡°Huh?¡± ¡°It¡¯s exactly as I said,¡± she affirmed. ¡°That is not what a real Soul Chain looks like. The ring is usually made of astral anima that has properties of the abstract rune you merged with. And that¡¯s true for the most part when looking at this one¡­ But look here,¡± she pointed at the projection. ¡°The ¡®Soul Chain¡¯ has no node.¡± He glanced at the rigid and oddly shaped geometrical ring. She was right. There was no channel or space for where the supposed abstract rune was meant to be locked in place. ¡°As you know, a Soul Chain is meant to be a trap that contains abstract runes to harness their power. So how can your Soul Chain not have anything to contain? It is simply illogical. But at the same time, the anima it is made from is clearly influenced by the concepts of the Abstract Rune you have merged with. You are still a Phantasm¡­ Somehow.¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but be even more confused after her explanation. ¡°Are you saying that my Soul Chain does exist somewhere, but the one before us is a fake? How is that even possible?¡± ¡°Your Soul Weapon,¡± she replied. ¡°Remember how I said it was leading you toward not observing it with [Eyes of the Fairy]? Well it seems whatever it¡¯s trying to hide from you, it made sure to hide it even through a Soul Dive Test by fabricating your Soul Chain¡­ But this is just a theory. There might be another reason for it that even I am unaware of¡­ ¡°Alas, if only my master was here¡­¡± Soren silently observed the flock of tiny butterflies swimming in unison, rotating in a constant orbit. ¡°Won¡¯t this make the accord impossible then?¡± He asked. ¡°How are you going to freeze the fate of my Soul Chain if you can¡¯t even locate the real one¡­¡± ¡°You won¡¯t need to worry about that. Pausing the fate of your Soul Chain doesn¡¯t require direct contact with it. Star Fate requires a connection with, believe it or not, the stars. And the method to do so is unrelated to whatever projection you are seeing right now, whether it''s fictional or not.¡± She flicked her silver hair behind her ear. ¡°More importantly, we need to talk about something else that¡¯s even more concerning. ¡°Soren¡­ Your Runic Existence, it¡¯s missing¡­¡± ¡°What?¡± His eyes widened as he glanced back at the fictional Soul Chain. Mistress Sienna nodded. ¡°A Soul Chain orbits around a person¡¯s Runic Existence. This fictional one we are seeing is orbiting nothing¡­ So not only is your Soul Chain missing, you aren¡¯t even fully represented in the Beyond¡­¡± She rubbed her chin, ¡°Actually, that might also be wrong. Your representation within the Beyond is this fictional Soul Chain we are seeing¡­ It seems the Beyond views your Runic Existence from the same lens as this fictional Soul Chain¡ªare they one and the same?¡± Soren remembered what he had seen when he entered his Heart¡¯s Shroud. His True Self had manifested itself as his Soul Weapon. He and his Soul Weapon were the same existence¡­ Soren nodded. ¡°I¡­ Have been keeping a secret from you guys¡­¡± He began to explain what he had seen when diving into his three layers of self. Sienna frowned. ¡°How fascinating¡­ But also confusing. This implies that whatever Abstract Rune you merged with, it didn¡¯t happen naturally through the forming of a Soul Chain¡­ I¡¯ll hold off on any conclusions since we still don¡¯t know anything about this. The best thing we could do is research this slowly¡ªthere might be something in the historical record I can find that matches your case¡­ I''ll be sending a letter to my master as well, that may turn out some results¡­ In the meantime, while you research becoming a first circle magus, try to look into this on your own.¡± Soren on the other hand was wondering about something else. If his actual Soul Chain wasn¡¯t here, then where could it be? According to Mr. Unknown, he had gained his Soul Weapon from the ritual he conducted, so could his Soul Chain still be on Earth? But that seemed impossible to him. Afterall, Mr. Unknown had clearly hinted at a different conclusion. ¡°While it is possible to return you home, it will only be for brief moments. Your soul¡¯s runic existence had already been morphed to accept the conditions of The Beyond, here in Yarian. This world is governed by Fantasia, and Fantasia alone. And now, your soul reflects that.¡± The words echoed in his mind. My soul¡¯s Runic Existence has been morphed¡­ He stared directly at the slowly orbiting fictional Soul Chain¡­ No, his Runic Existence in the Beyond. Even if it was a fake, what he was looking at was still how the Beyond represented him¡­ Morphed¡­ He thought again. Is this what Mr. Unknown was speaking about? That my Soul Weapon had morphed this fictional Soul Chain to fit with this world¡¯s rules? While his actual soul was stored elsewhere along with its unstable Soul Chain, this representation he was seeing was morphed to fit the perfect conditions of Yarian. His real Soul Chain and its Runic Existence couldn¡¯t be on Earth, since Unknown had clearly stated that he could only go back there for a few moments at a time. So then, where could his soul be? Where was it being stored if it wasn¡¯t on either Earth nor Yarian. He had already come to a conclusion. [The Faerie Court]. The realm of realms. He didn¡¯t have any evidence, but he felt like it was the only ¡°place¡± left that practically made sense. A forgotten rune, a fragment of it, somehow merged with him on his journey to Yarian. Even Mr. Unknown didn¡¯t know much about it. Clearly, it must have changed him in ways even he was currently unaware of. He had to use that ability soon. He just needed to prepare for it. ¡°Still,¡± her voice echoed out into the pool chamber, breaking his chain of thoughts. ¡°This soul dive test isn¡¯t a complete failure. We can still extract some crucial information from this, even if what we are seeing is nothing but a replica of the real Soul Chian.¡± She snapped her fingers. Almost immediately, the shimmering pool water began to coalesce and morph. It jumped out into a stream that took the form of a scroll. Blinking, Soren watched its shape solidify into actual paper. Ignoring the looks Soren was giving her, Mistress Sienna unfurled the scroll and glanced at it. He peeked at the Vinuan words from over her shoulder. Test Results Soul Weapon Class: Abstract Rune: Fairy Witness Fragments: 1 Insight Topology: Unknown? Governing Concept: Unknown? Sienna sighed at the information. ¡°Sure enough, we weren¡¯t able to understand everything about your rune¡­ Without the real Soul Chain, such a result was inevitable. ¡°Fairy Witness¡­¡± Soren murmured. This was the name of the rune he had merged with. Obviously, his other forgotten rune fragment wasn¡¯t detected. Chapter 60: Rune Fragments

Chapter 60: Rune Fragments

Soren followed behind Sienna as she led him through the corridor once more, this time taking the left fork and heading deeper into the discarded dungeon tunnels. Light was slowly becoming a rarity as less and less torches were lit along the narrow path. Aside from their footsteps, there was no other sound. ¡°Mistress Sienna,¡± he interrupted the silence, ¡°about that information you obtained from the Soul Mirror, could you explain a bit of it to me? What exactly are fragments? From what I remember, it said I had 1 insight?¡± Her sleek, silver hair fluttered with every step, ¡°Hmm¡­¡± She murmured. ¡°Soren, do you know what astral anima is?¡± Soren shook his head, ¡°I¡¯ve heard it being mentioned, but no. How is it different from regular anima?¡± ¡°Astral Anima you see, is anima that originates from the Beyond. Unlike anima that comes from our own wills, Astral Anima is made from the combined wills of everyone living in this world.¡± ¡°Everyone?¡± His eyes widened. She chuckled, ¡°Yes, everyone. Astral Anima is essentially the concentrated willpower of everyone combined. Some call it the energy of the collective subconscious. And it is through this anima that abstract runes which govern certain concepts gain power. Our imaginations altogether give rise to the concepts that permeate the Beyond.¡± Soren stroked his chin, ¡°So Abstract Runes gain their strength from people believing in their existence? Is that what you are insinuating?¡± ¡°Yes! Belief is at the core of this. Astral Anima is formed from the willpower of everyone¡¯s subconscious collectively. That is why some concepts are stronger than others¡ªbecause some things are believed in more than others. And it is also this distinction that separates Magecraft from Mysteries. ¡°Magecraft utilizes normal anima that is generated from a person¡¯s True Self or inner will. That is why magi need Soul Realms to cast Magecraft. Mysteries on the other hand need Astral Anima. That is what Phantasms use whenever they utilize the abilities their Soul Weapons grant them.¡± ¡°So¡­ [Eyes of the Fairy] utilizes Astral Anima? Same with [Record]?¡± She nodded. ¡°Yes. Those abilities are granted to you through your connection to an Abstract Rune, and Abstract Runes need Astral Anima to exist.¡± He kept following behind her. ¡°This distinction between Mysteries and Magecraft¡­ How far does it extend, really? And how is any of this related to the fragments mentioned in the Soul Dive test results?¡± ¡°Great question.¡± The corridor split once more¡ªshe took the right entrance. ¡°As I said before, Abstract Runes require Astral Anima to power their existence. But have you stopped to consider what this means?¡± He tried searching for an answer, but came to nothing. Soren continued following behind her as they conversed. The corridor had become much darker the further into the cobblestone halls they walked. ¡°It is actually pretty simple. Remember the Law of Mirrored Influence I spoke of earlier? For every act of influence exerted on the natural world, an equal amount of influence is exerted back into the Beyond. ¡°The influence we speak of here is astral anima¡¯s origins¡ªthe collective subconscious. Think about it, when you use your Soul Weapon, you are utilizing abilities that are powered by the concepts of your Abstract Rune. And these abilities exert ¡®influence¡¯ on the natural world. Whether my Soul Weapon allows me to see into Star Fate or yours allows you to extract information from the things around you, the astral anima empowering these abilities is being utilized to influence the world. And then, this influence on the world gets reflected back into the Beyond, giving your Abstract Rune more astral anima, creating a feedback loop.¡± Soren crossed his arms as he continued walking. ¡°So what you are saying is¡­ The more a Phantasm uses their Soul Weapon, the more its Abstract Rune gains influence over astral anima inside the Beyond?¡± She nodded. ¡°Yes. The goal of every Abstract Rune, by their nature, is to grow their influence. They want the concepts they govern to be more widely recognized. The more you use your Soul Weapon, the more you are exerting influence on the natural world with those concepts. It is because of this very nature that Soul Chains are unstable. The Abstract Runes you bind within them want to exert their influence on you. They want to corrupt you. When you utilize your Soul Weapon, you spread the influence they desire on their behalf, which appeases their appetites. Hungry little critters they are¡­ Even though they aren¡¯t even alive.¡± This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Trying to imagine Abstract Runes as these attention-seeking critters hungry to spread their influence made him want to chuckle. But everything was finally clicking together for him. The reason why Soul Weapons take over the bodies of their hosts finally made sense. If you were an Abstract Rune trying to spread your concept¡¯s influence on the world, a human binding you within a Soul Chain would go against this nature. So logically, they would go for the option of taking over the person¡¯s body and soul. That way, they could exert their influence on the world much more quickly, rather than waiting for it to spread naturally through the collective subconscious. In a way, humans messing with Abstract Runes unnaturally messes with the world. You are subjugating others to concepts that may have not been popular or well understood, but have existed for a long time. Isn¡¯t this basically just a popularity contest? Whoever shouts the loudest with their Soul Weapon, gains more influence for their Abstract Rune¡­ And at the same time, your Abstract Rune constantly thinks it can do better than you, so it wants to take over your body and do the shouting itself¡­ It was a dumb analogy, but it perfectly described the situation. ¡°Still,¡± he replied. ¡°What does this have to do with the rune fragments I saw earlier?¡± ¡°It¡¯s simple,¡± Sienna voiced while holding a torch she had snatched from earlier in the corridor. ¡°Abstract Runes are not a monolith. They do not exist as fully configured hyper-dimensional constructs. Instead, they are usually found in fragments or clusters. These fragments essentially are crystalized forms of the influence you gain in the Beyond, and there are three grades us magi have devised for categorizing these fragments. They are Insight, Expression, and Core. ¡°5 insight fragments, equate to 1 Expression fragment. And 3 Expression fragments equate to 1 Core. From the Soul Dive Test we conducted, the result stated that you only have 1 insight fragment currently.¡± His face turned somewhat red, ¡°Is¡­ Is that bad?..¡± She chuckled. ¡°Getting a single fragment is already an achievement to be proud of¡ªbecoming a Vagrant Phantasm isn¡¯t easy, you know? And besides, you don¡¯t need to gather more fragments right now. That is something Phantasms need to consider when they start pushing themselves into the Mystic grade, which is after Tier 3! Your main focus should be on obtaining your second Abstract Rune and merging with it to reach Tier 2 Phantasm. You have to do that within one year, or else¡­ Well, you know what will happen.¡± As they continued walking deeper into the endless corridor, darkness consumed them. Only the flickering light from the torch she was holding provided any warmth. An icy cold wind blew through these ancient tunnels, chilling Soren¡¯s bones. ¡°Still,¡± he countered. ¡°I wanna know, how exactly does one gain more fragments? Is it through expanding the influence of the rune or something? And what exactly does gaining more fragments even do?¡± She raised her brows and glanced back at him, ¡°Why do you want to know? Didn¡¯t I tell you its useless for you to know about this now?¡± ¡°I¡­ I am just curious. I will listen to your instructions, but I do want to know about this.¡± Sienna sighed. ¡°Yes, your number of fragments increases with the amount of influence you spread. It happens naturally and sometimes, its hard to even realize. But you must remember, these Abstract Rune fragments are exactly as the name foretells¡ªfragments. They are pieces of a whole. An entire Abstract Rune can be composed of three Core Fragments, nine Expression fragments, or fifteen Insight fragments. There are no more or no less pieces in existence.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°Are you saying there are fragments of my Fairy Witness rune out there somewhere?¡± He was under the assumption that the remaining fragments would need to be created from scratch. Sienna nodded. ¡°Yes. You might find that other Phantasms may have claimed them, or they could be swimming around in the Beyond aimlessly, trying to increase their influence through astral anima¡­ It is hard to say.¡± She sighed while walking deeper into the darkness. ¡°Phantasms who hold the same Abstract Rune are usually destined to face off against one another¡­ This is why I am telling you this right now, do not even entertain the idea of trying to find the other fragments. Continue studying and grow as a magus first and foremost.¡± Soren didn¡¯t know why, but he could sense the melancholy in her voice. She shifted the topic, ¡°As for your other question¡­ Gaining Abstract Rune fragments is very important to one¡¯s Soul Chain stability. It can help the Abstract Rune to lessen its corruption. It''s also related to Soul Chains in another way that I won¡¯t disclose to you now¡ªit''s useless even if I said what I mean. What rune fragments are most commonly known for, however, is their ability to unlock new skills related to the rune.¡± ¡°New skills?¡± He glanced down at his Soul Weapon. Soren wondered¡ªwhat other abilities could he gain from this Fairy Witness rune? If he had to be honest, [Eyes of the Fairy] and [Record] were already phenomenal skills. Yes, they didn¡¯t provide much in combat, but their utility will prove helpful in his journey to becoming a magus. He suppressed his smile¡ªa part of him wanted to ignore Sienna¡¯s warnings and try looking for other missing fragments. Focus, Soren¡­ He said to himself. There was still a lot of work he needed to do before even considering this. ¡°Enough chatter. We¡¯re here.¡± Sienna¡¯s voice cut through his thoughts. Soren glanced up in the dim darkness. The corridor had widened into a large hall with countless cobblestone support beams scattered evenly across the grand yet lonely chamber. The path ahead led into an imposing metal gate that looked to stand at least fifteen feet tall. Chapter 61: Star Fate Ritual

Chapter 61: Star Fate Ritual

Soren watched as Mistress Sienna walked slowly toward the arched gate. Following behind her, he couldn¡¯t help but glance up at its sheer scale. It was made completely from metal, armored with plating that had seen better days¡ªthe rust was slowly eating away at the iron. At the bottom right of the grand chamber door, a small altar was mounted with a hand print etched in stone. Sienna smiled and glanced back at Soren, who was too distracted to even notice her. ¡°This is the entrance to the dungeon¡ªat least, it used to be. This entire underground section had been abandoned after all.¡± Not waiting for a response, she walked toward the altar and rested her palm against the hand print. Runic symbols flared to life, and the colossal gate¡¯s pistons and gears began to crank. Soren watched in awe as the entire hall shook. Dust fell from the ceiling as the gate slowly grinded its ancient hinges. A crack in between the two imposing doors slowly widened before his eyes. Moments later, the doorway stopped¡ªopening itself only partially. ¡°Come on,¡± said Sienna. She walked through the now widened gap onto the other side. Swallowing down his hesitation, he followed her through the gate. What he saw on the other side was an even more mesmerizing night sky compared to the one in Sienna¡¯s underground eden. A dazzling array of stars and celestial objects glowed faintly, all of them dwarfed in scale and wonder to the pure-white Silver-Eyed Moon. Their gleam felt so close, yet so far. ¡°Beautiful,¡± he heard himself murmur. He glanced down from the heavens to the earth below. He was standing on some sort of cliffside that extended out into a wide terrace, the edges of which were lined with dilapidated marble railings. The terrace floor was decorated with finally colored stone tiles that had lost their luster over the years¡ªa sculpted fountain was placed at the center with a statue on top of a finely robed woman holding a scale. Unfortunately, the head of the statue was missing¡ªSoren didn¡¯t know if it was due to erosion or if it was purposefully destroyed. He glanced at Sienna, as if to ask for permission to explore. She gently nodded with a smile. Soren walked past the enormous marble statue to the edge of the terrace. He was instantly shocked at what he was seeing. Far below the cliffside he was standing from, a large field extended outward, illuminated faintly by the glow of the Silver-Eyed Moon. The field was covered in buildings and other structures, all of them worn and torn from countless ages. Ruins of an ancient city. Beyond the stretches of the remnants of an old metropolis, Soren saw what looked to be a vast ocean, extending toward the horizon, covered in a dense fog. The fog was murky and shifted slowly, as if it was alive. He couldn¡¯t exactly see much of its details, but he could tell it was different somehow. The Endless Sea he had seen from the skyship during his departure from Yadria didn¡¯t give him the same feeling. ¡°The Ruins of Avalon,¡± an enchantingly warm voice entered his ears. Sienna walked gracefully and stood next to him, leaning against the railing and overlooking the remains of what had used to be a bastion of society. ¡°To this day, countless Mysteries remain shrouded in secrecy. Their civilization was around during the First Age of Fantasia and extended to the very beginning of the Second Age. Our records still do not extend that far back.¡± ¡°What happened to them,¡± Soren asked. For whatever reason, staring at what used to be was making him feel pangs of sadness. But also, a pool of excitement was building within his stomach¡ªhe wanted to explore. Sienna shook her head. ¡°We don¡¯t know¡­ But even now, none of our nations even compare to their glory. Most of our knowledge on Magitech comes from these ruins. I¡¯d say, ninety percent of all ancient relics originate from there as well as the dungeons that extend above and below the old metropolis.¡± Soren lifted his brow. ¡°You mean the things I saw being used by Myrin and the others weren¡¯t inventions?¡± She laughed. ¡°Inventions? I¡¯d rather call them discoveries.¡± Soren frowned. ¡°What exactly makes Magitech so difficult to make? How is the process different from regular magecraft?¡± ¡±As you know,¡± she spoke while admiring the view. ¡°Magecraft needs a Soul Realm to work. You cannot utilize Scripted Ruinc to enact your will through your anima without one. Magitech devices on the other hand, do not need one. They can function independently from a Soul Realm. The mechanism behind this is still unknown. Though¡­¡± She glanced at him and smiled. ¡°Maybe your abilities could help shed some light on that.¡± He could tell she wasn¡¯t very serious about that. He nodded. ¡°I guess I¡¯ll give it a try later. Though, this still somewhat surprises me. I¡¯ve seen countless contraptions that utilize runes to function¡­ How are these any different?¡± He was remembering the skyship as well as the elevator platforms that functioned magically on their own. Same with the countless other objects, such as the doors that needed Myrin or Sienna to open through magecraft. ¡°Ah, you must be speaking about wardstone magecraft.¡± ¡°Wardstone magecraft?¡± He glanced at her perplexed. She nodded, ¡°Wardstones are a type of mineral found in Yarian. They have a certainly interesting property¡ªyou can imbue them with certain affinities. In a way, they are a Mystery in their own right. The stones have a special connection to the Beyond, and this lets them obtain meaning and symbolism when a magi draws certain spellforms across their surface.Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°But this is a topic I''ll leave for you to explore yourself. Your journey as a magus will only begin after we do the accord.¡± Soren remembered their original purpose and nodded. ¡°Let¡¯s begin.¡± The view of the Avalon Ruins had certainly distracted him. ¡°Sit with your feet crossed and stare up at the stars above.¡± She said with a gentle smile. Soren did as he was bid. ¡°One last time,¡± she recalled. ¡°Are you sure you want to go through with this? The moment your Soul Chain¡¯s fate is sealed, it will be all over. You will not be able to take back this decision until a year later when it unbinds itself, in which case, you will be subjected to a year¡¯s worth of torment and corruption all at once.¡± Soren took a deep breath. He remembered his goal. One year. That is all the time I have to solve my issue¡­ He glanced up at Sienna who had placed her witch hat back over her head. ¡°I am sure. I have no choice but to do this.¡± She nodded softly¡ªSoren couldn¡¯t tell if she felt pity for him or not, but it didn¡¯t matter. He was still thankful to her for this opportunity, no matter how slim it was. Ever since a week ago, a part of his mind continued to torment him with voices which he could only attribute to the corruption. The more time passed, the closer he felt his sanity had faded. It was a truly disgusting feeling, one that he couldn¡¯t wait to get rid of, even if it was only for a year. A year is enough time, he reminded himself. Though, it was still fairly grim. He would need to find another Abstract Rune somehow during that time frame. And it had to be one that was perfect for him¡­ And then there was also the case of needing to find his Soul Chain itself, ironically. There was so much he needed to complete before the year was over. ¡°I will give you one piece of advice,¡± Sienna said solemnly. ¡°Never ever allow yourself to fall to despair. Despair is useless. As you have learned from unlocking your Soul Realm, emotions only hinder your resolve and obfuscate the path you take as a Magi. The Heart¡¯s Shroud is nothing but that¡ªa shroud that hides our true potential.¡± Soren nodded. ¡°Understood, Mistress Sienna.¡± ¡°And one more thing,¡± she added. ¡°Do not for a second think you are in this alone, Soren. You are now part of Star Fate Guild¡ªyou are now family to me and everyone else in the guild. Never hesitate to reach out for help.¡± This startled him. He felt his lips twitch¡ªhe wanted to say something but couldn¡¯t. Family? He questioned. I am a part of their family? He wanted to deny it, but it certainly felt good to hear¡ªalmost as if he had been yearning for such. Is this relief I am feeling? He couldn¡¯t tell. But there was also a hint of uncertainty. He wanted to truly doubt Sienna¡¯s comments¡ªthey felt too sweet for his ears. Sienna smiled at his dumbstruck reaction. ¡°Let us begin.¡± Almost immediately, a foggy and icy cloud condensed in her palm. Her silver hair began to move on its own, as if being lifted by an outside force. Her eyes which had dimmed were once more flaring with countless stars swimming across them infinitely. Soren couldn¡¯t help but stare blankly in awe at her, blanketed in a sheet of white light reminiscent of the moon. Like yarn, the icy fog spun around her open palm, rotating into an orb that quickly brightened into a miniature star. Sienna turned her palm and aimed it at Soren who was still frozen in shock. Without any time to react, the miniature star fazed through his chest, entering within him. At first, he recoiled, assuming it would be painful, but the opposite was true. All he could describe it as was comfort. A sense of relaxation filled his mind. His eyes began to droop slightly¡ªhe wanted to lay down and rest. ¡°Stay awake, Soren.¡± She proclaimed gently. Soren shook his head to wake himself up. ¡°I have applied a few magecraft spells that will stay dormant within you until the accord ends. They will give you some level of protection from the blowback you¡¯ll face a year later. But do not rely on them heavily, they are nothing but extra defenses. The rest is still up to you to get through.¡± All Soren could do was nod. So this is why Cassia fell asleep so easily¡­ Sienna¡¯s powers are¡­ He couldn¡¯t finish the thought. His eyes trailed up toward the heavens, to the sea of stars above them. Out of the countless constellations and celestial objects the night sky was projecting, one of them was calling to him. A faint yet golden star. It was fairly hard to notice¡ªquite a distance away from any of its neighbors. A lonely golden star. ¡°That is your Star Fate,¡± Sienna answered. ¡°You see, the stars each shoulder a certain fate. ¡°But I shoulder the stars.¡± Almost immediately, the brilliant and glamorous night sky turned dark. All the stars disappeared, except for the golden one Soren had noticed. It was now shining brightly, more brightly than any star he had ever seen. A strange strand of light seemed to be extending down from the heavens toward him, connecting him to the star. ¡°Let us begin the accord,¡± Sienna said. ¡°Follow after me. ¡°I, Soren Andersen, vow,¡± she began. ¡°I, Soren Andersen, vow,¡± he repeated. She continued, ¡°To allow the Witch of Star Fate, Sienna Yvain, to cease the movements of my Soul Chain¡¯s star fate for one year.¡± He nodded, repeating her words solemnly, line by line, as the vow unfolded. He took a deep breath before speaking the last line she instructed him to say, ¡°Under the witness of Sienna Yvain, and the illustrious Orbits of Fate, I accept this accord.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes trailed back up at the shimmering golden star. Its twinkling had ceased, as if it was suspended in animation. The darkened skies cleared, and the remaining ocean of stars returned to the heavens above. He didn¡¯t know why, but he did feel different at that moment. He glanced down at his own body. His Soul Weapon which was next to him had not changed either. Nothing had changed, but his gut feeling told him otherwise. He glanced up at Sienna for answers, but she simply held a frown across her face. A frown that hid layers of melancholy and sadness. ¡°Soren¡­ Congratulations on completing the accord.¡± She reached out her hand and patted his head. ¡°May the Orbits of Fate align for you¡­¡± Chapter 62: The Axioms

Chapter 62: The Axioms

Soren walked back through the lonely cobblestone corridors, illuminated only by the gleam of his own Soul Weapon. The darkness in these areas of the dungeon truly ran deep¡ªSienna had told him that there were countless patches even she and the others hadn¡¯t bothered fully exploring. Speaking of Sienna, she decided to remain at the cliffside terrace outside the abandoned dungeon. Something about communing with the Orbits of Fate? He didn¡¯t fully know. Nevertheless, as instructed, she had sent him back to group up with Cassia again. Even though the claustrophobic pathways stretched out like a maze in the darkness, he was still able to trace back his steps toward the underground garden. Even if he couldn¡¯t, he could always rely on his Soul Weapon¡¯s map to guide him there. My abilities sure do make everything convenient. He chuckled to himself. Aside from that, he was also given three gifts from Mistress Sienna to commemorate his joining of the guild. While his Soul Weapon levitated to the side of him, he glanced down at what he was holding in his hands. Three ancient books that held any earthly aroma, wrapped together by a string. As his steps echoed out into the lonely corridor, his thoughts churned back to what Sienna had told him. ¡°The Axiom Codex, Dictionary of Scripted Runic, and Arcane Geometry: Spellforms Made Easy. ¡°I want you to study these three books tonight. Report to me what you know a week from now. You may use your Soul Weapon¡¯s abilities to understand them faster, but take consideration of their drawbacks.¡± Soren sighed as his hands sagged from the weight of the three tomes. Seriously, does she think I¡¯m a copy printer? He didn¡¯t wanna admit it, but he technically was a book scanner. Though, as she said, his abilities certainly had drawbacks that could hinder his understanding more than it could help. The biggest had to be time¡ªSienna had given him only a week to report back to her. Using [Eyes of the Fairy], he could theoretically scan the entire books and [Record] them, but the amount of anima it would take will be too much for him to handle¡ªhe won¡¯t last long enough to chronicle the entire book. It was a complete waste of time. But more than just the amount of time, he also needed to actually understand and apply the material. According to Sienna, she was most likely going to test his knowledge in a practical way¡ªsimply memorizing the material won¡¯t be enough. Yes, using [Record] on himself can help him learn the material and gain skills from it, but from his previous experiments, Soren knew that none of this information stuck around in his mind if he didn¡¯t actively use it¡ªhuman memory was fallible after all. Taking a few turns, he finally reached an area in the corridor with some lighting. Moments later, he heard someone call his name. ¡°Soren.¡± the familiar voice echoed through the cobblestone halls. He turned around and found Cassia standing behind him with a somewhat annoyed expression and her arms crossed, as if awaiting an explanation. Soren chuckled. ¡°Perfect timing¡ªI was looking for you. Mistress SIenna took me somewhere to deal with my¡­ Situation.¡± He continued explaining to her what had happened alongside his agreement to enact an accord with her to freeze his Soul Chain¡¯s fate. ¡°I¡­ See¡­¡± She muttered slowly, her frown clearly visible. ¡°Come then,¡± she said. ¡°I¡¯ll lead you to your room.¡± Soren followed her, somewhat perplexed. He sensed something was off with her reaction but decided to change the subject. ¡°I have a room?¡± He never heard anything about this. ¡°Yes,¡± she nodded, ¡°we already knew you were going to get accepted so Joyce prepared a room for you. It¡¯s fairly close to the lounge area we were at before.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± They walked silently for a while until they returned back through the underground eden, passing by the book-filled canopy toward the hallway they had arrived from originally. After a while, they reached a wooden door that had seen better days. Cassia turned to face him, ¡°This is where you¡¯ll sleep from now on. Tomorrow morning, come to the lounge for breakfast. We¡¯ll also explain what you¡¯ll be tasked with now that you are officially a guild member.¡± Soren nodded and twisted the rusty knob. He glanced back out toward Cassia who was walking away, ¡°Thank you,¡± he said faintly. Cassia froze for a second before moving forward once again.
Soren wondered if his time in Yadria had shifted his expectations. The room he was given was fairly plain¡ªa single bed, dresser and study desk. There was also a broken closet to store his (non-existent) clothes. Still, he knew he couldn¡¯t complain. This is better than living on the streets. He thought. His thoughts churned back to his time on Earth. After his grandparents died and his chess career ended, Soren spent his time aimlessly going through college without a purpose in mind. He was able to live off of the savings his grandparents had left him, but even that was slowly running out. He eventually needed to sell off a lot of furniture just to keep himself afloat. Not that it mattered anyway¡ªeven if he eventually needed to sell the house, he no longer even cared. Nothing at that time mattered to him. I may have changed a lot since then¡­ He now had a new purpose. He actually wanted to live and fulfill his goals again. But most importantly, he has now acquired a new family. A family, huh¡­ He couldn¡¯t help but chuckle at his own hubris. I still don¡¯t even trust them all and I doubt they trust me fully either¡­ The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. Soren threw himself on the bed. There is no point in thinking about this right now, he thought. Star Fate Guild was nothing more than an opportunity. He must know everything there is to know about magecraft, and advance himself further. Whether Sienna and the others even viewed him as family didn¡¯t matter. He was going to use them to benefit himself regardless of their feelings. For the past hour or so, he had been busy reading the first book Sienna had given him. The Axiom Codex¡­ The name was imprinted on the old leather cover. It was a fairly interesting book to say the least. Since his acquisition of a Soul Realm some two weeks ago, one thing has been on his mind: using it to cast magecraft. Sadly, this dream of his had been continuously delayed due to their mission in Yadria, but more so than that, he currently had no clue what his affinities were. Affinities, as Myrin described them, were traits associated with a person¡¯s True Self. They give meaning to one¡¯s own anima, and this meaning can be imbued into spellforms to create magecraft. However, not all magi had the same affinities, nor the same amount of them. Some were born with more, some less. And depending on the combination, a magi¡¯s options when it comes to magecraft could be vast or limited. Enter, Scripted Runic. A mystical language with no distinct origin that has the ability to stir the Beyond. The opening words of The Axiom Codex were as follows: ¡°Words derive meaning. And meaning derives power.¡± A truer sentence couldn¡¯t have been said. From what he understood, Scripted Runic was nothing more than a set of symbols that each contain a conceptual idea or meaning inside the Beyond. And it was through the combination of these meanings that higher level concepts could be cast. In a way, they could be thought of as the language of the Beyond itself¡ªa language that projects the knowledge the Beyond contains into the natural world as a set of symbols. As for how these symbols were categorized¡­ That was where the true complexity began. The true essence of The Axiom Codex dives deep into these categorizations of what it calls ¡®Material Runes,¡¯ runic symbols that are the building blocks of Scripted Runic. These categorizations are called Axioms. Material Runes are said to be one level lower in complexity than Abstract Runes. While an Abstract Rune represents metaphysical concepts that do not exist in the real world, Material Runes do. Fire, water, rocks, light, plants, but even things that interact with the natural world like spirits, and even the very essence of anima itself. The book goes on to categorize these naturally occurring concepts as ¡®Axioms of Affinities¡¯. For example, if a person held an affinity for flames, how that fire was manipulated depended on what axioms were used within the Scripted Runic spellform. There was an axiom for geometric shapes, time, energy consumption, size, and many other factors. But then there were also axioms for the affinity itself, like the type of flame being dispensed or created, the flame¡¯s temperature, and whatnot. Each axiom could be composed of sets of material runes that describe what that axiom means. The way Soren contextualized it was through a comparison to English. If material runes were the letters of the language, axioms would be the sentences, and spellforms would be the paragraphs. What interested him most about this was how these axioms interacted with each other, especially axioms of different affinities. If a person had an affinity for flames and an affinity for ice, combining the axioms of these two opposing concepts could create a spellform that utilizes the effects of both. Flames that are ice-cold, or maybe freezing ice that sears your skin. It all depended on how the axioms were combined within the spellform and at what certain ratios. Soren sighed and turned the page¡ªhe was still pretty far from actually applying any of this. And there were still things he still didn¡¯t fully understand, such as Material Runes of Reason. Unlike regular Material Runes, these had no direct association to any affinity but simply governed the very structure of how axioms operate with one another within a spellform. The page he was currently glancing at listed them. ¡°Etiva, Velia, Nonis, Exvelis¡­¡± The codex list went on and on. Etiva was a Material Rune of Reason that defined the unification of one or more axioms. From the example shown to him in the book, a spellform diagram continued to repeat this Etiva rune symbol in between different sections of the spellform, locking the system to only function if and only if every axiom was activated together. Then there was Velia which branches the spellform into two axioms, and according to some conditions, the spellform will activate either the first or the second axiom, but not both. Each of the other runes held different logical reasons for how they functioned, but they were all essentially bridges that linked the different sections of a spellform and its numerous axioms. Heck, even the axioms themselves seemed to utilize these Material Runes to function¡ªthey were everywhere. ¡°This kinda reminds me of my computer programming class back in college¡­¡± He murmured to himself. And in a way, he wasn¡¯t completely wrong. These material runes acted similarly to boolean logical operators used in computers. Although he had never been a fan of that class or computer science in general, he could still remember some of the things he learned in it, and the comparison to what he was currently reading about was pretty much one-to-one. What¡¯s interesting about these runes was the fact that any magi could use them, no matter their affinities. They seemed to be closely related to the foundations of this world itself, and not any one physical concept tied to one person¡¯s own willpower¡ªrules that outline the very essence and structure of spellforms themselves. This also made him realize something¡ªMaterial Runes of Reason had contradictory natures. They seemed to defy the very definition of material runes. By their essence, material runes were deeply tethered to the natural world¡ªthey were symbols of how the Beyond viewed the objects and things that make up this world. Yet these runes¡­ They didn¡¯t fit that mold at all. They lacked a direct physical connection¡ªrunes like ¡®Nonis¡¯ or ¡®Exvelis¡¯ were practically intangible constructs that simply defined the flow of logic itself. In a way, they were more similar to Abstract Runes than Material Runes¡ªan oddity that only made him even more engrossed in reading the book, yet he wasn¡¯t able to find the answer at all. He chuckled to himself, Am I already trying to understand paradoxes within something I¡¯ve only read about for a few hours? Soren decided to stop for today¡ªhe could try asking Mistress Sienna if he couldn¡¯t figure it out the next morning. He placed the book down next to the pile and picked up his Soul Weapon which was already activated¡ªthe mysterious fountain pen had been continuously working on its own to [Record] anything he found worthy of chronicling during his reading session. ¡°Are you still not done yet?¡± The Records didn¡¯t respond and continued writing in the strange blocky script. Soren sighed, ¡°Weren¡¯t you scheming against me this entire time? Why do you still pretend to be a normal book.¡± No response. The fountain pen continued gliding across the page slowly. Soren sighed again. He laid the book open next to the pile and reached for the bed-side candle¡ªdarkness consumed his room, except for the small patch of light being emitted from his Soul Weapon. He tucked himself into bed with a frown. ¡°At least dim your light a little bit so I can sleep!¡± Surprisingly, The Records listened to that command. The glowing gilded lines dimmed alongside its shimmering flame-like pages. ¡°I guess you¡¯re not a complete asshole,¡± he clicked his tongue. Chapter 63: The Apprentice

Chapter 63: The Apprentice

Soren woke up with a deep yawn. He had no idea what time it was¡ªthere was no way to tell while being deep underground, but he felt like he had slept well enough. Even though he missed the luxurious rooms he slept in back in Yadria, the one offered to him by Star Fate Guild wasn¡¯t completely uncomfortable either. The lonely and silent corridors made sleep come much faster for him for whatever reason. After heading to the bathroom to take a much needed shower which was surprisingly close to where his room was, Soren changed his clothes from what he found in his dresser. It was oddly hilarious when he first discovered them¡ªsomething told him Myrin was probably behind it. Black checkered mage robe, mage hat, and black trousers as well as new oxford shoes to fit the bill. At the top of the stack, a paper note was left for him to read: ¡°Consider this a gift from your senior!¡± Soren smiled as he donned the new outfit. It somehow fit him perfectly. Did that bastard take my measurements while I was asleep, he thought. Picking up the books Sienna had given him alongside his own Soul Weapon, Soren strode outside toward the lounge area. He didn¡¯t need to walk far to reach it. He announced his arrival with a knock and entered inside. Myrin, Cassia and Tina were sitting on the stools at the minibar manned by Joyce. Myrin turned around to face him and smiled. ¡°Aha, you arrived right on time, friend.¡± He said with a whistle, admiring his new outfit. Tina chuckled, ¡°I was about to drag you out of bed myself if you didn¡¯t come.¡± Soren walked up to the minibar and sat next to Cassia who was enjoying a glass of milk. ¡°I guess I¡¯m lucky then. Do you guys not have something to set the time?¡± Myrin smirked, ¡°Nay, I let my body wake me up.¡± So he¡¯s just as hopeless as I am, Soren thought. Cassia clicked her tongue, ¡°I''ll get you a Timekeeper Orb. I don¡¯t want to deal with another lazy idiot¡­¡± Joyce handed him a plate of what she called Ironbrew Stew. A meal that supposedly originates from the Eclipse Moor. To say it was delicious was an understatement. He glanced up at her and smiled, ¡°Thank you for the meal.¡± Joyce smiled back, ¡°Take your time. You¡¯ll be officially starting your work with us today with Nicholas. He¡¯ll be coming here in a bit to fetch you.¡± ¡°Nicholas?¡± He remembered it was the tan-skinned silver-haired gentlemen he had seen the night before. Cassia nodded in response, ¡°Our mistress is in charge of this library, remember? We don¡¯t just explore dungeons and go on dangerous missions. Most of our time is spent tending to this library. Nicholas is a librarian and historian here. He¡¯ll be teaching you how to sort books.¡± A day job, Huh. He smiled. ¡°Understood. Do I get paid for this by the way?¡± Myrin glanced at him, ¡°I forgot to mention that! We need you to sign an accord with us at the nearby Brilliant World Church later.¡± ¡°An accord?¡± The words made him remember what happened yesterday. Tina nodded while taking a sip of her drink, ¡°Yes, it will be a contract that will outline your employment with us. We will present it before the Gold-Giver as a witness to our commitments.¡± I guess it¡¯s different then, he thought. ¡°Interesting¡­ If only such a mechanism existed back on Earth.¡± Cassia glanced at him curiously, ¡°Your world had no deities to sanctify and bind agreements with Their divine presence?¡± Soren shook his head, ¡°I doubt we even had deities to begin with. I don¡¯t recall any of my prayers even being heard,¡± he chuckled. They all glanced at each other and frowned. ¡°That¡¯s impossible¡­¡± Cassia said. Sensing the mood, Soren corrected, ¡°Maybe gods did exist, but they never replied to me personally. I guess I might have been that much of a sinner to them?¡± He laughed dryly but no one followed up on the joke. The awkwardness lingered in the air for the rest of the meal before the door to the lounge flung open. Nicholas had arrived. ¡°Soren Andersen, right?¡± He glanced at him directly. ¡°I didn¡¯t properly introduce myself last night. Nicholas Silvers at your service.¡± He bowed with his top hat pressed against his chest. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Soren nodded at him from the stool, ¡°Likewise.¡± ¡°I figure they already told you about your new role?¡± He asked. ¡°Yes, do I need to agree to the accord now?¡± Nicholas nodded, ¡°Yes, I''ll lead the way.¡± He then glanced at Cassia who was finishing the rest of the milk in her glass. ¡°You¡¯ll be needing to come with us as well.¡± ¡°Huh?!¡± She shifted around with an annoyed expression. ¡°Why do I need to come also?¡± ¡°The mistress wants you to take Soren to a nearby magus shop. He needs a Spellfocus.¡± He answered. She clicked her tongue and got off the stool. ¡°Let¡¯s go then,¡± she commanded Soren impatiently.
Soren was once again out on the busy streets. The library was only a block behind him, but his eyes were now laser focused on the distant Celestine Citadel he had emerged from yesterday. He was a fool not to glance back at its magnificence. From what he understood, this entire city was placed on a mountain, all of which were sloped upward toward the peak of the citadel. He was only able to make this connection when he viewed the Avalon Ruins he had seen from the cliffside terrace that Sienna had shown him. The streets Myrin had taken him through when they first arrived made it seem like the city was on a flat surface. Aside from that, the street vendors were a hundred times busier this time than when he first arrived. Countless exotic foods, interesting music, performances and arts were on full display across the different plazas. The hubbub was nauseating¡ªhe would have gotten lost if not for Nicholas who¡¯s top hat was taller than the crowd was. Cassia was at an even worse disadvantage, until she got annoyed and unfurled her dragon-like wings. Even now, seeing her fly slowly above the crowd was hard to get used to¡ªhe didn¡¯t know the Drakar had such an ability. ¡°We¡¯re almost there,¡± Nicholas said, pointing toward a large, marble-white cathedral. They navigated through the busy crowd¡ªSoren decided to ask, ¡°I¡¯ve always wondered¡­ Myrin made it seem normal for anyone to enter the church to allow the Gold-Giver to grace their agreement with His presence, but doesn¡¯t Myrin worship The Flower Maiden?¡± Nicholas nodded, ¡°The six orthodox deities may have some differences, but their believers tend to accept one-another¡­ For the most part. It is fairly common for believers of a different orthodox religion to interact and even take part in some traditions and rituals pertaining to other deities. You¡¯ll see this in full display during the Greenfather Festival a month from now.¡± Soren nodded in silence. They strode past the crowded streets and made their way toward the Cathedral. Now that he was looking at it closer, it was very detailed. Ornate golden decorations lined every wall, pillar, and tile. It was extremely lavish. They don¡¯t call him the Gold-Giver for no reason, he guessed. They waited in line for a while before entering inside. Almost immediately, the smell of incense invaded his nostrils. Visually, however, it was just as stunning. Finely decorated glass panes dyed in countless colors cast their reflections across the floor. At the very back of the cathedral, a large platform was placed with a golden scale that levitated on its own. Ignoring his shock, Nicholas strode in front of him and greeted the finely-robed priest standing before them. He was an old man with innocent eyes, fidgeting with a golden prayer bead in his hands. ¡°Father Rumis,¡± Nicholas said. ¡°We are here in hopes of obtaining the approval of the Gold-Giver to grace the arrival of our new member.¡± The old man smiled. ¡°I see, I see¡­ Come with me.¡± Cassia and Soren followed behind Nicholas to the large stone platform. Soren¡¯s eyes trailed up at the grand golden scale. A golden aura was laced over it, making it seem even more mysterious. He pondered whether he should try using [Eyes of the Fairy] but decided to hold off on that thought¡ªthere was no telling if it would offend the church or not. ¡°Place your hands on the altar,¡± the husky voice emerged from the old priest. Soren glanced down at the platform¡ªtwo stone altars, one to the right and left, were carved out directly below the golden scale. Glancing at Nicholas who gave him an approving nod, Soren reached out and placed his palm on the altar. Nicholas also followed through with the priest¡¯s demands. ¡°Now the party that will outline the terms of the accord shall speak their intent.¡± The priest voiced. Nicholas stared up at the holy scale and closed his eyes in prayer. ¡°He who weighs the scales, ¡°He who grants and takes wealth, ¡°The ruler of Prosperity and Brilliance, ¡°I beseech you, Gold-Giver, ¡°Sanctify this accord: Soren may join Star Fate Guild as an official member, receiving 500 Lorins each month as base pay, with additional rewards for mission contributions. He shall share the duty of manning the library with, I, Nicholas and my wife, Candice, on behalf of Mistress Sienna. The guild will provide him with shelter and sustenance in return. These terms will last for one year and one year only. Judge it just and bind it true.¡± The moment the declaration ended, movements began to appear within the scale. Sometimes the weight shifted from one side, at other moments, it shifted to the other. The priest glanced at Soren who was still reeling from the experience. ¡°Young man, do you accept this accord?¡± Although he didn¡¯t know what 500 Lorins meant for him financially, he didn¡¯t really care. In his mind, he was still benefiting more than they were. Not having to care for food or shelter while he trains his abilities as a magi were already good enough terms for him. As for manning the library, he didn¡¯t mind it. It will give him countless opportunities to find things to add to his Soul Weapon. He smiled, ¡°I accept these terms.¡± The golden scale shifted, evening out on either end of its weights. ¡°The Gold-Giver has witnessed this accord and given His blessing. May wealth shine upon you all eternally.¡± The priest said solemnly. Cassia tapped his shoulder smugly, ¡°Welcome to our guild, junior apprentice.¡± Chapter 64: Spellfocus

Chapter 64: Spellfocus

After finishing the accord ceremony before the grand and holy scale, Soren and the others stepped back out into the warm Yarian sun. The excitement within his stomach had bubbled and grown enough for him to wear a smile¡ªHe couldn¡¯t wait to finally begin his magus journey. According to Cassia, a spellfocus was an item meant for channeling anima within one¡¯s own Soul Realm. It was an item most apprentice magi needed. He still didn¡¯t know the full details surrounding it, but it won¡¯t be long before he learned. He turned to Cassia who was next to him to ask her more about it, when his mood shattered. Even though she was fairly easy to annoy, the face she was showing right now¡­ ¡°You good?¡± He asked hesitantly. Cassia hovered over the crowd as they descended the steps from the church. Her eyes were full of sadness, but also anger. ¡°Those damn greedy priests! How dare they charge 200 Lorins!¡± Nicholas, who was standing next to her, shook his head. ¡°Watch your words, Lady Cassia.¡± ¡°But Nich¡ª¡± ¡°No buts,¡± he retorted. ¡°Remember your place. Our guild is still technically a criminal organization operating illegally. The Brilliant World Church might not discriminate against people¡¯s backgrounds, but that doesn¡¯t mean we can negotiate with them evenly. Even if they cheat us of money, we can do nothing but stay silent. To them, it is nothing more than another business affair that honors the graces of the Gold-Giver.¡± He walked ahead of both Soren and Cassia who¡¯s dragon wings had slumped slightly. ¡°Always remember our Mistress¡¯ goal. Small losses here and there do not matter much.¡± Soren glanced back at the church, its gleaming pillars and golden ornamentations. The statues lining every marble step leading to the grand cathedral within. All of it seemed so holy and surreal, unlike the image they portray. No wonder Tina has such a bad impression about them¡­ And yet, he himself couldn¡¯t really find fault in their ways. In fact, he found it fascinating. A religion that valued the status, wealth and success of the individual over the harmony, unity and humbleness of society as a whole. All the dirtbags of Earth would probably flock to this religion like sheep. He chuckled to himself as he imagined his own abusive and gambling addicted father in a Brilliant World Church priest gown, blessing groups of beggars on their way to gamble their coins away. Heck, judging by his greed, he¡¯d probably be appointed as their pope, if they had such a system in place. Speaking of which, did they even have a pope? He didn¡¯t know how exactly Celestine, and for the most part, Aellora in general, was structured politically. Something else to research later, I guess. He swiftly followed behind Nicholas and Cassia who was still somewhat moody from getting fleeced by the church. ¡°You said I will need to get a spellfocus, correct? Is there any store you have in mind?¡± Cassia glanced back at him and thought for a second. ¡°Probably to that old man¡¯s place¡­ I hate his guts but he¡¯s probably the best option in town¡­¡± ¡°Gunther¡¯s?¡± Nicholas questioned and Cassia nodded in response. Soren didn¡¯t say anything for a while longer as they continued crossing the countless crowded streets. On more than one occasion, he wanted to stop by a nearby stall to glance at the items being sold. There were countless food vendors as well, even though he had only just eaten breakfast, he couldn¡¯t help but salivate at the countless scents. Sadly, Cassia and Nicholas weren¡¯t stopping anytime soon. He reluctantly followed behind them. All of a sudden, a shadow appeared from the corner of his eye¡ªone that felt familiar. He turned swiftly to where he noticed it. Out in the distance, past the swarm of pedestrians leaving for work and the countless street stalls showcasing their products, a hooded man appeared. He was staring back at him, as if aware that Soren would notice him. Before he could piece anything together, the figure vanished, disappearing in between the passing civilians. ¡°Who¡­ Was that?..¡± Soren mumbled. He shook his head and dashed to catch up to Nicholas and Cassia.
It took about an hour before they finally reached the store Cassia was talking about. Squeezed in between two alleyways and behind a restaurant, a shabby wooden door reflected in Soren¡¯s eyes. Above it, a wooden sign: ¡°The Last Wager.¡± Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. Cassia, who was back to walking normally again, knocked on the door twice. Nicholas stood next to her, waiting for a response. Just when he was about to ask them to knock again, the door creaked open, sending dust flying everywhere. He squinted his eyes¡ªbeneath the veil of darkness, a pair of eyes greeted them. ¡°What do you want?¡± Cassia clicked her tongue, ¡°Stop trying to act mysterious, old fart.¡± The man¡¯s eyes widened as he flung the door open, ¡°Cassia!?¡± He went in for a hug, much to her embarrassment. Nicholas lowered his top hat and nodded at him, ¡°Greetings, Gunther.¡± ¡°Come in, come in!¡± He signalled for them to enter. Soren took note of his appearance, it was an old man with a grey beard that reached down to his feet. He wore a black robe that covered most of his features. The old man stared back at Soren and squinted. ¡°Who are you, young man?¡± He bowed, ¡°The name¡¯s Soren Andersen. A new member of Cassia¡¯s guild.¡± Cassia, who had already entered inside, nodded at Gunther. The old man looked back at Soren and smiled, ¡°Welcome in then, lad!¡± The man wrapped his arm around his shoulder before he could notice¡ªSoren immediately gagged. The man¡¯s breath felt like a mixture of beer and vinegar that¡¯s been fermented in rat poison. He did his best to breathe from his mouth to avoid the scent. The old man shoved Soren inside with a laugh, ¡°Stop being so hesitant!¡± Rubbing his shoulders, Soren took in the view from within the decrepit old hut. Tall wooden shelves lined the aisles, with a musty cashier¡¯s counter was positioned to the side. A dirty hookah was placed on it with low smoke billowing from its pipe. So that¡¯s where this smell is coming from, Soren thought. Clogging his nose even more, he glanced at Nicholas who was unbothered. ¡°This is a magus store?¡± He whispered to him but Nicholas ignored it. Cassia on the other hand kept glaring at Gunther¡ªher anger was clearly boiling over. The old man walked up to the cashier¡¯s counter and began drawing from the hookah pipe. ¡°So,¡± he said as smoke bellowed from his mouth. ¡°What do you guys need?¡± Cassia shook her head¡ªher arms crossed. ¡°Let¡¯s keep catching up for later. This guy here needs a spellfocus. He still hasn¡¯t unlocked his first Channel of Willpower, so it needs to be extremely stable and slow. Also, his affinities are still unknown so keep it neutral.¡± The old man nodded, ¡°I see, I see¡­ Then peruse around! Find what you need! Ima go drink.¡± He turned around and left toward the back of the store. Seeing this, Cassia sighed and glanced at Soren, ¡°Let¡¯s go,¡± she ordered. She led him toward the nearby aisle while Nicholas stood by the entrance. ¡°Say,¡± he questioned. ¡°It seemed like you were pretty close to that old man.¡± Cassia nodded, ¡°He used to be somewhat of a father figure of mine. Some twenty years ago before he began drinking away his sorrows and hiding out here for no one to see. Except for the occasional aspiring magus looking to destroy their own futures.¡± She pointed at the nearby items on the shelf, ¡°See these over here? All of them are fakes. This whole shop is nothing but a sham.¡± He nodded along, but one part of her explanation stuck around. 20 years ago, he thought to himself but decided not to ask. ¡°Ah, here it is,¡± Cassia¡¯s voice ruptured his string of thoughts. She pointed at an orange crystal dangling from a rope. ¡°This will do.¡± Soren glanced at the item she had shown him closely. It looked fairly normal to him¡ªwell, as normal as it could be in this messed up fantasy world. He picked it up slowly and frowned. ¡°This is a spellfocus? How am I supposed to use it?¡± Cassia nodded. ¡°Expand your Soul Realm and focus it all into the crystal.¡± Soren did as he was bid. Taking a deep breath, he channeled his thoughts into the crystal with his Soul Realm active. ¡°Now I want you to picture any image in your mind.¡± Once again, he listened to her instructions. What should I imagine, he thought. The first thing that came to mind was a knight chess piece. Instantly, the image of its frame and chiseled horse head appeared in front of him. He took a step back in shock. ¡°Huh?!¡± Cassia smiled. ¡°I can¡¯t exactly see what you imagined since your Soul Realm is invisible to me. But I assume something projected itself? I can tell that your anima has stirred in a uniform way.¡± Soren nodded. ¡°That is what a spellfocus does,¡± she answered. ¡°It has the ability to project your thoughts more cleanly inside your Soul Realm. From your explorations within the Echo of Mind, you should have seen how chaotic it can become. This will only get worse if you become a combat magi. The number of things you¡¯ll need to keep track of at the same time will increase, and so, your Echo of Mind will become even more tempestuous.¡± Soren deactivated his Soul Realm. ¡°So it''s morphing my anima based on my thoughts?¡± ¡°Correct,¡± she nodded. ¡°That crystal is something we magi like to call, a Philosopher''s Stone. We don¡¯t actually know the origins of the name¡ªit''s something an explorer coined based on information he found in the labyrinths. Either way, it will prove immensely useful to you, especially since you¡¯re still a beginner. Imagining spellforms without a spellfocus is something only a 3rd Circle magus or above could do.¡± Soren nodded, but the name of the crystal struck him as odd. Isn¡¯t there a similar legend on Earth about such an item? He didn¡¯t know if they were connected or not¡ªthe philosopher¡¯s stones he had heard about on Earth were mostly known for turning things to gold and whatnot. I guess similarities between different worlds do exist, he thought. Chapter 65: Lost Control

Chapter 65: Lost Control

Soren slid the bracelet housing the Philosopher''s Stone into his wrist and tightened the rope. This should do, he thought. He glanced at Cassia who was admiring how many fake items Gunther has on his shelves. ¡°Can I pay for this myself? How much does it cost?¡± She casually turned to him with a confused look, ¡°Buy it? You won¡¯t need to. Consider it a gift from your seniors.¡± Soren sighed, ¡°Thank you, then.¡± He walked to where Nicholas was standing next to the entrance. The light from the mud-covered windows casted shadows over his face. Soren leaned against the wall next to him, waiting for Cassia to finish up. ¡°She must¡¯ve missed him,¡± he said in a husky voice. Soren was startled¡ªNicholas usually left it to others to initiate a conversation. He nodded back at him, ¡°His store is a bit far from the library, but it¡¯s not impossible to reach¡­ Why hasn¡¯t she visited him before?¡± Nicholas reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigar. ¡°Want one?¡± he asked. Before he could decline, Nicholas had already shoved one into his palm. Soren smiled at it and shoved it into his pocket. ¡°I¡¯ll save it for later,¡± he said and Nicholas nodded in return. The tall gentleman snapped his fingers, generating a small candle flame to light the cigar, much to Soren¡¯s shock. He exhaled a puff of smoke and leaned back¡ªstaring at the ceiling. ¡°Thirty something years ago, I heard Gunther lost his daughter to a disease. The day she passed, it was like his whole world just shattered¡­ His life deteriorated and he saw himself drinking and smoking more and more, living off the streets and leftovers from nearby restaurants. This lasted for a while, until Cassia appeared before him.¡± Soren crossed his arms, ¡°Cassia?¡± He nodded, ¡°Yes. She was a street orphan back then. One that Gunther decided to raise. I guess she reminded him of his daughter.¡± ¡°And then what happened?¡± Nicholas took another puff from his cigar. ¡°Who knows,¡± he replied. ¡°Something happened and for whatever reason, Gunther returned to his old ways. Then Cassia was found by Mistress Sienna who saw her talents for magecraft and took her in.¡± Suddenly, Soren noticed Gunther appearing once again behind the counter, this time with a bottle of alcohol in his hand. Cassia appeared next to him with a tightly-knit expression. She was scolding him, but he could tell the old man was hearing none of it. Seeing this, Nicholas sighed and stepped out of the store. ¡°I¡¯ll wait out here for them to finish up.¡± Before he could fully exit, Soren decided to ask, ¡°Why did you tell me this? I only met Cassia yesterday.¡± The silver-haired man froze for a second before answering, ¡°Who knows.¡± He didn¡¯t await a response from Soren and simply left. Seeing this, he sighed and walked up the counter where Cassia and Gunther were. The old man gave him a strange look. ¡°Young man, who said you¡¯re allowed to smoke in this fine establishment? That¡¯s against my store policy. Tell that gentleman that came with you to not do it again.¡± Soren chuckled, ¡°You¡¯re one to talk with that pipe in your hands.¡± Cassia grunted, ¡°Stupid old man¡­ Why the hell won¡¯t you ever listen to me?!¡± Gunther stared at her in silence for a second then changed the topic, ¡°How have your studies been? Is the Mistress treating you well?¡± The question made her recoil a bit. ¡°Y-yes, but stop changing the topic!¡± ¡°You need to keep studying. Become a strong magus, Cassia. You¡¯ll be set for life if you do. Don¡¯t become a degenerate like I am.¡± Cassia clicked her tongue. ¡°I won¡¯t.¡± She slammed a few coins on the counter and stormed out of the store. ¡°I will never be like you.¡± Soren stood there in the awkward silence that followed, trying to process what just happened. Seeing this, Gunther sighed and took another chug from the bottle. ¡°She might act tough, but she¡¯s a big softy. Treat her well for me, will¡¯ya?¡± Soren scratched his hair, ¡°You do realize she¡¯s stronger than I am, right? At least I think so.¡± The man¡¯s lips curved in a smile, ¡°Not for long she won¡¯t be.¡± ¡°Huh?¡± Gunther slammed the bottle onto the counter. ¡°Nevermind, here¡¯s your change by the way¡ª5 Lorins. I told that girl to be more careful with her money, ugh. She needs to be more responsible¡­¡±
Right after getting the change, Gunther immediately kicked Soren out of his store. He decided to catch up to Cassia and Nicholas who were waiting for him at the end of the alleyway. ¡°What took you so long?¡± He could see the annoyance in her eyes. Soren sighed and handed her the change. ¡°You forgot this.¡± She glanced at it for a second and scoffed, ¡°Still as stubborn as ever¡­¡± Cassia turned around and kept walking. Soren turned to Nicholas for answers, but he was back to being stoic so he decided to drop it. ¡°Are we finally heading back to the library?¡± Soren asked as they reached the busy main street. Nicholas nodded, ¡°Yes. Once we get back, I¡¯ll be instructing you on how to do your job.¡± The library job, huh. Soren nodded back. They continued to walk in silence for a while¡ªit seemed that neither Nicholas or Cassia wanted to comment on what had occurred earlier in the store. Not that it mattered, anyway¡ªhe was much more interested in the Spellfocus he had just obtained. He glanced down at it and smiled¡ªit¡¯s string was wrapped around his wrist like a bracelet with the philosopher¡¯s stone dangling from the bottom. Love what you''re reading? Discover and support the author on the platform they originally published on. To think this thing here has the power to project my thoughts with anima¡­ He wondered how he¡¯ll be able to use it in the coming days. I guess all that¡¯s left now is to study the material Sienna handed me¡­ He still had a week to complete it before she promised to test him. Maybe I can find out about my affinities before then as well, he thought. They continued walking for another fifteen or so minutes before Soren noticed something strange up ahead. A large crowd was forming on the main street¡ªmore and more people were either running away or heading towards the gathering. He squinted, ¡°What the¡­¡± Cassia stopped in her tracks, her eyes sharper than ever. Her dragon wings unfurled from her mage dress. She glanced back at Nicholas who nodded back at her. ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± ¡°Follow me,¡± she said before sprinting toward the area. Soren had no choice but to follow. Suddenly, shrieks began to sound from within¡ªunnatural ones. The screams were getting louder and louder. They squeezed in between the fear stricken crowd, and that¡¯s where they saw it. A man was hunched on the floor, spazzing out strangely. A strange miasma covered his body. Next to him, an ethereal sword covered in anima was laid on the floor next to him. The man was screaming in agony. This¡­ He decided not to hesitate and activated his Soul Weapon. Butterflies swam into his eyes once more¡ª[Eyes of the Fairy]. Within the Beyond, Soren noticed something. The energy that was coming from the sword was arcing over them, as if it was being siphoned from the man into the sword. His ability deactivated shortly after as he glanced over at Cassia. ¡°This guy, he¡¯s a Phantasm!¡± he yelled. ¡°It seems he¡¯s losing control!¡± Cassia nodded, ¡°I guess I have no choice¡­ I¡¯ll have to take him out of his misery.¡± ¡°Huh?!¡± Soren noticed as Cassia¡¯s wings began to glow¡ªhe could tell she was going to attack him. ¡°Wait! I can tell he¡¯s still in there! [Eyes of the Fairy] tells me he¡¯s still fighting for control, It¡¯s not over yet!¡± ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter,¡± Nicholas replied. ¡°We cannot take such a risk. There are too many civilians nearby.¡± Just when Soren was about to continue protesting, an ear piercing whistle came from the sky. He squinted his eyes as he stared past the glare of the sun. Without giving him any time to react, a silver javelin sliced the air as it descended rapidly into the man losing control of his Soul Weapon, resulting in a large explosion that sent everyone in the crowd flying back by a few meters. Soren had flinched from the impact, but when he opened his eyes, he realized there was a protective bubble around them¡ªNicholas had casted some spell to shield them. ¡°What the hell just happened?!¡± They were engulfed in a cloud of dust that dispersed on its own slowly. Soren¡¯s eyes refocused on where the javelin made landfall. A small crater appeared on the ground beneath the corpse of the man¡ªa silver glowing javelin sticking out from his back. Moments later, the body of the person began to burn rapidly before disintegrating into ash. ¡°A Silver Valkyrie¡­¡± Cassia hissed. She swiftly deactivated her Soul Weapon and turned to Nicholas who understood what she was saying. Before Soren could react, Nicholas grabbed him by the arm and dragged him away from the scene. The three of them huddled behind a pile of trash in a dark alleyway that let them see the unfolding scene. ¡°W-what th¡ª¡± ¡°Shhhh!¡± Cassia turned to him desperately. ¡°Deactivate your Soul Weapon. Now!¡± Soren didn¡¯t question her further and did as he was bid. All three of them stared out of the alleyway, where a woman wearing glistening silver plated armor that extended into a battle skirt appeared. Her enchantingly beautiful visage felt like nothing more than a facade that hid a machine of death and destruction beneath it all. Above her glistening violet hair, a radiant silver halo was visible for all to see. The woman nonchalantly grabbed the silver javelin and pulled it out effortlessly. Then, a company of silver-armored knights appeared, their march shook the earth itself. They stood behind the woman and saluted. One of the knights approached her with a large guidon spear-flag which she planted into the earth proudly. Soren was able to notice its design¡ªa white crescent moon with another smaller moon placed within the crescent. The flag waved on its own, as if enchanted by an invisible wind. The Silver Valkyrie glanced at the company of knights for a moment, then turned to the small crater before her¡ªnot even a sliver of hair remained from the phantasm who was losing control. She lowered herself onto one knee and clasped her hands in prayer. ¡°O¡¯ Mother of SIlver, your daughter has delivered another lost soul to your vibrant embrace. May you cradle it back to its silver white purity.¡± She then stood up and glanced at the fear-stricken citizens surrounding the spectacle. ¡°Fear not! For I have cleansed this nation of heresy!¡± The soldiers beat their chests proudly in unison, ¡°All Hail the Mother of Silver! All Hail the Mother of SIlver!¡± Their warcry echoed out into the plaza for all to hear. What the fuck¡­ He couldn¡¯t help but quiver. The anima within the air was stirring¡ªhe could instantly tell that every one of those knights was extremely powerful. Not even the battlefield from the Nightshade Raid made him feel this nervous. Soren glanced at Cassia who was grinding her teeth. He could tell there was hatred in her eyes, and yet, also fear. As the chant carried on, the citizens surrounding the scene remained frozen in terror. The Silver Valkyrie lifted her arm, signalling for the soldiers to stop. Without waiting, she simply continued walking down the main street with the company of knights marching closely behind her. One of the knights in the back picked up what remained of the victim¡¯s Soul Weapon sword. After the spectacle ended, the citizens began swarming the area once more as gossip flooded the street. ¡°Why the hell would she be here¡­¡± Cassia whispered angrily. Nicholas dropped his cigar and stepped on it. ¡°Probably to negotiate that deal Candice spoke to you all about yesterday. The joint expedition into the Avalon Ruins will be happening soon. The Staterra Kingdom must have chosen them as their representatives. Though, it is still fairly strange¡­¡± Soren glanced up at him, ¡°Why is that?¡± ¡°Because it is still too soon¡­ The representatives from Yadria haven¡¯t even arrived yet. The expedition was scheduled to take place a day or so before the Greenfather Festival. We¡¯re still a month away¡­¡± Seeing the soldiers out of sight, Soren stood up. ¡°Man that was fucking crazy.¡± He had no way to describe what just happened. ¡°Does the Silver Moon Church hate Vagrant Phantasms this much? This seems too extreme¡­¡± Even now, his heart was beating out of his chest. If Cassia hadn¡¯t dragged him away, he might have died before even knowing what happened to him. Cassia patted her clothes from the dust and stepped out into the main street. ¡°Never mess with them. That is all I will say. Meddling with Abstract Runes is one of the biggest taboos a person could do in the eyes of the Silver Moon Church. Always remember that. They view our existence as no different from trash.¡± Soren stared at the small crater surrounded by civilians¡ªthe dust cloud had still not fully settled. His dry lips twitched slightly¡ªhe wanted to say something, but all he could do was stare at the chaotic scene. If I lose control a year from now, this will be my fate as well¡­ Chapter 66: Librarian

Chapter 66: Librarian

The walk back to the Library was a silent one. It took them an hour or so to get back, and when they finally did, the evening had already rolled around. Soren was led by Nicholas to the office areas where he met Candice and the other librarians. He was introduced to all of them before Nicholas took him to the third floor to begin his shift. It was surreal to say the least. Although he had worked part-time jobs before, something about the fact that he was now doing it in a fantasy world made his stomach bubble. It hadn¡¯t been that long since he had seen a man getting pierced by a flaming javelin that burnt him to ashes, and now here he was, sorting through books as if none of it even mattered. After the first hour or so, he finally got the hang of it¡ªevery book was labeled accordingly by genre, author, publication date, and serial number, so it wasn¡¯t that difficult to understand the rhythm. What was very annoying, however, had to be the long walks between the floors since some books were found scattered nowhere near where they should have been. It got to the point that he began to curse every scholar he saw walking down the aisles. Another curious thing was the ¡°Library Guardians.¡± These were the people in charge of discarding books with falsehoods. Apparently, some demonic and even fae spirits were known to mess with the written contents of books, so regular checkups on texts by cross referencing them to their own copies was required. Of course, this wasn¡¯t the full picture either. According to Nicholas, some of the Guardians were sometimes paid by the Churches to slander the canons of the other religions. It¡¯s unknown when this started, but once one church began to do it, the others did the same. At one point in time, it got so bad, the royal families had to intervene and new laws and regulations regarding this had to be made. Not that it actually stopped anyone, however. When Soren asked Nicholas why the library he visited in Yadria didn¡¯t have the same issues with the spirits, he told him that it was probably due to the influence of the Saintesses who keep Floramere Keep orderly. Either way, this finally gave an answer to what that graveyard he had seen down below the library floors was all about. By noon, the visitors to the library dwindled and Soren¡¯s shift had ended. Sadly, he didn¡¯t get any chance to peruse through all the books like he wanted, but it didn¡¯t bother him¡ªit was his first day after all. As promised, Myrin took him out to sightsee around the city at dusk. Much to his surprise, he was even given a portion of his salary in advance. Apparently, Sienna did this to give Soren something to spend since he was still technically broke. Not that he was complaining¡ªhe decided to spend 30 Lorins on new clothes as well as a few pairs of boots since Myrin told him he¡¯ll need them. He also splurged a few coins here and there to understand the value of them in the market, but that was just an excuse to buy street food. As they made their way back to the library, Soren spotted the remnants of that battlefield from earlier in the morning¡ªpedestrians walked happily across it, oblivious to what had taken place. Vagrants, huh¡­ He scoffed at himself. ¡°Thinking about something?¡± Myrin asked joyfully as they maneuvered the crowd. Soren took a bite from his meat skewer. ¡°Nothing, just my plans for the future. When we get back, I plan to ask Cassia to help me with the Soul Search. I wanna begin compiling a grimoire for myself and I can¡¯t do that without knowing what my affinity is.¡± ¡°Already?¡± Myrin laughed. ¡°You should learn to take things slow. Did you even finish reading the books the mistress assigned you?¡± Soren shook his head, ¡°I just started Arcane Geometry. That book is a bit complicated. I realized something very big while reading it earlier today. [Record] may help me chronicle the information, or even memorize it into my brain directly, but it won¡¯t help me to actually understand it. I finally understood why Mistress Sienna told me to take the reading slowly.¡± Myrin nodded, ¡°I think you are already doing fine¡ªmost apprentices I know still have trouble remembering the axioms. You have a big advantage compared to them, and you are also fairly talented as well¡ªit shouldn¡¯t take you long to figure it out. And you can always ask me or Cassia about magecraft as well. Heck, even Nicholas knows a bit.¡± Unauthorized use: this story is on Amazon without permission from the author. Report any sightings. ¡°Thanks man,¡± Soren smiled. ¡°But still, I do need to figure out my affinities. Like, right now.¡± The conversation continued for a while until they returned to the library. After taking the stone elevator platform down to where Star Fate Guild operated and entering the familiar lounge, Myrin waited for no one to throw himself onto the sofa. ¡°Ahhh, finally home.¡± He leaned his neck back to relax. Soren on the other hand greeted Joyce who was laughing from behind the minibar. ¡°Is Cassia here?¡± Soren asked. She nodded. ¡°She should be back any moment now.¡± The door to the lounge swung open. ¡°Speak of the devil¡­¡± Cassia walked into the lounge with a frown¡ªSoren guessed that she was also thinking about what happened in the morning. He walked up to her and asked, ¡°Cassia, I want to figure out what my affinities are. Could you help me?¡± Her frown deepened. ¡°I don¡¯t have time.¡± She continued walking past him toward the other end of the lounge¡ªa door was there that led to an area he hadn¡¯t been in before. ¡°Please,¡± he said. ¡°I need to start making strides as a magus¡ªI can¡¯t do that without knowing my affinities¡­¡± ¡°Ask someone else!¡± She lashed before storming out of the lounge, leaving Soren speechless. ¡°What the hell?¡± He glanced at Myrin who was just as shocked. ¡°D-don¡¯t worry about it¡­ I don¡¯t think she meant anything by it.¡± Joyce said¡ªSoren knew she was obviously just trying to fix the mood.. Seeing this, Myrin sighed. ¡°She¡¯s probably still shocked about the thing that happened earlier this morning. After all, she does have some history with them¡­ The Silver Moon church.¡± ¡°I¡­ See¡­¡± There wasn¡¯t much else to really say at that point. Myrin glanced at him for a second before asking, ¡°Since you¡¯re this adamant on figuring out your affinities, is it safe to assume you know what it entails?¡± Soren looked back at his elven friend and nodded. ¡°I researched a bit of it during my shift in the library. Though, I am still fairly ignorant about the specifics.¡± Myrin stood up from the sofa and smiled, ¡°Fine. I¡¯ll help you instead.¡±
Soren followed Myrin behind as they walked down the lonely and familiar corridors. It hadn¡¯t been long since his arrival, but he had already somewhat memorized the layout. Still, the area they were heading in now was new. They had already passed by his own room and went two or so turns to the left before arriving at another wooden door. ¡°This is my room,¡± said Myrin with a smile. ¡°Make sure you don¡¯t step on anything.¡± Soren didn¡¯t know what he meant by that, but decided to nod. Myrin twisted the knob and led Soren inside. He snapped his fingers, and the darkness immediately receded back to its fringe corners¡ªthe lamps had magically lit themselves up. The moment Soren got a glimpse of his room, his jaw dropped. Paint splatters on the wall, Canvases left and right, a piano placed away from the bed, musical instruments scattered across the floor next to markers and pens, sheets and sheets of papers above and below them¡­ It was a mess. An artistic mess. Myrin scratched his hair as he glanced back at the dumbstricken Soren. ¡°I swear I was going to clean up yesterday¡­¡± He carefully tiptoed over the countless art utensils and music sheets until he arrived at the bed. ¡°Alright, I guess we can begin?¡± He asked Soren who was still hesitant at entering the room. ¡°I¡¯ll clear away a few things on the floor so you can sit.¡± Just as he said that, his Soul Realm expanded and eclipsed the room. Then, a small plant sprouted from the floor. Soren watched as its branches suddenly unfolded from the ground. The plant¡­ It was somehow walking¡­ Like a human being. Then, countless more similar plants began to grow. Some had flowers for heads, others simply branched into leaves. The only similarity between them was that they could grow limb-like branches. It was as if a small army of plant minions had been summoned. ¡°Clean up, little ones,¡± said Myrin joyfully with a clap of his hands. The plants began to pick up the countless items from the floor to clear up a space for Soren to sit on. Soren considered using [Eyes of the Fairy] to know what magecraft spell Myrin was using, but decided against it. I¡¯m going to need every bit of anima and strength from this point forward¡­ Myrin read his thoughts and smiled, ¡°A splendid choice.¡± Chapter 67: Soul Search

Chapter 67: Soul Search

Soren sat in a lotus position in the area Myrin had cleared with his strange plants. His thoughts churned for a second before getting startled by Myrin. ¡°Before we start, I wanna confirm what you know. Are you aware that a Soul Search isn¡¯t something most beginners look to do until they have at least three months of practice with their Soul Realm?¡± Soren nodded. ¡°Yes. I also know that once I begin this Soul Search, I won¡¯t be able to stop until I acquire what I am looking for.¡± According to what Sienna had told him briefly as well as what the Axiom Codex had mentioned, Soul Searches are a practice that all magi must go through in order to discover their affinities. Just like how one first unlocks their Soul Realm, they must enter the Three Layers of Self and look for signs that indicate what their affinities are. However, it was easier said than done. Since your True Self resides within the deepest layer of the Heart¡¯s Shroud, what a magi must look for needs to be the ¡®Shades¡¯ of that True Self. These ¡®Shades¡¯ manifest themselves secretly in random areas within the Three Layers, but the harder one tries to look for them, the harder it becomes to maintain your existence within. The reason for that was simple. The ¡®Shades¡¯ of one¡¯s self are nothing more than reflections¡ªeach one representing a single personality trait of the person. But the more a magi discovers these ¡®Shades¡¯, the more contradictions pop up, resulting in an unstable Soul Realm. Because of this, most magi limit themselves at only discovering one or two affinities¡ªany more and you¡¯ll simply drive yourself insane. This however, did pose another obstacle to Soren, who was in a time crunch. He had to somehow search for his first ¡®Shade¡¯ and discover his first affinity by the end of this week. No, even that was too much time¡ªhe needed to do it in a few days so he could finish up his studying for the week and report back to the Mistress. Myrin sighed as he shook his head. ¡°Your impatience knows no bounds¡­ If you had left this for after this week, you may have had more time to prepare¡­¡± Soren closed his eyes and frowned. ¡°I can¡¯t wait any longer, Myrin. My time is slowly ticking¡ªhaven¡¯t you heard about my condition? I only have one year to find another Abstract Rune, or I¡¯ll be doomed. If I can¡¯t progress as a magi quickly, I won¡¯t have the strength to search for it.¡± Myrin¡¯s mouth opened slightly, as if he wanted to say something but chose not to. He sighed again and slammed his hand against his forehead. ¡°Do what you will¡­ I will watch over your body in the meantime here and I''ll also cast a few wards around you to avoid any disturbances. ¡°Ah, also. Do not think for a second that I can hide what you are doing from the mistress. I am sure she already knows. Prepare to be scolded when you come back.¡± Soren smiled, ¡°Thanks, man.¡±
An hour had passed and Soren had still not located his first ¡®Shade¡¯ of Self. It was interesting to say the least¡ªhe was currently located within the shallow regions of the Heart¡¯s Shroud¡ªthe murky white fog shifted evenly around him. His visit to the three layers was much simpler this time. Unlike before where he needed to use that tool Myrin had granted him, all he had to do this time was simply expand his Soul Realm around him, then contrast it back into his eyes. The effect was immediate¡ªhe was able to peer into the three layers like a spectator, something he couldn¡¯t do back then until he looked past the Veil of Perception. This however, didn¡¯t mean there were no active threats. The three layers were still exerting their influence on him¡ªhe had already seen countless new illusions within the Heart¡¯s Shroud that he had to ignore. The same could be said for the countless thoughts springing randomly within his Echo of Mind. Most shocking of all, however, had to be the actual attacks he was receiving¡ªthis was something new. When he first arrived in the Echo of Mind, a tempestuous storm kicked in immediately, and then, a rain of lightning showered above him. This wasn¡¯t fake lightning either¡ªit was real. If he hadn¡¯t immediately focused and created thought bubbles around them, he would have died. And it didn¡¯t stop there either¡ªhe was bombarded by waves, tornadoes, wind blades, and occasionally, even whirlpools forming beneath his feet, all of which formed randomly without any echoing from his own thoughts¡ªsomething that was clearly contradictory. Eventually he got the hang of it and managed to speed up his focus, leading him to sink into the Heart¡¯s Shroud, but respite wasn¡¯t found there either. Illusions of Spirit Beasts, Magi, and Even other Phantasms he had seen in the nightshade raid continued to show themselves¡ªall of them were hostile. And what¡¯s worse was the fact that he couldn¡¯t even fight back against them¡ªif he tried, it would only add weight on himself within the fog. Why the hell did Myrin not warn me about this, he cursed, causing the fog to weigh a bit more. He took a deep breath to calm himself. There¡¯s no way he wouldn¡¯t¡ªthis situation must not be normal. Nevertheless, by the nature of these illusions, he had to ignore them¡ªan answer he didn¡¯t mind at all. Everytime the fog stirred, he simply turned around and left without even waiting for what might manifest. Eventually, he reached the bottom. The ethereal golden light beaming beyond the murky fog became clearer and clearer until he finally reached it. His True Self. The Records remained the same as his last visit¡ªits shimmering golden pages flickered like flames as it levitated mysteriously. A thin layer of fog surrounded its form. If he were to be honest, he was hesitant about reaching this place again¡ªespecially because of the corruption from the rift that attacked him last time. I wonder if that spatial crack is still there¡­ The thought reminded him of the pain from the ravings and whispers that encroached upon his mind¡ªthe weight of the fog rose once more. Focus, Soren¡­ Taking another deep breath, he approached his True Self. Just as he thought, it had remained at the same page he was on last time¡ªthe revelation it showed him. The reason why he was here was simple. After searching through his three layers for an entire hour and seeing no results, he suddenly got an idea. If his True Self was The Records, then could he use his True Self in the same way? After all, it did display information to him last time through the book itself, so it wasn¡¯t that far-fetched of an idea. He took a deep breath and grabbed the ancient tome¡ªits radiant warmth entered his ethereal palms. Soren closed his eyes and imagined the thought just like he would usually do. Just when he thought that his idea was a failure, his Soul Weapon¡¯s pages broke apart into countless tiny golden butterflies that swam into his eyes. If you discover this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. He did it. He could see the unseen. [Eyes of the Fairy] had activated. He almost couldn¡¯t believe it¡ªhis True Self was truly representing itself as The Records, his Soul Weapon. All around him, the fog had dissipated. In its place, countless colors and fractal shapes flooded his vision. Each fractal shifted chaotically, but he could tell something was inside of them¡ªhis memories. Every memory he had ever conceived was being represented here. I need to leave. NOW. Without any hesitation, he held firmly to the ancient tome and channeled his thoughts into wanting to leave the Heart¡¯s Shroud. His visage turned incorporeal once more as his plane of existence shifted to that of the Echo of Mind, one layer above where he was previously. He sighed in relief. The worst didn¡¯t happen. Because of his [Eyes of the Fairy], being able to see his memories aso meant being able to see the corrupted whispers of the rift. And his intuition wasn¡¯t wrong. Just moments before his visage disappeared, he spotted countess rune tentacles heading his way¡ªthe corruption had noticed his presence and was itching to invade his mind once more. Luckily, he reacted fast enough. Soren glanced down at his True Self which was still sitting in his arms, wide open. His [Eyes of the Fairy] had deactivated, but the Soul Weapon itself hadn¡¯t. If he had to be honest, what he just did was a gamble that he wasn¡¯t sure would pay off. Afterall, the last time he came here, he wasn¡¯t even able to move it, but now, he could take his True Self with him as he roamed across his three layers of self. It was fairly odd, but he decided to ignore it. I have to find one of the ¡®Shades¡¯ quickly¡­ Although only an hour passed for him here, he was still unsure how much time was passing in reality. Myrin said it was random¡ªfor some, time passed normally¡ªfor others, it was much more distorted. And the effect varied every time a person entered the three layers. Not to mention, his [Eyes of the Fairy] also had a distinct effect on time, so he needed to be careful when using it. He sighed as he glanced around the chaotic storm erupting around him in the Echo of Mind. He focused his thoughts and formed more thought bubbles. Let¡¯s begin the search. First, he activated [Eyes of the Fairy] and focused his vision on mapping the layer of self. The last time he arrived here, he was fairly curious as to how far each of these manifested realms extended. For the Echo of Mind, the ocean went as far as his eye could see. Sadly, he had no time or reason to wander around that time. His Soul Weapon activated [Record] and began mapping his route as he ran across the endless ocean. Occasionally, he would need to change routes to avoid waves, storms and attacks from illusory lightning. But even after another two to three hours, nothing had changed. He had found absolutely nothing to show for his efforts. Sighing, he let himself go and laid down on the ocean-like floor. What am I doing wrong? He felt as if he was walking in a loop. And he wasn¡¯t wrong. Glancing down at the map in his Soul Weapon (True Self), a glowing line showed his route. He had truly been going in circles this entire time. ¡°Is this some sort of trick or is this supposed to happen?¡± He wasn¡¯t sure. He cursed his lack of knowledge¡ªif he had spent more time researching the three layers, maybe he would have known this. But there was no point in considering what-if scenarios. Wasting precious time without knowing what his affinities are would only hurt him in the long run. He needed to figure something out quickly. He frowned as he glanced down at the map¡ªsmall cloud and lightning icons were shown to him as they moved across the Echo of Mind. It wasn¡¯t hard to know what those were. They were the countless thought storms manifesting from his own chaotic thoughts. To think my Soul Weapon could [Record] things like this too¡­ His thoughts continued to echo out as he sat there, pondering what to do next. He had searched every nook and cranny of his Echo of Mind, and he had found nothing. Let me try the Veil of Perception next¡­ Even then, It felt as if he had spent two-to-four days and yet nothing had changed. Mapping the Veil of Perception had shown the same result. Even as his reality shifted into countless forms and environments, the map itself showed a clear boundary and that his movements were the same¡ªa circle. There was also the time dilation aspect¡ªhis perception of time tended to shift and twist on its own in this realm just like it did last time. He was no longer sure how long he had been Soul Searching. With no choice left, he decided to move back to the Heart¡¯s Shroud, regardless of the danger, and yet, even this final layer of self had nothing but illusions of bad memories and mirages of Phantasms hungry to spill his blood. His ¡®Shade¡¯ of self was nowhere to be found. ¡°This is bullshit¡­¡± He almost couldn¡¯t believe it. Even though Myrin said that finding them was tricky, it should not be this difficult, especially since unlike normal magi, he was able to cheat and use his Soul Weapon¡¯s abilities to aid himself. Even after mapping out every layer completely, he found nothing. ¡°Do I just not possess any affinities?¡± The thought made his heart sink. He didn¡¯t want to believe it. But it also held some merit¡ªhis circumstances were anything but normal after all. Not only was his Soul Chain and the Runic Existence it orbits missing, but even his True Self had somehow manifested as his own Soul Weapon. It seemed like he was destined to be a weirdo compared to others in every aspect. Although the thought made him chuckle, he couldn¡¯t help but get worried. Calm down, Soren¡­ He didn¡¯t know how many times he had said those words by now. ¡°There has to be something I am missing¡­¡± He decided to review his maps again. His Echo of Mind was once again showing the same clouds and storms¡ªhis Soul Weapon was tracking their movements. As for the Heart¡¯s Shroud, the map was showing different icons of manifested illusions of his memories. The Veil of Perception was also no different aside from the fact that it was the shape of the terrain itself that was changing. All of it remained just as he had suspected it would. There was nothing suspicious that he could point to. ¡°Just where the hell is this shade at¡­¡± But that¡¯s when he realized something. Why¡­ Were his maps even changing in the first place? Why were they showing these indicators and icons? The more he thought about it, the less it made sense. His maps were only supposed to update themselves if his [Eyes of the Fairy] focused on those details. After all, seeing the unseen didn¡¯t mean seeing everything that was unseen¡ªSoren needed to focus on the thing he wanted to see most¡ªin this case, it was the terrain itself, not everything on the terrain. And that wasn¡¯t the only oddity. Although his mapping ability was very meticulous, it never updated on its own. When he was using it to navigate the Illusionary Barrier in the Feylith Forest, he had to constantly reuse [Eyes of the Fairy] to update their route as the barrier shifted things around then use [Record] to store this new information. But what he was witnessing right now was different. The icons showing where the storms were moving in the Echo of Mind were shifting on their own¡ªthis was information he hadn¡¯t chronicled himself, and it was happening in real-time. ¡°[Eyes of the Fairy] isn¡¯t even active right now and it¡¯s still chronicling and showing me changes in the maps¡­.¡± And that¡¯s when it struck him. A thought so ridiculous, it would have made him laugh if not for the fact that the evidence supported it strongly. And most curious of all, his own Soul Weapon (True Self) agreed with this conclusion. New Revelation Recorded: [The Only Shade] (Mystery) Chapter 68: Mesmerism

Chapter 68: Mesmerism

He ordered his True Self to reveal the information to him¡ªthe pages shifted on their own. The Only Shade I have scoured every layer within these labyrinthine mind realms and found nothing. But it is through this nothing that I found something. The only other reflection of who I am. An affinity for misdirection, deception, and manipulation. The Mesmerism Affinity. ¡°The Mesmerism Affinity?¡± He repeated to himself and frowned. Based on the description, one thing was clear¡ªhe only had one affinity. According to Myrin, the number of affinities a person could have was dependent on the number of different ¡®Shades of Self¡¯ they had. Each shade could represent a dominant personality trait, but that didn¡¯t mean every side of a person¡¯s personality was reflected this way. It was common for magi and sentinels to discover that some of the personality traits they thought they had didn¡¯t manifest as shades of self. ¡°If you wear a mask long enough, you¡¯ll start to believe it¡¯s your face¡­¡± It was a saying he had heard from somewhere. Not that it truly mattered anyway. A person with only one affinity was no different than a person with two, three, four or more affinities. The number never truly mattered. What mattered most was the magi¡¯s grimoire and how they utilized the affinities they had. In fact, the more affinities a person holds, the less useful they could become. This was due to the fact that no matter who the magi was, they will eventually need to prioritize one affinity over the others. Time of course, will always be limited, and in most cases, magi do not spend that time studying their affinities. They will most likely resort to purchasing grimoires from others depending on what their affinity was, which would make them highly dependent on the market. If you have an affinity for Glassfire, but also a rare affinity for Camouflage, you¡¯ll prioritize Glassfire since there are some grimoires out there for it. Since his revelation speaks of ¡°the only other reflection,¡± and that it was titled, ¡°The Only Shade,¡± Soren rightfully assumed that this was his ¡®True Self¡¯s¡¯ way of telling him that this Mesmerism affinity was the only one he had. Still, the description for it intrigued him, since it somewhat went against that notion. ¡°Misdirection, deception, manipulation¡­¡± The more he thought about, the more it seemed as if his affinity was in actuality three affinities packaged into one. And he did not for a second disagree with that notion. The whole reason he was even able to discover this was because of what he had pieced together from his unsuccessful search the past four or so days. Not only was there not a single glimpse of his Shade of Self, but all of the oddities stacked against each other pointed at this one and only conclusion: That the ¡®True Self¡¯ he was holding was a fake¡ªit was in actuality his Shade of Self disguising itself as his True Self. Even now, a part of him wanted to laugh at this conclusion. All that time he had spent searching for it when in reality, it had always been with him the whole time¡­ Not even for a second did he doubt that this affinity was a result of one of his personality traits. "God, I''m such an asshole¡ªI couldn''t even resist pulling a prank on myself.¡± He was indeed proud of this. The first clue to this was the fact that he was able to move his ¡®True Self¡¯ out of the Heart¡¯s Shroud in the first place. This had already struck him as odd, even though it was his idea to test it out in the first place. Myrin had already told him previously that a person¡¯s True Self will always reside at the deepest level of the Heart¡¯s Shroud, far below all three layers. Moving it should have been inconceivable, but the idea intrigued him so he wanted to test it. Even if he couldn¡¯t move it, simply being able to use his abilities within the boundaries of the Heart¡¯s Shroud would have been seen as a net plus. The moment he was able to move it, a seed of suspicion grew. Now that he¡¯s able to read what his affinity was and what it represents, he finally was able to piece together everything. Mesmerism by definition was another way of saying deception and trickery. His Shade of Self had disguised itself as his True Self to fool him, and it worked for the most part¡ªhe didn¡¯t realize he was carrying what he was searching for the whole time until the very end. But what truly amazed him was its connection to those illusions he had been seeing in the Heart¡¯s Shroud as well as the attacks from the storms in his Echo of Mind. Ever since his arrival here, he had been wondering about why these changes were occurring¡ªMyrin hadn¡¯t warned him of such a thing happening and he refused to believe he knew and kept it a secret. He had been suspicious of them and kept wondering if they had anything to do with his Shade of Self to the point of even considering purposefully entering one of the storms to see if it may have been hidden inside the thunder clouds. If you spot this story on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. However, both of these supernatural occurrences make sense now. These were simply illusions manifested by this Shade of Self that tricked him into believing they were real. This was collaborated by the fact that they all dissipated the moment he discovered where his Shade of Self was. And this finally led him to the final clue: the icons on his map. It was now fairly simple to explain why these indicators were there even though he hadn¡¯t used [Record] for them¡ªthe copy of The Records that the Shade of Self was mimicking didn¡¯t need to use abilities to showcase what it, itself, has created. If all the storms and illusionary memories of Phantasms he had seen before were all fabricated by it, there would be no need to keep track of their locations since the Shade of Self already knows where they are at all times to begin with. ¡°As I thought, this is not a normal affinity¡­¡± All the information he had learned about Soul Searches never mentioned anything about the Shades of Self he needed to locate fighting against the magi or sentinel. They only tend to hide themselves since they are reflections of a person¡¯s subconscious mind¡ªpersonality traits that make up who a person was. And yet, the affinity before him clearly exhibited signs of going against this inactive nature, not to mention, the methods it employed were far more closer into the territory of Mysteries rather than Magecraft. ¡°Since The Records I am currently holding isn¡¯t my True Self, where is it actually? Is it still at the bottom of the Heart¡¯s Shroud? How come I didn¡¯t see it¡­¡± He considered going back down there to explore but decided against it. He had already obtained what he wanted¡ªthere was no need to risk things, especially not with raging rune tentacles looking to invade his mind and corrupt his existence roaming around down there. Nope. He glanced down at his Soul Weapon (Shade of Self) and smiled. ¡°Since you are mimicking my True Self, you should be able to mimic its effect right?¡± He immediately thought of leaving the three layers, and much to his relief, it had worked. His body slowly turned translucent as he vanished from the Echo of Mind followed by the Veil of Perception. He was now back in reality.
Myrin sat plainly before a desk with a bored expression drooping off his face. Time truly does have an effect on one¡¯s psyche. Even with being able to stay in his room and draw for hours, the need to leave and go elsewhere had grown on him in the past few hours. Crumbling another drawing and tossing it to the floor to be picked up by one of his Leafling Minions, he glanced back at where Soren was sitting and frowned. ¡°Why did I agree to this again¡­¡± His shoulders lowered in defeat as he sighed. All of a sudden, the door to his room swung open slowly, the familiar ginger-haired warrior he knows stepped inside. Tina was holding two cups of coffee, one that she was sipping from while the other she handed off to Myrin. ¡°Thanks a lot.¡± He smiled. Tina nodded, ¡°Don¡¯t sweat it. How¡¯s Soren doing?¡± ¡°To be honest, I am not sure¡­ I considered doing another divination to see if it could tell me an outcome, but I saw no point in it. Even if I knew something bad was going to happen, there¡¯s no way for us to interfere in what happens within his three layers.¡± He took a sip from the coffee and set it on the table. ¡°Speaking of which, what do you think his affinity is going to be if he succeeds? Any guesses?¡± Tina frowned and crossed her arms. ¡°Maybe an affinity for sweet talking?¡± ¡°I can definitely see that,¡± he laughed. ¡°Honestly, something sly would probably fit him best. Something with deception or trickery. An affinity to make people distrust themselves and their surroundings.¡± ¡°So basically his paranoia and stubbornness personified into an affinity?¡± Tina chuckled. ¡°If only affinities were this straightforward.¡± The conversation shifted for a while, until a change in the anima was felt coming from behind them. They shifted their attention to where Soren was meditating. His eyes had finally opened. ¡°How¡­ How long was I out for?¡± He asked Myrin. His legs felt oddly numb. ¡°Two days.¡± He said with a look of relief. ¡°Two days?!¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. It was honestly a long period of time, but it was still shorter than what he had originally assumed. To him, about 4 and a half or so days had passed while exploring his three layers. I guess that¡¯s a good thing actually¡­ It meant more time to study before his report. ¡°Let¡¯s get to the main question,¡± Tina said. ¡°Now that your Soul Search ended, is it fair to assume you discovered your affinity? What is it?¡± Soren thought for a second before answering. ¡°Mesmerism. It has to do with deception and trickery. I think I can use it to cast elaborate illusions and whatnot. But it also seems to be more than that.¡± They both glanced at each other for a second before bursting into laughter. Myrin almost spilled his coffee. Chapter 69: Runology

Chapter 69: Runology

Much to his annoyance, it took the pair a few minutes to cease their chuckles. Even so, their faces remained annoyingly smug as they stared at him, barely holding back more laughter. ¡°Mesmerism, huh?¡± Myrin spoke as if he was trying to be serious again. ¡°That sounds very rare. I¡¯ve read countless encyclopedias on what is possible when it comes to affinities, and yet I¡¯ve never heard of this one.¡± ¡°I¡¯ve heard of similar ones, like the Deception or Camouflage affinities.¡± Tina added. ¡°But yes, Mesmerism seems to be entirely new. You¡¯ll most likely find no leads to go off on, which means you¡¯ll need to research it all on your own¡­ I know Cassia said it should be easier with the abilities your Soul Weapon grants you, but easier by how much¡­ I am not sure.¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°Magi Scholars take a long time to even finalize one Spellform when they first start out. This is because you¡¯ll need to first uncover the material runes you¡¯ll need to use in conjecture with that affinity.¡± ¡°And how would I be able to do that?¡± Soren asked. Myrin frowned before answering, ¡°Runology.¡± ¡°Runology?¡± From what he remembered, Runology had a lot to do with divination techniques. The items he had seen in that store during their visit to Yadria were all listed under the Runology section of his Soul Weapon¡¯s database. ¡°Yes, Runology,¡± Myrin affirmed. ¡°Your initial introduction to it was with me using a Flower Divination technique, correct?¡± Soren nodded. ¡°You see,¡± he followed, ¡°Runolog, in its infancy, was far from the structured discipline we know it as today. Its beginnings were much more humble¡ªrudimentary, even. As you know, material runes, the foundational elements of magecraft, weren¡¯t things that could simply be discovered through logical approaches. The symbols we now accept as standard in the Scripted Runic system were far more archaic back then. Early magi scholars would either compile random symbols, hoping for a breakthrough, or meticulously study existing material runes to infer what others may look like. ¡°Obviously, with such a chaotic approach, the consequences would be very dire¡ªlethal, even. The magecraft these early scholars dabbled in was almost always volatile and prone to failure. During experiments, you¡¯d consider yourself fortunate if your spellform merely failed without at least taking an arm or a life with it.¡± Tina nodded in agreement, ¡°I believe I heard somewhere that every material rune they discovered would take around ten thousand experiments¡ªmany of them were deadly.¡± The more he heard, the more terrifying it sounded. The fact that magi had to simply try different combinations and use what works and discard what didn¡¯t when the effects it could have were this horrible made him realize just how blessed he really was. All that knowledge I read about yesterday¡­ How many lives were spent gathering it? Before he could ponder it further, Myrin spoke again. ¡°Soren, do you know where Material Runes come from?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± he replied. ¡°From the Beyond. Material Runes¡ªand Scripted Runic in general¡ªare simply the language we use to interpret how the Beyond represents the natural world. If for example we wanted to know how this table was made, the Beyond would have its representation of that table constructed from Material Runes¡­ ¡°However,¡± he continued, ¡°we, as mortals, cannot perceive this knowledge directly or instantly. It''s just too inconceivable or incomprehensible to us.¡± Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Not for me, however, Soren wanted to add. When he read this information yesterday, it finally made sense to him how [Eyes of the Fairy] worked. It was simply reading what these representations were fundamentally¡ªthe Material Runes that make up the unseen he focuses on the most. His ability allows him to process these Material Runes in a way for his mind to understand them. Essentially, it was nothing more than an advanced translator. Myrin nodded at his explanation. ¡°Indeed. Material Runes are simply our way of understanding how the Beyond ¡®represents¡¯ the world. Scripted Runic, in essence, is the language of the Beyond itself. And as you know, these Material Runes¡ªaside from the Material Runes of Reason¡ªlack a common structure. For instance, one Material Rune could represent this entire room, or it could be a combination of several runes representing the furniture, walls, and other elements. There is no discernible pattern to it, no logic that we can recognize. ¡°Sadly, the ancient magi scholars didn¡¯t understand this. They believed nature adhered to a pattern, that order existed. But in truth, the Beyond, by its very essence, is chaos.¡± He took a sip from his coffee before continuing. ¡°Everything changed, however, at the end of the First Age of Fantasia. Scholars today debate whether this revelation was discovered or created, but deep within the Beyond¡ªin the uppermost reaches of the so-called ¡®Towers of Heaven¡¯¡ªthere exists a stone tablet. And when I say large, I mean large enough to eclipse the sun. ¡°This tablet is something we scholars call, The Records of Enigma and it houses a list of every conceivable material rune that has ever been discovered by humanity and the other races.¡± The more he heard, the more inconceivable it sounded¡­ ¡°So this tablet¡­ How does it have to do with Runology?¡± Myrin smiled knowingly and gave a small nod, ¡°Good question. This tablet is absolutely essential to magi scholars like yourself. You¡¯ll need it not only to document new discoveries regarding Material Runes and their various axioms but also as a tool for discovering new ones. The knowledge it holds spans back to the very first Age of Fantasia and is widely available to all magi with a Soul Realm¡ªprovided you can visit the tablet and request its wisdom. ¡°But that¡¯s not all. This tablet also plays a crucial role in Runology¡¯s evolution. You see, Runology requires a conduit¡ªa kind of beacon to attach to when seeking answers during the divination process. My Flower Divination, for instance, relies on my connection to the Flower Maiden, Praise the Blossoms. As you¡¯re aware, the Beyond is not a very structured place¡ªit is very archaic by its nature and tends to change on its own as time passes by. But it also seems to hold information about both the present, the past, and the future all at the same moment. It is very paradoxical by its very nature. Without a conduit, finding the answer to what you are seeking would be akin to sifting through sand dunes to find a follicle of hair.¡± Soren rubbed his chin as he thought about what Myrin was trying to say. ¡°Are you basically implying that this tablet acts as a conduit or medium?¡± ¡°Exactly! Each conduit has its own methods of divination. The Flower Maiden, for example, offers several methods, with Flower Divination being just one. When Runology first began, however, the tablet was the only known conduit for magi. The gods were yet to awaken during that age. ¡°There¡¯s another important detail,¡± he followed. ¡°Conduits have strict requirements for their use. You cannot perform divination on a conduit about something unrelated to it. For the tablet¡ªknown to scholars as The Records of Enigma¡ªthe requirement was simple: the divination had to be related to runes. And thus, the study of Runology was born.¡± Soren frowned as he began to process what Myrin was telling him. ¡°So basically, if I want to compile my own grimoire and discover the material runes associated with my affinity, I will need to commune with this tablet? There¡¯s no easier way?¡± ¡°Yes.¡± Myrin nodded while Tina who had stayed silent for the explanation scoffed, ¡°This is why us Sentinels are better. We don¡¯t need to do any of this. The moment you discover your affinity, all you really need to do is manipulate the raw anima associated with it.¡± Myrin shrugged, ¡°Our last scuffle says otherwise.¡± He said smugly and Tina snorted in response. ¡°Don¡¯t mention that time, ugh! I got distracted and you took advantage of it!¡± As they bickered, Soren began pondering what to do next. Obviously, he still needed to do his reading, but now he also had to figure out how to commune with this tablet to obtain some material runes and create his first Spellform. There was a lot of work to do, but he felt very excited. ¡°I wouldn¡¯t advise you to do that,¡± Myrin said while reading his thoughts. Soren frowned, ¡°What do you mean? What¡¯s the point of me going through all of this if you won¡¯t allow me to begin compiling my grimoire?¡± ¡°Myrin is right,¡± Tina added. ¡°Your Soul Realm is still too unstable to commune with the tablet through divination.¡± Chapter 70: The Price

Chapter 70: The Price

The more he heard their warnings, the more frustrated he became. What was the point of him rushing to discover his affinity, if not for the fact that he needed to at least reach the first circle as a magi? How could he twiddle his thumbs and wait because of some abstract reasoning? His frown deepened the more he heard them speak. ¡°Soul Realms are prone to collapsing for the first few days after a magi or sentinel discovers what their affinity is. Immediately trying to undergo a complex Runological study is suicide. It''s usually advised that they refrain from using their abilities for at least two weeks.¡± Myrin decided to follow up on her explanation, ¡°If you don¡¯t believe her, try expanding your Soul Realm right now.¡± Soren took a deep breath to calm himself and did as he was bid. His anima expanded outward from his heart to an area around him. Though this time, he discovered something different about it. There was this¡­ Violet pink, misty fog or miasma that was spreading out in the vicinity. Most shocking of all, it had a distinct smell¡ªit was an aroma that filled him with ecstasy, a blend of floral scents that was hard to describe. From the corners of his eyes, he could also spot strange illusory pink butterflies floating freely before dissipating back into the mysterious mist. ¡°What you are seeing right now is what we magi and sentinels call the color of your anima. With the discovery of your affinity, your anima has taken shape and blended with this new identity of yours¡ªMesmerism. Only the material runes associated with this affinity will be able to be commanded by your anima.¡± As ironic as it was to say, he was mesmerized. He couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. But just as he was about to admire his accomplishment more, his Soul Realm¡¯s shape began to twist uncontrollably, contrasting and expanding in different angles and ways. A searing pain took over his mind and before he could even react, the Soul Realm he had been maintaining around him collapsed. What the¡­ He tried to activate it again but couldn¡¯t. He glanced at Myrin who was taking another sip from his coffee. ¡°As you can see, it is still too unstable for you to control. You need to give it a week or more before you could utilize your newly unlocked affinity perfectly.¡± All Soren could do was sit there helplessly while grinding away at his teeth. Two weeks¡­ Two fucking weeks¡­ Maybe he had realized it sooner but decided to ignore it, but there was a growing feeling of impatience taking over his heart. No, this was something he had carried with him the moment he learned about his fate in that cursed forest¡ªthat his life and death was nothing more than a few ticks away. And even though the Mistress had reset that timer to a year from now, his challenge in that period had only grown even more daunting. It was ironic to say the least. His arrival on this world was a result of his own ego wanting him to dabble with things he had no understanding of¡ªmysticism. Look where it got you, Soren. He was now yearning to learn the very same art that drove him here in the first place, and rather than it being to sate his own desires, he needed it simply to survive. And yet, even then, obstacles continue to block his path. At first, he assumed simply arriving at Celestine Citadel would solve all his issues, and when that turned out to be wrong, he assumed finally getting his affinity meant a change in pace, but that too turned out to be nothing more than delusion. It¡¯s as if he had been climbing a mountain the entire time and finally reaching the summit, only to realize he had simply reached the base of an even taller peak. ¡°I understand your frustrations, Soren.¡± Myrin said in a calm voice. Soren snickered under his breath, ¡°Stop lying, you don¡¯t fucking understand.¡± He tried to stand up, but his legs shook from being left in the same position for too long. ¡°None of you understand.¡± ¡°Soren¡­¡± Tina wanted to say something, but decided not to. ¡°What can any of you understand? You¡¯ve all lived your lives in this world. All of you have learned and adapted to this world since you were young. Cassia said so herself¡ªI am nothing more than an apprentice with no circles. There are children out there who have probably already gotten their first circle. And unlike them, I don¡¯t even have the chance to take my time and study. ¡°One year, Tina. One fucking year. That¡¯s all the time I have to catch up to what others take years to complete¡­ And even if I reach the first circle, that won¡¯t even guarantee me a chance at acquiring an Abstract Rune to continue surviving.¡± Unauthorized use of content: if you find this story on Amazon, report the violation. They stayed silent as he reached out for his Soul Weapon. Status Name: Soren Andersen Race: ??? Age: 23 Vocation: Scribe Magi Rank: Apprentice (No Circles) Magi Affinities: Mesmerism Soul Realm: The Hermit¡¯s Eye (Unique) (Nascent Stage) Soul Weapon: The Records (Unique) (Tier 1 - Tome) Skills: [Record] (Rank 1) - Chronicle the information around you. [Eyes of the Fairy] (Rank 1) - See the unseen. [The Faerie Court] (Rank 1) - Enter the realm of realms. Blessings: [Traveler] (Unknown) - You have embarked on a journey across space and time. Echoes of the rift will no longer shatter your sanity. Rune Collection: [Fairy Witness] (1 Insight) - ??? He was surprised to find a few changes from the last time he checked it. First, his race had somehow gone from being listed as human to ¡®???¡¯. This struck him as odd at first, but then he realized that his status page seemed to reflect how he himself felt about himself. After all the odd encounters he had faced, especially with the demon he had run into previously, it was surprising that it took this long for him to question his humanity. No, he wasn¡¯t merely questioning it, he had already discarded such an identity and was now in search of a new one. What was he now? Who the fuck knows anymore. Does it even matter what I am? It almost shocked him how easy this was for him to accept. Since when did he stop caring about his own humanity? Was it when he first discovered his True Self? Or somewhere further down the line? He didn¡¯t know. The status page also showed a few other curious changes. His Magi Rank had changed to Apprentice, which made sense considering his new relationship with Mistress Sienna. His affinity as well as his currently owned abstract rune was also being listed now, unlike before. But if he had to be honest, the thing that drew his attention the most had to be the title section, or, what¡¯s left of it. The entire section itself had been suspiciously renamed to ¡®Blessings.¡¯ He glanced down at his Soul Weapon and frowned. Great, so essentially, you¡¯ve been fooling me all this time. Even so, it did make a bit of sense. The mistress did say that he was under the influence of some sort of blessing, one that granted him the ¡®Traveler¡¯ title. I seriously don¡¯t get it. Why does that bastard want to protect me so much from the rift? What does he get out of it¡­ Ever since his conversation with Unknown, he had been wondering about this. Why would anyone grant a blessing to a person who, in his own words, was going to become his enemy. It made no sense at all to Soren. He wasn¡¯t currently in the mood to ponder about this further. After grabbing his cone hat from the nearby table, he headed for the door of the room, book in hand. Tina finally voiced her irritation at his actions. ¡°Don¡¯t you have at least some gratitude for Myrin needing to watch over you for the past two days?¡± Soren froze for a second and frowned. He glanced at the pair, ¡°I do. I am grateful for him and everything he has done for me since my arrival here. You as well.¡± ¡°So why the hell are you treating us this coldly?!¡± ¡°Because you¡¯re clearly not doing this out of some simple compassion. Mistress Sienna ordered you to do this, didn¡¯t she? There¡¯s no way she doesn¡¯t know about this.¡± They both stayed silent. Knew it, he said to himself. ¡°From the very beginning, I never expected this guild to treat me kindly for nothing in return. Don¡¯t think I don¡¯t know¡ªyour mistress has already spoken about her so-called prophecy. Isn¡¯t that why you are helping me this much? Because I play some sort of role in this world¡¯s destiny? ¡°To her, I am probably nothing more than another pawn to use¡ªanother tool for her to reach the Celestial Fate she desires.¡± These were his true feelings that he had been bottling up for so long. It felt oddly liberating to finally say them, to finally unravel some of his frustrations. Though, there were already pangs of regret showing. ¡°Soren, I urge you to take back your words, immediately.¡± Unlike before, Myrin¡¯s voice made it clear that he was serious. But Soren couldn¡¯t help but scoff. ¡°What are you going to do otherwise? Kill me? That will ruin your mistress¡¯ plan, won¡¯t it?¡± Myrin¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°You seem to think you have it all figured out, don¡¯t you. You really think you know everything. Have you stopped to consider what it even means for the mistress to chase after Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate? Do you know what she must fight against to even reach this goal? How much she must lose and how much more she had already lost? ¡°Don¡¯t speak on things you know nothing about!¡± Soren stayed silent for a second then reached for the door knob. ¡°You¡¯re right. I don¡¯t know anything, nor do I care to know everything. It was never my fight in the first place.¡± ¡°Soren,¡± Tina said seriously, stopping him from fully leaving the room. ¡°Have you already forgotten the fact that you would be dead by now if not for the Mistress¡¯ mercy?¡± ¡°Mercy?¡± His eyebrows lifted. ¡°All she did was delay the inevitable. My life is nothing more than a gamble for her¡ªwhether it bears fruit in the grand scheme of things or not will depend on my fate, according to her.¡± ¡°And she paid the price for that gamble.¡± ¡°What do you mean?¡± Tina scoffed, ¡°Oh, she didn¡¯t tell you? Did you think that accord she did for you cost her nothing? ¡°Ten years. ¡°She sacrificed ten years of her life so you could live for just one more.¡± Chapter 71: Ruination

Chapter 71: Ruination

Soren closed the door to the room carefully then leaned against it. His thoughts swirled, images of what he had just done replayed in his head constantly. Was this regret he was feeling? No, it was more so a sense of sadness¡ªone that was directed at himself. In reality, he should have expected this outcome, but he simply didn¡¯t want to believe in it. Since his childhood, the only ¡®help¡¯ he had ever received from others was usually ¡®help¡¯ that required something in return. And in most cases, that something would cause him more harm than the ¡®help¡¯ he had received for it. That was just how humans operated. Unless they had a vested interest, there was no reason for them to go out of their way to help you. Selfishness was in their DNA. Soren didn¡¯t mind this disgusting nature¡ªhe himself had learned to be selfish, after all. In fact, he found comfort in it. It was easier for him to relax knowing the person behind him was going to eventually stab him than if he simply didn¡¯t know it. If he knew what the bastards wanted, he could at least form a strategy against them in advance. And yet, this simple yet effective logic which had helped him survive throughout his teen years had been thrown out the window the moment he became entangled with Star Fate Guild. Yes, they had a vested interest in helping him. They had a reason to add him to their roster. But their goal wasn¡¯t self-serving. They were¡­ Actually being kind to him individually, even before they knew anything about his abilities. So disgusting, he thought to himself once more. It was this feeling of constantly being looked after with nothing asked for in return that drove him more insane than if he had actually been corrupted by the rift. And more than that, the difference in strength between him and them, which he had been trying to shrink ever since he met them, hadn¡¯t shrunk in the slightest. Even if he reached the first circle, he doubted he could ever defeat Myrin in combat without utilizing underhanded tricks. It bothered him how little control he had over the situation. Since his arrival, he had constantly been paranoid¡ªawaiting the time Myrin and the others would show him their true colors, and yet it never happened. There were moments he had disliked, such as Myrin constantly peeping in on his thoughts, or Tina¡¯s inconsistent mood swings, but aside from that, they hadn¡¯t done anything major to him to make him doubt their actions. From Tyrel abandoning the mission in order to escort nameless refugees out of the forest, to Tina trying to assist in stopping the Nameless Mist from spreading in Yadria¡­ And even now, their actions toward him have been nothing but kind. His clothing and even the Spellfocus wrapped around his arm were gifted to him with no demands of anything in return. Even after warning him to not undergo the Soul Search this early, Myrin still agreed to assist him with his selfish request and watched over him for two days straight. These weren¡¯t the actions of someone fueled solely out of selfishness. This was genuine kindness¡ªthey really did view him as family¡ªat least, from his own warped perspective of what ¡®family¡¯ meant. He couldn¡¯t imagine his own father doing a fraction of what they have done for him. He couldn¡¯t even imagine his own former chess league doing anything that helpful either. Since his arrival, he had been in constant thought¡ªif he had met a different group of travelers in that forest, would they have treated him similarly? He doubted it¡ªthe dungeon explorers he had seen roaming the city were all brash and shady. Yes, appearances could be deceiving, but he could tell some of them were actual criminals in the real definition of ¡°criminal.¡± In fact, he couldn¡¯t even fully blame them for his own circumstances. They had nothing to do with Scribe-of-Worlds or Mr. Unknown or his mysterious interactions with the rift. The Abstract Rune he had unnaturally merged with was a result of his own actions, meddling with forces he had no right to meddle with. Despite these insane circumstances, whether they had a vested interest or not, they still provided him with enough help to at least have a chance to fight against these obstacles. He doubted there was any other guild in Celestine that could have done the same for him. I guess I am satisfied now, right? He glanced at his Soul Weapon, as if directing the question toward it. I finally have proof I can trust them, don¡¯t I? Even though he was angry at his circumstances as well as the growing anxiety of what he¡¯ll have to do in this coming year, he was more angry at himself for continuing to doubt them. He needed to let go at some point¡­ It was unhealthy to continue questioning every action they take toward him, especially since they will need to work together sooner or later. Maybe they will eventually betray him, but for now, he knew at least for the duration of this year, he had nothing to worry about. ¡­ Especially since their mistress had sacrificed that much of her lifespan to even give him that year. He sighed and walked down the dark, gloomy corridor. I guess they got what they bargained for. Soren had already warned Myrin on the skyship that he was a deeply distrusting person. Aside from his frustration at his ticking time bomb of a situation, his outburst was also a way for him to show them who he really was, deep inside. Maybe it was to absolve himself of guilt for distrusting them for so long in secret, or it was simply his way of letting them know what kind of person he was¡­ He wasn¡¯t sure. Either way, it didn¡¯t seem like they were willing to pursue this further. Although Tina was angry, she also seemed to understand his perspective. How kind of them, he thought in disgust while rolling his eyes. Glancing down at his Soul Weapon, he flipped slowly back toward his status page. Status Name: Soren Andersen Race: ??? Age: 23 Of course it didn¡¯t change, he chuckled to himself. He was curious whether his emotional outburst had caused his race to shift back to being labeled as human, but fortunately or unfortunately, that turned out not to be the case. Stolen novel; please report. So the change isn¡¯t mental, but physical? He questioned. Sadly, there was no way to know currently. The only lead he could think of was possibly contacting the Knowledge Demon and asking Him. After all, he did mention something about him being a fairy or a kind of spiritual being. But that was something he wouldn¡¯t dare to touch until at least reaching the first circle. I guess it¡¯s time to visit her again¡­ His thoughts churned to what Tina had told him before he left Myrin¡¯s room¡ªthat the mistress was waiting for him on the upper levels of the library. As he made his way through the abandoned labyrinthine corridors, pangs of hunger sounded in his stomach. He had completely forgotten that he had been meditating for two days straight. I should have saved my outburst for after lunch! He just realized how awkward it will be to eat with them later.
If he had to be honest, nothing could have prepared him for the bombshell Tina dropped on him at the end of their interaction. Ten years. Ten years of her lifespan had been shaved away, just so he could live for one more. Even if her lifespan was longer due to her being powerful, that was still a significant sacrifice to make. He should have expected it. He should have at least asked her about such a thing before they had begun the accord. Even after it was all said and done, when he met Cassia back in the hallway, he should have suspected something was off. The moment Cassia heard about the accord, her frown was clearly visible. She must have known as well¡­ It was no wonder that the Mistress decided to put Cassia to sleep before they began¡ªshe must have known that Cassia would protest against it. The more he thought about it, the more confused he became. Was it truly worth it? Sacrificing ten years of your lifespan for a stranger. A stranger that may be able to assist in your goal, but at the end of the day, even she was unaware of what role Soren played in the grand scheme of things. In fact, he could end up being a detrimental factor in her plans, rather than a helpful one. Fate was not one to reveal its secrets, even to a keen pryer like Sienna. It wasn¡¯t as if she was the one that brought him to this world, after all. She too was also a pawn to fate¡¯s machinations. With his head full of questions, he robotically maneuvered the tunnels until he made it back to the Library Graveyard, eventually taking the platform elevator to the highest floor where she was supposedly waiting for him. After asking for directions, Soren finally found the head librarian. Snuggled between two enormous bookshelves was a balcony that extended out, giving view to the back streets of the library. The hustle and bustle was continuing till the evening this time, more and more preparations for the festival were happening. Leaning against the railing was the silver-haired maiden he came to know. Even under the bask of the blinding sun, her beauty was not hidden in the slightest. Why are there so many people blessed with good looks in this guild¡­ He almost wanted to begin doubting them again just because of this. Did they sign a contract with a demon or something? He wanted to curse the gods for being unfair. Soren, what the hell are you thinking about? You¡¯re also handsome! He confidently strode toward the balcony. The moment their eyes met, his guilt spiked. ¡°I-uh¡­ I came just as you requested.¡± Her lips widened into a smile. ¡°Perfectly on time. Come watch the city with me.¡± Although he was confused, he decided not to question it. He stood beside her, watching the market streets flow with pedestrians and dungeon explorers heading back out from the labyrinth. The citadel¡¯s castle walls were even more clearly visible from this angle. Even so, he couldn¡¯t help but feel awkward. For a while, they both simply stayed silent, overlooking the city. Soren couldn''t find an exact moment to interject. This lasted until a while later, much to his relief, Sienna spoke first. ¡°What do you think of Celestine, Soren? Have you been enjoying your time?¡± He sighed, ¡°To be honest, I haven¡¯t had much time to fully explore it. Myrin did take me out to sightsee two days earlier though¡ªit was fun. The city is very vibrant.¡± ¡°I see¡­¡± She took a second before asking, ¡°Is that all you feel?¡± What does she mean by that? He wondered. His thoughts churned to everything he had experienced so far in the city. From the exotic dancers, street performers and trick parlors, to the wondrous restaurants, architecture and diverse peoples¡­ All of it reminded him of his own home, New York City, albeit, to a lesser degree. This city was just way more fantastical. ¡°I guess if I had to add anything, the city feels vibrant, but there¡¯s just something off about it? As if it¡¯s artificial, somehow¡­¡± He wanted to compare it to plastic, but no such Vinuan words came to mind. Everyone was just¡­ Always too happy. Even with the rough atmosphere formed from dungeon explorers heading out of the labyrinth with less members than they arrived with being a constant norm to the citizens. ¡°Still,¡± he continued, ¡°there seems to be some changes happening that differ from the usual. The preparations for the festival are underway, and there¡¯s also a rather jubilant air that differs from the usual¡­ I can¡¯t put my finger on it.¡± Her smile widened as she stared out into the city below. ¡°I see,¡± she said in a mellow voice. Sienna glanced at him, and once more, their eyes locked¡ªthis time, Soren could tell she was going to ask him something serious. ¡°Would you like to see it through my vision then?¡± He frowned, ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Let me show you.¡± All of a sudden, clouds of stardust began to coalesce across her figure. Shocked, Soren glanced back at the library full of scholars. ¡°They won¡¯t see us,¡± she said. ¡°It will only last a moment for them, after all.¡± Lifting her palm, a spinning white star began to form, like a glowing white string wrapping around into a ball of yarn. After it finished gathering enough light, she shoved it into his chest, just like the last time. Immediately, the bright blue sky shifted into a dark abyss, fitted with countless celestial objects and constellations. But his vision was focused more on the earth rather than the heavens. All life in the vicinity shifted in color, as if he was viewing the world through x-ray vision. The buildings, streets, wagons were all outlined in black and white, as if he was witnessing the world before the details were added. ¡°This is the World Fate I can see,¡± she said. ¡°But this isn¡¯t the important part, let me focus a bit more of my astral anima.¡± As she said those words, a slight change happened to his vision. The undetailed outlines of the city began to form¡­ Details. One¡¯s that didn¡¯t belong to what he had originally seen the city as. Cracks. Countless crevices and cracks were forming on everything. Both buildings and people alike. It was as if everything was a part of a marble statue set that had been eroded for many centuries. ¡°What¡­ Is this¡­¡± He had no way of understanding what he was seeing. He glanced at Sienna, who¡¯s body had also formed countless cracks from erosion. His heart sank. She smiled at him in a depressing way before saying: ¡°This is the true nature of Yarian. This is what I call Ruination. The stagnation of this world has continued for too long due to its Celestial Fate being frozen.¡± Chapter 72: Yasini鈥檚 Demise

Chapter 72: Yasini¡¯s Demise

Soren continued to stare in absolute disbelief at what he was seeing. Aside from the usual cracks and crevices covering every stretch of life and land, there were also areas in the distance that had much more pronounced erosion. The mesmerising castle for example had an entire tower broken apart, floating separately, as if it was crumbling to pieces in real time. Its arches and bridges were all grinded away. ¡°Unbelievable,¡± he murmured. Sienna laughed. ¡°This is indeed unbelievable. That¡¯s also the reason why I needed to leave Luvinica. None of the scholars there believed me.¡± Just as she finished those words, the world turned to normal once more¡ªshe had deactivated her ability. Soren glanced around in shock. The city that had been mired by ruin and despair had returned to its original splendor. ¡°Let me tell you a story,¡± Sienna said as she leaned against the railing of the balcony once more. ¡°Once upon a time, there was a wolf¡ªa truly cunning creature, unmatched in wit, strength and pride. Her name was Yadria, and she led her pack through the boundless enchanted forests. For centuries, there were whispers in the wind that brought shivers to prey and rivals alike about her existence. Yet, even the sharpest fangs can dull, and even the mightiest hunter can meet their equal.¡± Yadria? Is that the origin of the name?.. She continued, ¡°In the heart of these same woods, there dwelled a queen¡ªnot of beasts, but of the eldest kind. Yasini, the radiant flower. She ruled not with claws but with the grace of nature itself. Her power was as vast as the roots that intertwined her kingdom. The wolf and the queen were not born enemies. No, in the beginning they shared a bond of trust¡ªa secret companionship forged in the wild places where titles and tribles held no sway.¡± Soren was finally understanding what myth she was retelling. It must be in regards to Yasini¡¯s demise. ¡°But the forest is a jealous guardian of its treasures, and deep within its heart, laced in thorns and fruit poisons was a seed unlike any other. A seed that held unfathomable power. It had the authority to enchant and disenchant, to dream and undream, to weave spirits with time itself¡­ A forgotten rune that could reshape the land itself. ¡°No one knew where the seed came from¡ªnot that it mattered, for to the elves and spirit wolves, it was nothing more than a miraculous boon from the heavens, one that was rightfully theirs. But unlike Yasini and Yadria, their tribes were not keen on sharing this boon of the forest and heavens. And so, a devastating war erupted¡ªone that ruptured the lands itself.¡± Soren remembered some of the things Myrin had told him. About how the Flower Maiden had entered an eternal slumber within the Spirit Blossom Willow and hasn¡¯t been seen in over a millenia. He decided to ask: ¡°And then what happened after that?¡± Sienna smiled. ¡°The rest of the story isn¡¯t well documented, there are many variations to it. In one ending, it is said that both Yasini and Yadria fell in love, but ended each other¡¯s lives on the battlefield, and from their spilled blood, a radiant tree grew from the seed that began this conflict. In another ending, it is said that Yasini was pronounced the winner and merged with the seed, growing the everlasting Spirit Blossom Willow. There are countless variations to this myth, scholars are unsure which is the truth of the matter. Though in each instance, there is but a single similarity¡ªthe war ends with the birth of the Spirit Blossom Willow dominating the skies of the Feylith forest, as it''s called today.¡± She slid her hair behind her ear and smiled. Soren looked at her blankly for a second before asking, ¡°Why exactly are you telling me this story?¡± Her smile widened, ¡°In a way, us humans owe our current glory to this story. Humanity before this supposed war were nothing more but slaves to the elven tribes who used us incessantly throughout the war. Humanity was very close to being driven to extinction, if not for the weakening of the other races that gave rise to us humans in the far north. Built upon the ruins of the olden Avalon empire before them, Staterra was born as a bastion of humanity that fought against the elves after Yasini¡¯s Demise. ¡°The point is, as ironic as it may be, us humans owe our existence to that dreaded war. But even so, we also owe our destined demise to it as well¡­ ¡°After all, Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate hid itself from the orbits of fate after this war ended¡­ And it hasn¡¯t appeared since.¡± Soren stayed silent for a while, pondering over the story. From what Myrin had told him, there was also a legend about Yasini¡¯s return¡ªthat if the Spirit Blossom Willow loses all its leaves, Her return will spell a new age for Yadria. But even so, Soren couldn¡¯t shake off his own disinterest. ¡°You telling me this story and showing me what the absence of Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate has done to the lands¡­ What exactly do you want from me¡­.¡± Sienna sighed, ¡°Nothing. Rather than a want or a desire, I simply want to prepare you.¡± ¡°I¡¯m tired, Mistress Sienna.¡± He said plainly while staring down at the jubilant streets below. ¡°The number of problems I am currently facing is already more than I could handle, and now you want to add the fate of an entire world on my shoulders? Do you not hear yourself?¡±The story has been taken without consent; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. She stayed silent so Soren continued, ¡°You probably already know, but I just had an argument with Myrin and Tina earlier about this. I already shared my perspective with them. They defended your goal and even made it seem as if I was obligated to help in your cause after what you¡¯ve done for me. And they aren¡¯t completely wrong, but I just¡­ I am not as strong as you think I am. I am not as important as you want me to believe. I was just a normal student back in my world¡­ Not to mention, the circumstances I am currently facing isn¡¯t anything a normal person could handle.¡± Sienna smiled, ¡°I know that.¡± ¡°How could you know that?¡± He frowned. ¡°I asked this same question to Myrin and Tina and they had no answer.¡± The melancholy in her eyes deepened as she answered, ¡°Those two children¡­ They were simply defending me, I hope you can forgive them for that. Our goal¡­ Our search for the Celestial Fate, it has been something I inherited from my master, and my master inherited from her own master, and so on and so forth. It has been the goal of every Star Fate Witch since that dreaded war a millenia ago. We were never able to grasp it, none of my ancestors were. ¡°At one point, even I grew tired of it. I asked my master what reason we had to even pursue this impossible goal, and she never answered. I grew bitter¡ªI wanted to leave it all behind. And at one point, I did. I ventured out alone, and ended up studying in the prestigious academy of Luvinica¡­¡± ¡°So why did you return?¡± Soren asked. She smiled. ¡°Because fate drove me back to that everlasting goal¡­ It was truly ironic. Before I left, I asked my master why she was allowing me to abandon this goal our ancestors cherished. ¡°Do you know what she said to me?¡± Soren stayed silent. ¡°She said that it was probably the same fate that had shackled us all that was driving me toward leaving it all behind¡­ And she wasn''t wrong. All the knowledge I learned in Luvinica to spite my ancestor¡¯s lofty goals, turned out to be nothing more than a step I needed to take before following in their footsteps once more¡­¡± So she¡¯s saying it''s inevitable¡­. He couldn''t help but want to laugh at the absurdity. She continued, ¡°In more than a thousand years, this goal of ours, to stop the ruination of this world once and for all, had borne no fruit. That is until you arrived and changed everything. The day of your arrival sparked a rapid change of events in the Orbits I have been observing all my life. Whether your star of fate is that of further ruin or prosperity does not matter¡ªall that matters is change. Just like a pond with no currents, this world has rotted for far too long¡­¡± Soren¡¯s frown deepened the further he heard her speak. ¡°But also, I realized something else when you arrived before me that day.¡± Huh? He glanced at her once more. ¡°You aren¡¯t just a tool or a spark or a symbol of change in this world. You are also a person. An individual with goals and aspirations, just like I believed I was all those years ago,¡± She chuckled. ¡°Soren, when I view this world¡¯s fate just like I showed you earlier, do you know what you look like to me?¡± He stayed silent, awaiting an answer. ¡°Rather than a porcelain statue with cracks and crevices like the rest of this mired world, you appear whole. Complete, even. ¡°This world¡­ It has no grasp on you. I have many interpretations on what this may mean in Star Fate, but I can only say one. ¡°Do not let this world shackle you, Soren¡­¡± Hearing this, he couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. He opened his mouth to say something, but no words came out. Is she saying that I don¡¯t need to burden myself with this goal even if the world demands it? He was not expecting this from her, of all people. After all, was it not she who had been seeking an answer to this world¡¯s Celestial Fate? That goal which had followed her ancestors for a thousand years could finally be uncovered, so why was she so adamant on giving him the choice. She continued, ¡°Fate is self-correcting, you see. It knows that this world¡¯s Celestial Fate being hidden is not natural and it wants to fix it. In a way, I am just as much of a pawn as you are¡­ Fate connected us for a reason. And so, it is my philosophy that those who are fated, should simply walk the path they desire¡ªwhy else would fate choose them if not for their goals that may aid or abet it? ¡°That is why I allowed you to be one of my students. It is because that was your goal to begin with, was it not? Forget needing to survive for a year, was it not your inner desire that drove you to pursue the mysteries hidden beneath the mundane world? Why worry about things none of us can control¡­¡± She was right. The reason he had appeared in this world was mainly due to this pursuit of his. His desire to seek thrills and excitement in what was a gray and utterly boring life. A life devoid of joys and fantastical things. He realized something. Even though his life and death was now out of his own hands¡ªa puppet of time itself that slowly ticked away, even though his very fate was being steered by forces outside of his control, has he not been enjoying his time here? From Yadria¡¯s pristine forest woven houses and streets, to Celestine¡¯s wondrous arts and crafts¡­ And even now, he was slowly making progress on the goal that drove him here in the first place. He had already become a magus in the rudimentary sense. All that was left was to learn the inner workings and apply them¡­ If he had told his past self from 4 weeks ago that he was going to travel to another world, obtain a powerful soul weapon capable of chronicling his journey across this mysterious land, and eventually became a wielder of that same magic he had been dreaming about since the beginning of his teen years, would he believe it? No, his past self would probably laugh in his face. I see¡­ I was too focused on blaming myself for what has been happening to realize it¡­ Since his conversation with Mr. Unknown and the trauma he obtained from facing that Memory Void Spirit, a shadow had been cast over him. A shadow of self blame and doubt. He was afraid that his own hubris would lead him to his own demise again. That his own pursuit of thrills and excitement had made him too arrogant. And for the most part, it was true. Mr. Unknown¡¯s warnings weren¡¯t completely wrong. He was too confident in his abilities and smarts. He truly believed he could do anything and not face the consequences. But looking back on it, was it really just his fault? No, that dreaded website had already affected countless people, according to Unknown. There were many who were probably facing even worse fates than him. So I was distrusting myself more than everyone else¡­ It was somewhat Ironic now that he was realizing it. He couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡°So?¡± She asked. ¡°What is your goal now? Ignore all these obligations that fate demands from you, what is it that you want to do?¡± He smiled, ¡°I want to experience everything this world has to offer. And then, if it does change as you said it will, I want to be its witness. I will chronicle both its beginning, and its potential end.¡± Chapter 73: Happy Birthday

Chapter 73: Happy Birthday

¡°What a selfish goal,¡± she chuckled. ¡°But maybe that¡¯s exactly what this guild needs¡ªsomeone who isn¡¯t as invested in our goal as everyone else¡­ Even with all my readings into the Orbits of Fate, some things are just impossible to predict¡­¡± She glanced at the nearby bookshelves behind the balcony and lifted her wrist. A large tome was magically pulled out and levitated toward her hand. ¡°Before you leave for lunch, I do think you still deserve some punishment¡ªmainly for going behind my back and undergoing a Soul Search.¡± She giggled while handing the book to him. Soren frowned and glanced down at the title, ¡°Intro to Runology¡± was spelled out in bold Vinuan lettering. ¡°Alongside the other books I gave you for homework, read this one as well and report back to me by the end of the week.¡± Figures¡­ More reading. He smiled, ¡°Alright, I won¡¯t disappoint you.¡± ¡°Ah, and don¡¯t think for a second that Myrin is getting away with this scott-free. He too needs some punishment¡ªallowing his junior to take a Soul Search so soon, what was he thinking?!¡± Hearing this, he couldn¡¯t help but frown. He at first assumed that the order to allow him to take the Soul Search was done by Sienna, but it turned out that Myrin was acting alone all along. Why didn¡¯t he say anything when I questioned his motive then¡­ His frown deepened. Soren stepped away from the platform and said his goodbyes, but not before receiving one last sentence from her: ¡°By the way,¡± she said. ¡°Happy Birthday, Soren.¡± His eyes narrowed. It¡¯s my birthday? He glanced once more at his status page. Status Name: Soren Andersen Race: ??? Age: 23 Ah, I am 23 now¡­ With all the happenings and stressful things he was busy preparing for, he had failed to notice¡­ Doesn¡¯t that make it January 30th back on Earth? Today was the 30th in the Vyak calendar. Just as he was about to turn around to thank her, she was already gone. The balcony was empty, except for a few sparkles of stardust left behind in her wake. Talk about an exit¡­ He smiled with a sigh as he headed back to the library once more.
Deep underground, surrounded by an oasis of greenery and cyanary, was a stone marble canopy drowned in mountains of books and scrolls. Within this academic mess, a woman wearing an enchantingly beautiful robe was glancing down at the book in her hands without a care in the world. Her silver hair swung on its own, as if enchanted by an invisible wind. Suddenly, a whisper approached her ear. ¡°Why did you not tell him about the last ending to the story? The one where Yasini is said to be dead.¡± She glanced to her left and frowned. ¡°Noctharn¡­¡± After thinking about his question for a bit, she smiled. ¡°Myths are meant to spread hope, not despair¡­ Regardless of the truth.¡± Her eyes trailed down to the page of the book she was reading. ¡°Besides, mythology is best left to scribes and travelers¡­ I am neither of these things. ¡±
Before heading back to the lounge, Soren decided to take a stroll through the lower levels of the library and managed to pick up a few more books to read: Anthology of Elven Myth, Epoch-World-Celestial: The Three Orbits, Avalon: Fall of an Empire¡­ As he read the titles, he couldn¡¯t help but sigh. There was just so much he needed to read this week. His reasoning for these picks were simple. After hearing the story Sienna had told him, his curiosity peaked. He needed to find out more about that story, especially since it somewhat related to him. His fate was objectively tied in some manner to Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate. No matter how much he complained about it, there was no changing this outcome. Since it was an inevitability, Soren chose to simply understand the phenomenon than to idly wait in the darkness for whatever was to come. Yarian was dying. He had seen enough to come to this conclusion. Sienna also knew this. Because of the Celestial Fate hiding itself away, stagnation was prone to happen. Stagnation that was impossible to notice without special abilities like the ones that Sienna had. In all honesty, he somewhat pitied her. How much did she suffer when pursuing this goal? A goal she herself wasn¡¯t even invested in, but had to out of necessity. He couldn¡¯t imagine what burden she was carrying. Focus, Soren¡­ He knew that there was nothing he could do for her even if he wanted to. He was nowhere near powerful enough to change whatever will happen to this world in the future. If it was inevitably doomed from the start, then the best he could do was simply to learn everything there was to know and chronicle it all. That way, the world won¡¯t die in his memories. Wow, that¡¯s an extremely bleak conclusion to make, he thought to himself with a light chuckle. Here he was, planning to [Record] the death of an entire dimension. When did I start taking my role as a scribe so seriously? Find this and other great novels on the author''s preferred platform. Support original creators! Aside from that, he also knew that Yadria as a nation, was more important than that. The Spirit Blossom Willow and its creation myth was fascinating for a number of reasons, but one was more important than the others. ¡°A Forgotten Rune,¡± he murmured. He remembered the words Sienna used to describe the magical seed the war was fought over. From what he understood, he too was in possession of such an inheritance. His [The Faerie Court] ability was a result of him merging with one¡ªat least, a fragment of one. If he wanted to understand his own forgotten rune fragment, what better place to look than another forgotten rune. One that had an entire war fought over its existence. From his understanding, Yasini must have been the ancient name that the Flower Maiden went by, which meant an actual goddess participated in this war. The forgotten rune was truly that powerful¡ªeven the very gods coveted it. Good thing no one but me and Unknown knows about its existence¡­ Wait, no. He paused. What about the Knowledge Demon? A shiver ran down his spine the moment he thought about it. If he was able to pry into the secrets of his Soul Weapon to send him a message, could he not have been able to also figure out what runes he had obtained or merged with? It was definitely possible. But at the same time, he knew there was evidence that went against this notion. After all, his entire Soul Chain itself was a fake¡ªthe real one was nowhere to be found. The most he could have learned was about his Abstract Rune, which showed up on the result sheet of his Soul Dive test. I need to grow stronger, quickly¡­ He was surrounded by monsters on all sides. Unfortunately, for the next two weeks, he was limited in his ability to even use his Soul Realm. I¡¯ll have to make do with studying the axioms more¡­ Before a magi reaches the first circle, a smaller step has to be made: Rudimentary magecraft. This was magecraft that demanded incomplete spellforms. Usually, they were disjointed into separate axioms that could be utilized individually to perform limited effects. In most cases, Rudimentary magecraft was mainly something used for learning or experimenting with material runes. Before creating his first complete Spellform, Soren needed to first conduct numerous runological studies to discover what runes matched with his affinity, then, he would need to compile them into axioms to experiment with rudimentary magecraft to find out what effects they could make. It was truly gruelling work. This is not how I imagined magic to be¡­ In his delusions, he assumed it was as simple as screaming, ¡°Avada Kedavra!¡± while doing a cool pose. I guess Soul Weapons fit that mold better, in a way. Unlike regular magecraft, Mysteries only really needed the person to use their Soul Weapon to activate an ability on the fly. As he was walking down the steps to the next bridge interlink to reach the stone platform elevator, Soren spotted someone familiar. A short girl wearing a mage dress paired with a violet cone hat. A repitilian tail swung around happily as she read the book in her hands. She turned around and noticed him¡ªfrowning. ¡°Hey, Soren,¡± Cassia said awkwardly. Soren sighed, ¡°Hey¡­¡± Soren had completely forgotten their brief exchange before Myrin helped him with his Soul Search. Ugh, I suck when it comes to these kinds of scenarios¡­ He says this, but he too had also made things awkward with the others only an hour or so ago. How ironic, he thought. Before he could get a word out, Cassia bowed to him slightly and spoke first, ¡°I want to apologize. I shouldn¡¯t have said that to you two days ago. That was unbecoming of me as your senior apprentice.¡± Soren was shocked to see this. He was expecting her to make excuses. ¡°It¡¯s fine¡­ You were clearly going through something back there¡­¡± ¡°Still,¡± she insisted. ¡°I did act out of line. I am very sorry.¡± ¡°.....¡± At this point, Soren wasn¡¯t even sure what to say to that. The air turned awkward again. Seeing that she was awaiting a response, he scratched the back of his head. ¡°How about this? Since you feel so bad about it, why not help me in my studies after lunch? I plan to dive into learning about runology.¡± Soren could almost spotted sparkles in her eyes as he mentioned runology. ¡°Really?¡± She asked fervently. Her cheeks puffed up with confidence as she folded her arms. ¡°I¡¯ll have you know, I am even better than Myrin when it comes to this field! That dummy is always focused on drawing and music! Leave it all to me!¡± Soren smiled, ¡°That¡¯s good to hear¡­¡± He couldn¡¯t believe how easily the mood shifted. I guess she really is a child¡­ In a way, he was kind of jealous at how easy it was for her to move on. He was still trying to figure out how he was going to talk to Tina and Myrin again. Although they did say some insensitive things, I also was somewhat wrong for placing so much blame on them for no reason¡­ Myrin agreed to help me even though he knew he would get in trouble for it as well¡­ He sighed to himself. Seeing this, Cassia tilted her head, ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡± Soren decided to explain what happened with his Soul Search and the drama that followed. ¡°... I see.¡± Cassia frowned. ¡°It¡¯s kinda their fault, you know? I remember when we first talked during the interview. Don¡¯t you remember what you said to me about the Mistress¡¯ goal? ¡°You said that you found it interesting. That wasn¡¯t the word of someone that was truly invested. You simply found it ¡®interesting¡¯ and wanted to find out more. That¡¯s why I was a bit apprehensive about you joining at first¡­¡± Kinda hurts when you put it that way¡­ He couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°Not to blame you for that or anything,¡± she followed. ¡°If I too came from another world, it would be hard for me to invest myself that heavily in a problem that¡¯s this unrelated to me. Still, the mistress weighed the matter regarding your Star Fate and included you anyway¡­ She even spent ten years of her life for it¡­¡± ¡°Are you sure you are okay with that?¡± Soren asked. ¡°Are you sure you are fine knowing that the person being taken care of this well still isn¡¯t invested in your goal? Your mistress sacrificed ten years of her life to spare mine, and yet I don¡¯t plan to repay her fully for it.¡± She sighed, ¡°It does frustrate me a little bit. But at the end of the day, I don¡¯t think the Mistress sacrificed anything. I believe it to be an investment.¡± Her eyes sharpened as she stared at him, ¡°She invested ten years of her life on you knowing it will steer this world in a different direction than where it''s heading currently, regardless of your interest or disinterest.¡± Her grin grew, ¡°It doesn¡¯t really matter what you want, fate will have its way regardless.¡± Soren chuckled, ¡°That¡¯s definitely true¡­ I don¡¯t have a choice in the matter anyway. I plan to witness what will happen. Who knows, it might prove to be interesting. In the mean time, I plan to find out more about the topic.¡± He showed her the books he had picked from the library earlier. The title at the front caught her eyes: Epoch-World-Celestial: The Three Orbits. ¡°I see! That¡¯s definitely a good idea. Better to know then to not know.¡± Soren nodded in response. ¡°Speaking of which,¡± she said. ¡°Since we''re on the topic of me tutoring you, how about you become my magi partner?¡± Her grin widened as she placed her hands on her hips confidently. ¡°Become my research assistant!¡± Chapter 74: Study Routine

Chapter 74: Study Routine

The following days turned into a fairly simple but monotonous routine. First, he would work with Nicholas for the first few hours of the morning, sorting through countless books and scrolls while dealing with grumpy scholars trying to navigate the labyrinth of knowledge. Turns out, missing two days of work was not something Nicholas appreciated. After that came his self-study sessions. By now, he had already finished reading both The Axiom Codex and Dictionary of Scripted Runic. For the most part, The Axiom Codex¡¯s later chapters were mostly about describing different equations and combinations of Material Runes of Reason to create certain effects. For example, combining two runes with an Etiva in between meant that both runes needed to be activated at the same time for the entire axiom to function. And when you add implications, which were runes that pointed to other axioms, complex circuitry could be formed. The same could be said about the Velia rune. With two runes connected to it, the entire axiom would instead branch into separate circuits, depending which of the two runes was activated first. There were many other laws about the flow of anima and other aspects of how these combined axioms could be utilized. All of this logic in combination with one another was enough to form mind-boggling spellforms. It almost made him shiver¡ªbattle magi were supposed to invoke these complex spellforms on the fly within their Soul Realms, and only from their own imaginations and memory. This was why many magi resort to carrying grimoires around with them¡ªit was much simpler to imagine the spellform when it was in front of you. And that logic also applied to the imagination part as well. Aside from those at the third circle or above, being able to imagine a spellform perfectly, all with its complex geometry and axioms, and perfectly project it as an image made from one¡¯s own anima was a truly daunting task. Without a spellfocus, he doubted he could do it, even with his higher control over his Echo of Mind. Dictionary of Scripted Runic was much simpler. It was nothing more than a list of material runes, ones used by the most generic of affinities¡ªthose being fire, water, earth, and wind. With his [Eyes of the Fairy] and a bit of patience, using [Record] on them only took two days. Even so, he had to resort to skimming through only the most important segments to save time and energy. The strain he faces every time he uses that ability had still not diminished¡ªonly his pain tolerance had heightened. As for the material runes themselves, it surprised him how many there were for each of the affinities listed in the book¡¯s sections. It made sense, however. The Beyond was a truly archaic place with no obvious pattern to its machinations. And so, even a simple flame could be represented in countless ways. In some instances, even the geography of the location itself could affect the spellform¡¯s material runes. For example, with Spirit anima being prevalent in the Feylith Forest, a different set of Wind-Affinity runes were needed. What was curious was the design choice as well¡ªsome of the runes clearly had distinct styles to their form that seemed to mimic the local area. Wind-Affinity runes that come from Yadria were awfully similar to ancient Yasini in design. All of this only made his search for his own set of runes all the more daunting. He couldn¡¯t imagine how much effort it would take. But this also made him realize something else. He had finally understood why some places were far more isolationist than others. If you were a magi who relied on a grimoire whose runes would become obsolete the moment you traveled elsewhere, you would have no choice but to remain where you were. In that sense, Yadria¡¯s isolation¡ªaside from their unfriendliness to their neighbors, was perfectly logical. Of course, that only really mattered if the material runes you relied on had a geographical element to them. Many others didn¡¯t and so, they had no reason to worry about such things. Aside from those two, the only book from Sienna¡¯s report that was giving him trouble was Arcane Geometry. That book was truly his nemesis. Ugh, fuck that book especially! The more he reminded himself, the more annoyed he became. This was because the knowledge stored inside it didn¡¯t require his memorization nor did it require his ability to process the logic behind spellforms. No, what it required was far more terrifying. Drawing. A fuckton of drawing. Unfortunately for Soren, even an ape had better hand coordination when sketching a circle. For hours, he continued trying to create the sigils needed for the spellform to function, every design¡ªif he could even call them that, looking worse than the one before it. Eventually, surrounded by piles of crumpled paper and ink splatters, Soren simply gave up and decided to pick up Intro to Runology instead. Stolen from Royal Road, this story should be reported if encountered on Amazon. During his struggles, he had contemplated asking his artist companion Myrin for assistance, but decided against it. Even after these past few days, there was still an awkward air between them. Tina had sort of forgotten the whole ordeal, however¡ªnot that it mattered since she was constantly out on missions throughout the city. It was rare for him to see her around. Sighing to himself, Soren closed the book and stood up. In a way, this ordeal reminded him of that ritual he had conducted that started it all. The amount of ingredients he used up back then trying to draw the sigil perfectly cost him a fair bit. Even still, his efforts were only rewarded with him being thrown into a random creepy forest in another world to fend for himself. He shook his head with a smile. One day, I am going to find the asshole who made that website¡­ One day¡­ In the meantime, he needed to eat lunch. For the past few days, his meals had slowly rolled further and further down the day. He was simply too busy with reading and chronicling things in his Soul Weapon, resorting to food only when his stomach reminded him of such. Of course, that didn¡¯t mean he wasn¡¯t enthusiastic about it¡ªquite the opposite actually. Joyce truly knew how to cook. It made sense to him why her sister was such a foodie. Entering the familiar lounge, he was greeted by the woman¡¯s bright smile. He too smiled back at her: ¡°Hey Joyce, anything happened?¡± She shook her head, ¡°Not much. Oh, aside from the mistress and Myrin leaving for the castle.¡± He frowned. ¡°The castle?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± she responded. ¡°It''s to report the results of their negotiations with Yadria¡¯s Saintess of Dreams. The materials for the Greenfather festival were also arriving soon so they had to let the Church of Nature know.¡± I see¡­ He had completely forgotten about that. There were too many other things for him to worry about. ¡°What exactly does the mistress gain from this mission?¡± Joyce tilted her head, ¡°You mean you don¡¯t know?¡± He shook his head in response so she answered: ¡°If they succeed, the Aelloran government will allow Star Fate Guild to join the expedition into the Avalon Ruins.¡± ¡°The Avalon Ruins?¡± His frown deepened. From what he remembered of seeing it at the cliffside, it was fairly close to the Celestine Citadel, right across the hill it was perched on. Now that he was thinking about it, Myrin did tell him once before that there was going to be a joint expedition with Aellora, Yadria, and Statella joining forces to explore the inner depths of the labyrinth. A combined force of three powerful nations not seen in five hundred years. I wonder what they found there for it to be this important¡­ And now, Star Fate Guild was being allowed to join this expedition as a reward for their mission in negotiating a deal with Yadria. From this, he also came to another conclusion. Soren had always wondered why a small guild like this one was being tasked with securing such an important deal with Yadria, a nation that was still fairly hostile to Aellora and humankind alike. Yes, Myrin being an elf would have been a great advantage, but there were countless elves in Celestine. Even if their existence was hated and they were fairly hard to find in a crowd of people, it was still possible to spot a few. But now that he knew that Sienna was being escorted by Myrin to the castle, everything made sense. Myrin must have revealed his royal connections to the Aetolus Royal Family. Or¡­ They must have found out about his status on their own. Either answer led to the same conclusion¡ªthat Myrin¡¯s connections, even though they were strained, still held weight enough to give them a chance at negotiating. And they weren¡¯t wrong. Myrin managed to pull it off, after all. That prince bastard might be even more crafty than I thought¡­ He smiled as he dug his face into the plate of steamy rice. His eyes widened as he glanced at Joyce in shock. ¡°This¡­ This taste?¡± She giggled, ¡°You like it? That¡¯s Yadrian Rice. It''s from the batch Tina brought home with her.¡± He suddenly remembered the four crates Tina had brought back with them on the trip. She monstrously carried them all like they were nothing more than a pile of pillows. I guess it was worth it pushing up that cart¡­ He continued to enjoy his meal. Suddenly, the door to the lounge flung open. A short little girl wearing what one back on Earth would assume to be a halloween costume stepped inside. She smiled from ear to ear as she corrected her witch hat. ¡°Soren! Come with me, I finally discovered it! The rune I was searching for!¡± He sighed to himself with a smile. The second part of his usual routine will now begin. Chapter 75: Runological Studies

Chapter 75: Runological Studies

If he had a favorite part to his routine, it had to be his time with Cassia. Even though her personality was a bit¡­ Rough around the edges, she was still a fairly knowledgeable person when it came to Runology, just as she had proclaimed to him. The first time he visited her ¡®room¡¯, all he could do was try to keep his jaw from dropping. Shelves full of books, beakers bellowing the smoke of strange chemicals, tables full of weird and fantastical tools. It was completely unlike Myrin¡¯s room, which was an artistic mess. This one was, instead, a scientific mess. It was as if he had entered an ancient laboratory, or a witch¡¯s den. As for the work itself, it wasn¡¯t very demanding. Cassia was the type to enjoy handling most things on her own¡ªshe hated having to rely on others. Even so, mundane tasks, such as cleaning or assisting with her¡­ Unusual experiments were things she didn¡¯t mind sharing. In exchange for him being her assistant, Cassia would in turn help him understand runology better. In fact, that was what most of her research revolved around. The Records of Enigma, the strange and mysterious tablet that most magi utilize when conducting Runological Studies, was something that existed in the Beyond. To reach it, Astral Projection was necessary. And that was exactly why utilizing a medium was necessary. Because of this, a medium of interaction was needed, one that could be used to interpret the divination. Every conduit, like The Records of Enigma, or the very gods themselves, needed a medium for that interaction. Astral Projection through a medium was the only way for magi to interact directly with the Beyond. Of course, the same didn¡¯t apply to him since his eyes themselves were practically a medium. In a sense, anything could theoretically be used as a medium, as long as it had something magi scholars called, ¡®Paths.¡¯ Essentially, you need the medium to change its states based on the divination, and these changes need to happen through chance or luck to allow for subtle meanings to form. When he first heard this, he immediately thought back to the Flower Divination technique Myrin used to find out whether it was safe for him to try and unlock his Soul Realm. Back then, Myrin simply plucked a random flower and allowed the petals to wilt and fall off. These changes were the ¡®Paths¡¯ of the medium, with each petal representing a different outcome. In that same sense, other mediums also had different ways of differentiating the ¡®Path¡¯. For example, there was the Elderwood Seed Bowl he had examined back in the Wards & Hexes shop in Yadria. That bowl from what he could remember, had 5 different seeds within it, and depending on the representation each seed holds and their location within the bowl, a different outcome or result to the divination would be read. In that sense, these seeds in combination with their location in the bowl itself, were the ¡®Paths¡¯ of the medium itself. Cassia on the other hand didn¡¯t resort to using such methods. Instead, she would simply manifest a strange marble in her hand and allow it to float. It was only on the second day that he realized what it really was. Her Soul Weapon. The strange orb was something Cassia called Figments of the Serpent. That was the name of her Soul Weapon. He didn¡¯t fully understand how it worked and also refused to use [Eyes of the Fairy] to find out to respect her privacy, just like he did with the others. He planned to eventually ask them for permission. Even without seeing her status page, however, he did know that it allowed her to manifest¡­ Body parts? Draconic ones. The orb he was staring at, was in reality, an eyeball. And a fairly interesting one at that. From what he could tell, it too possessed some sort of method to look into the Beyond, although it seemed much more restrictive than his own [Eyes of the Fairy]. When he asked her about it, she simply shrugged and told him that while it did allow her to peer into the unseen, that unseen could only be false in nature. He didn¡¯t fully understand what she meant by it at first. How can the unseen be false? Everything his own [Eyes of the Fairy] could see were almost always the truth hidden beneath the veil of the material world itself. Rarely did Soren need to ever cross reference or doubt what he found within the Beyond, aside from rare cases like that illusion master they met in Yadria who was working for The Whispering Dream. But then¡­ he understood exactly what she meant. Her dragon-like eyeball ability twists everything it sees into lies, and projects it. It wasn¡¯t meant to be used as a tool to see into the Beyond and obtain knowledge. It was meant to change the Beyond itself and twist the truth hidden within it. He was able to understand this with his own [Eyes of the Fairy]. After witnessing her using the ability, Soren realized something when he focused his attention on the same thing she was focusing on. The item he would try to read would show one aspect of the information, then when Cassia uses her ability on that same item, the information in the Beyond would twist into either lies, or undecipherable nonsense that even his own [Record] would refuse to chronicle. It was a truly strange ability. Even so, despite its contradictory nature, Cassia managed to brilliantly find a use for it when it comes to Runology. Simply put, the knowledge that would twist or change into lies, was inherently random. A simple fruit represented in the Beyond could have its information twisted into reading as a piece of meat, or a chocolate bar, or some other delicacy. In essence, although the knowledge of its representation was being changed into something false, there was still some semblance of its identity left¡ªin this case, it being a food item. If you come across this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it. There was also the fact that the changes to the representation of the item in the Beyond didn¡¯t last forever. The Beyond on its own would reinterpret the item and change its representation back to what it was after some time. With this inherent randomness, came chance. And from chance, came the ¡®Paths¡¯. It shocked him when he first found out, but Cassia was essentially finding interpretations of divination through how this strange ability of hers twisted the truth of the Beyond into lies. Each lie within the Beyond represented a ¡®Path¡¯ and with that, she was able to form a connection to The Records of Enigma. As he slowly remembered everything from the past few days, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head. She¡¯s a monster¡­ He doubted he could have easily come up with such a clever way to utilize her abilities if he had them. After all, mediums for divination were extremely important, especially when the medium was more personal to the magi. The more personal the medium was, the clearer the interpretations became since the person in question would have a better understanding of the item. And what could be more personal than a Soul Weapon? It was practically the best option for divination due to how closely related it would be to the magi. Soren sighed to himself as he entered her room once again today. She had excitedly dragged him away from his meal to show him her new discovery. Snapping her fingers, the candles burst into flames and lit the otherwise darkened room. Cassia smiled joyfully as she walked over a stack of unused beakers and measurement tools. ¡°This new material rune I discovered is going to be sooo helpful! I think I am fairly close to catching up to that damned elf, Myrin!¡± Soren chuckled to himself as he made himself comfortable on the nearby chair. From what he knew, Cassia had only recently reached the second circle. She was planning to reach the third and bridge the gap between her and her senior apprentice. ¡°So what does it do? What affinity is it related to?¡± He asked with a gentle smile. Cassia nodded excitedly, ¡°Dragonflame! It¡¯s a rune I am going to name Sulinar.¡± His brain quickly interpreted the Vinuan word. Sulinar meant ¡®Burst¡¯ in the human script. As for the affinity, Soren knew that Cassia had two of them, one was Dragonflame, and the other was a bit more obscure¡ªsomething called Gravitation. Unfortunately for her, Cassia¡¯s affinities were in a way similar to his when it came to rarity. Aside from a few pages of a grimoire she had apparently inherited from her family, she had no base of support to propel herself when it comes to being a magi. For the longest time, she struggled to even reach the first circle. Still, despite struggling with discovering the runes associated with her obscure affinities and needing to perform countless experiments for even the simplest of axioms and spellforms, she managed to overcome it all and become a certified magi¡ªone with two circles at that. In a way, Soren couldn¡¯t help but admire the tenacity of this little girl. It made him hopeful for his own prospects¡ªif she could do it, what says he can¡¯t? He refused to buckle or complain about his problems again. If he had time to have emotional outbursts, he had time to study and discover more about his abilities. Who cares if I have one year? I''ll reach the first circle in six months! Ah, screw it, make it three! He didn¡¯t want to lose to anyone here. Whether it was Cassia, Myrin or their famed mistress¡ªall of them were going to have to catch up to him in the future. With newfound determination, Soren watched as Cassia etched a new axiom combined with this new Sulinar rune she discovered. On another paper, equations for anima flow as well as a diagram of what the geometric shape of the spellform was simultaneously being drawn. There was a spark of enthusiasm in her eyes¡ªone that was fairly similar to the childish enthusiasm he once had for chess all those years ago. I can¡¯t believe I am learning from a child¡­ The thought made him chuckle. Back then, there were many international masters of chess that watched his games, even when he was young enough for afternoon naps. Is this how they felt watching my matches? He brushed away the thought as quickly as it came. He needed to focus. This was because helping Cassia wasn¡¯t just about learning Runology. He was also closely observing her experiments and everything in between. Eventually, he would need to do what she was doing now, so what better way to learn than seeing it close up? Soon, she was finished with her first rudimentary magecraft spellform that included the new rune. With sparkles in her eyes, she walked swiftly to the other room connected to hers¡ªSoren followed. The other room was devoid of anything aside from a few candles scattered across the floor to give lighting. This was the experiment chamber¡ªas Cassia likes to call it. The walls were reinforced with wards to prevent external damage. Seeing Soren hiding behind one of the designated areas, Cassia smiled. ¡°You can activate that strange ability of yours if you want.¡± Soren nodded. She closed her eyes and expanded her Soul Realm. With [Eyes of the Fairy] active, he was able to see what it looked like. Unlike Myrin¡¯s which was populated by a blue, calming sky, hers was like an inferno. Red embers and sparks could be seen everywhere¡ªthe color of her anima. Concentrating, Soren noticed a strange amber crystal attached to a ring on her index finger. It was only after the spellform came to life that he realized that it was a spellfocus. The rudimentary spellform of two axioms and the new Sulinar rune radiated faintly with anima. ¡°Yes!¡± She said excitedly. ¡°It¡¯s working! Let¡¯s see how long it lasts!¡± Just like that, the radiating heat from the spellform expanded. Two seconds. Three seconds. Four, five, six¡­ It continued for a few more breaths¡ªSoren¡¯s eyes widening with each second. Did she succeed on her first try? Even he was getting excited now. He was expecting the spellform to fail. Just as it was about to reach half a minute, Cassia¡¯s face warped into a frown. Soren noticed the spellform cracking. Before she had any time to react, it exploded in her face, sending flames everywhere. Soren¡¯s mouth dropped, ¡°Cassia!¡± He ran up to her in panic. Luckily, aside from some minor burns on her cheeks and hair, she was relatively fine. He helped her stand up and sighed. ¡°I get that you¡¯re excited, but shouldn¡¯t you take it slow? That spellform you created should have gone through more testing¡­¡± Cassia smiled with a somewhat pained expression, ¡°Don¡¯t worry, this is nothing! And I already somewhat expected this outcome. The equation I used for the spellform was something I theorized a few weeks ago. I just didn¡¯t adjust the ratios well enough¡­¡± She dusted her slightly burnt mage dress and activated her Soul Weapon. Almost instantly, lines of gold covered her body¡ªher skin was rapidly restoring itself. A regeneration ability¡­ He took a mental note of that. Chapter 76: The Report

Chapter 76: The Report

After a few hours of helping around, Soren finally made his way back to his room. Another exhausting day had passed. Still, he knew that there was still another hour or so before he fell asleep, so he decided to resume his reading. After all, the promised report was finally going to have to be made the next day. I¡¯ve learned most of what needs to be learned¡­ I think. His thoughts glanced back at the past few laborious days¡ªthe constant shift from one book to the next without many meaningful breaks. With his head full of review material, Soren blew the candle and tucked himself for bed. Another exhausting day was going to descend upon him.
The next morning was the usual¡ªhelp Nicholas with the library. Curiously, he spotted way less people roaming the endless book-filled halls. It was as if something else had taken all their attention. How curious¡­ He frowned. Either way, Soren wasn¡¯t about to slack off. Nicholas wasn¡¯t the type to let anyone do so, not even himself. Sighing to himself, he completed the boring work after a few hours. Though, this time, because of how many less people he had to deal with during the shift, he had much more time to peruse around and find books to read. Most of his time during work today was spent in the history section, so he decided to go through the books there. In the afternoon, his self-study session was spent writing a report of everything he had learned instead. He decided to keep it concise since Sienna was most likely going to test him. And as the night rolled in, his time to visit the underground eden had finally arrived. Soren steeled himself and glanced down at the scroll-paper in his hand. 4 weeks, huh? He has spent around a month in this world now. Aside from his overall knowledge about the world itself, his own abilities have also been slowly growing with time. He also knew that it would probably speed-up now that his Soul Realm was close to solidifying. Curiously, aside from all of that, he was much more proud of his language skills. Back then, he was only able to somewhat string along sentences in both Yasini, Yadrian and Vinuan. Now, however, he was able to actually write fully in Vinuan without any issues. His progress with the other two languages had slowed, but he doubted he would need them currently anyway. And then there was Scripted Runic as well. The language of mysticism. His time with Cassia had managed to help him a lot with that. Being able to see and even engage with spellform equations was truly a fruitful experience¡ªhe didn¡¯t doubt his decision to be her assistant one bit. As he made his way through the garbage heap of academic materials below the library and through the corridors of the abandoned dungeon, Soren finally made his way to the forest underneath a false night sky. This was his second time here. He slowly remembered the route Cassia had taken last time and headed for the marble canopy at the center. Just like the last time he had seen it, piles of books and scrolls were laid unceremoniously across the floor and cyan grass. Though, he did notice that their placements were different. She must have done a lot of reading as well¡­ He walked confidently to the canopy where the woman with silver hair rested comfortably, one book in her hand and a miniature star in the other. She glanced at him and signalled for him to come closer. ¡°Soren. I see you¡¯re much more comfortable then the last time I¡¯ve seen you. I am very glad.¡± ¡°Comfortable?¡± He tilted his head. Sienna nodded. ¡°Yes. Back when you first visited me, there was a calculated look in your eyes.¡± She giggled, ¡°As if you were trying to understand my motives. I can still see that look now, however. But there is something else missing.¡± She smiled gently. Soren crossed his arms. ¡°What is missing?¡± ¡°Desperation.¡± She said plainly. Soren glanced down at the blades of grass covering his boots and smiled. She followed, ¡°I can see that your time with Cassia has definitely helped you find a good rhythm. I am very happy that you two are getting along¡­¡± Soren nodded, ¡°Yes, although she can be very bratty, Cassia is a good person.¡± Even with her mild impatience, she was diligent enough to answer every one of his questions, regardless of whether it seemed stupid or not. In fact, she went above and beyond to include him in her work whenever it seemed possible so that he could gain more experience, even when it slowed down her work flow. In a way, he somewhat understood her perspective. After all, he too possessed rare affinities that would have given him nasty looks if any other scholar found out. To them, having an affinity that has no history or background was as good as saying that your career was dead. In a way, Star Fate Guild flourished when it came to bringing even the most hard-headed people up. None of the members in this cohort should have possibly had a connection with each other¡ªevery one of them was different from the rest in a number of ways. And yet, they were all glued together by fate¡­ Or maybe, Sienna¡¯s presence itself acted as the glue. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Cassia was one such odd ball in a group of odd balls. Her motivations were still unknown to him¡ªhe didn¡¯t know what exactly was driving her to continue her studies as a magi even when it was infinitely harder for her than her peers. But it didn¡¯t matter. Because he too shared in that motivation. Both of them faced similar challenges¡ªat one time in her magi career, she too was just as clueless as Soren was now, and she understood that. Soren noticed just how much effort she was putting into teaching him because of it. Sienna giggled. ¡°The pressure that girl faced when she first joined the guild was somewhat similar to yours¡­ Not completely though.¡± She closed the book in her hands¡ªthe miniature star slowly disappeared as well. ¡°How is your relationship with Myrin going?¡± The mention of his name made him frown slightly. ¡°Still rocky, but I don¡¯t really care.¡± He glanced around the piles of books. ¡°To him, an insult against you is like an insult against god. It¡¯s kinda hard to recover from that.¡± Realizing what he had said sounded rude, he scratched the back of his head. ¡°I apologize.¡± Sienna shook her head. ¡°No, I understand¡­¡± She glanced down with a slightly sorrowful smile. ¡°To Myrin, I am more than just a teacher. I am his savior. His salvation. His reason to live.¡± Soren¡¯s frown deepened. He remembered the bits about his past that he had picked up from others as well as what he knew personally during his time in Yadria. As an exiled noble, Myrin¡¯s early teen years were spent mostly being a homeless artist scraping for pennies. Until Sienna showed up. It kinda felt like deja vu. Nicholas had also told him about Cassia¡¯s background as a street orphan. Is the mistress going around collecting homeless kids or something? The thought made him chuckle inwardly¡ªhe tried not to show it. Sienna followed up, ¡°But I do know that eventually, he will grow his wings.¡± Soren remembered the choice Myrin made when they were readying themselves to leave Yadria. He somewhat doubted Sienna¡¯s statement here. The man had decided to leave behind his past for his current life, regardless of the past glory and luxury he used to enjoy. Grow his wings? Talk about being hopeful¡­ He doubted Myrin would ever learn to be independent. After all, his whole life had been him being chased away from others¡ªhow can he ever give up the one group of people that truly care for him? To him, this guild had become not just family, but a way of life itself. Soren sighed. ¡°No offense, but I honestly don¡¯t care what he does with his life. If he chooses to stay the way he is, or changes, it doesn''t really affect me.¡± ¡°You¡¯re right,¡± she giggled. ¡°Let¡¯s begin the report then.¡± Soren handed her the report he had written and waited for her to finish reading. When she did, she began to ask him questions regarding the info. Aside from general questions on how axioms function or the countless laws the govern spellforms, she would periodically also ask about his own opinions on the countless schools of thoughts that revolved around runology. After all, the book he read on the subject outlined many distinct forms of divinations practiced across Yarian. The mountain people of Tolarion for example, relied on the constellations. Yadrians on the other side of the continent were adept at using nature itself. Seed bowls, wooden tablets, and many other intricate mediums. ¡°Now that you have a basic understanding of most of this, there should be one main question in your mind. What medium should you use?¡± She said plainly. Medium, huh¡­ The question lingered in his mind. After witnessing Cassia and learning more about Runology, he realized that although different cultures utilized different methods for divination, most resorted to using personal mediums. This was because of the closeness the item holds to the person. The more personal the medium for divination was, the easier it was to interpret what the divination means. Cassia, in her brilliance, managed to discover a way to utilize her own Soul Weapon as a medium for divination. Although he hadn¡¯t seen Myrin utilize a personal medium of his own, his creativity in utilizing even the simplest aspects of nature itself as a medium could also be seen from the lens of his affinities being closely related to nature in the first place. What should I use? His first thought was his Soul Weapon. After all, it literally was the closest item he had to himself. No, it was literally himself. But as he thought about it more, he realized how daunting of a task it would be. Yes, [Eyes of the Fairy] did act as a medium that connected him to the Beyond. But it was also very taxing. Runological studies take hours to complete, unlike normal divinations. As for his ability, even with his pain tolerance, the longest he had gotten it to work for was three and a half minutes. And even that was already straining it past its limit. Without rune fragments to increase the authority of his own abilities, that will most likely stay that way. He glanced at Sienna who was patiently awaiting an answer and sighed. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± She smiled. ¡°That¡¯s exactly the answer I was hoping for. Rushing this won¡¯t do any good. And before even that, you¡¯ll need to form a connection to The Records of Enigma.¡± She glanced up and down at him, analyzing his state. ¡°How is your Soul Realm going? Has it solidified?¡± He shook his head. ¡°Only partially. I can expand it for a few seconds before collapsing. Cassia said it might take a few more days.¡± ¡°No need for that,¡± Sienna said, much to Soren¡¯s confusion. Opening her palm, a miniature star rapidly formed, and before he could react, she thrusted it into his chest once again. Soren took a step back and glanced at himself. ¡°What¡­ What did you do?¡± ¡°Try expanding your Soul Realm,¡± she said with a grin. Confused, he decided to do as he was bid. Soon, the familiar pink and violet fog expanded rapidly in all directions. It was as if he had been doused in perfume¡ªcountless floral scents invaded his nose. In the corners of his eyes, illusory butterflies could be seen that would immediately disappear the moment he focused on them. ¡°But¡­ How?¡± His Soul Realm was not collapsing. It had been completely solidified. He glanced at Sienna with a curious fervor in his eyes. Sienna giggled. ¡°It¡¯s simple really. I just accelerated time itself for your Soul Realm.¡± Simple, my ass. The more he learned about Phantasms and their abilities, the more miraculous they seemed. Is there anything left in this world that can surprise me? ¡°Why didn¡¯t you do this earlier then?¡± He questioned. ¡°Because I knew you wouldn¡¯t be able to focus on your studies.¡± She giggled. ¡°If I allowed you to use your Soul Realm earlier, you would have probably tried to sneak away time at trying to create your first Channel of Willpower, no?¡± He smiled devilishly. How crafty of her¡­ There was truly a lot going on behind that innocent smile of hers. Chapter 77: Astral Projection

Chapter 77: Astral Projection

Creating Channels of Willpower turned out to be far easier than he had initially assumed. After his conversation with the Mistress, she wasted no time to instruct him on how to create one. At first, he was fairly shocked at the prospect. After all, he had only just gotten his Soul Realm solidified, and only because she had used a Mystery to speed up the time for his Soul Realm. However, after learning about the process and what goes into creating one, it turned out to be much simpler than every other process he had taken so far. Magecraft spellforms are made up of countless axioms, each of which provide instructions to the entire spell in order to manifest it correctly. But how that spell could be casted depends on one¡¯s anima. Soren knew from his reading that the anima that flows within a person¡¯s Soul Realm was not homogeneous¡ªthere were very big differences between the anima populating his Echo of Mind compared to his Veil of Perception, for example. Each of the three layers has its own ¡®form¡¯ of his anima. This was why creating a Channel of Willpower becomes necessary. A spellform¡¯s countless axioms will each demand a different set or form of his own anima. Some axioms need anima from the Echo of Mind, while others may need some from his Heart¡¯s Shroud. In all cases, a spellform will require anima from all three layers to function properly. The solution would be to create a channel that allows the anima trapped within each of his three layers to flow out, mixing with each other. This was what a Channel of Willpower did. As a magi requires more circles for their spellforms, more Channels of Willpower will need to be created. Soren, however, did not need to concern himself with such a future. All he needed currently was one Channel of Willpower, at least. And that was exactly what he got around to doing. With the guidance of the Mistress, he was able to create a small opening between the three layers to allow his anima between them to flow into a cycle. The only problem with this, however, was that he would need to continuously maintain this cycle of flow manually for a while. Changes this deep to the three layers would take a while to solidify, similar to how his Soul Realm itself needed time to get used to the change in the color of his anima. All this work for nothing¡­ He laughed inwardly. The reason why Soren was somewhat dejected was because in most cases, a Channel of Willpower could only be useful when casting a complete first circle spellform. As he was currently, he hadn¡¯t even discovered a single material rune associated with his affinity, let alone a complete axiom or two. Nevertheless, progress was progress. He was still proud to make it this far in only a month. Most magi, according to Sienna, would take a year to even unlock their Soul Realm. Even his speed at discovering his affinity during the Soul Search was nothing but miraculous, though, that was largely attributed to his Soul Weapon¡¯s strange properties which allowed him to use his abilities even inside the three layers. The more he thought about it, the less preposterous his claim of reaching the first circle in three months sounded. Soren knew this was just his ego speaking, however. The hard part was yet to come. Sitting in a lotus position in the center of Cassia¡¯s room, Soren glanced at the little witch staring at him with doubt in her eyes. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re ready for this?¡± She asked. He could tell she was worried for him. Soren smiled. ¡°Ready as can be.¡± If Myrin was here to see what he was up to, he would most likely slam his hand against his forehead in exhaustion. And what gargantuan task was he up to this time, you may ask? Astral Projection. Yes, the very same Astral Projection that allowed him to converse with the demon stuck at the lowest layer of the Subterranean Shunning Grounds. Except, rather than descending to the lowest layers of hell, he was now trying to ascend to the heavens themselves. Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. He remembered the words Myrin told him last week: ¡°... In the uppermost reaches of the so-called ¡®Towers of Heaven¡¯¡ªthere exists a large stone tablet. And when I say large, I mean large enough to eclipse the sun.¡± Indeed, what he was trying to do was form a connection with the so called Records of Enigma¡ªthe mysterious conduit that allows for runological studies as they are currently known to exist. However, this was still a fairly dangerous journey. Unlike the mind storms and other dangers he had faced within his own three layers, the Beyond was home to countless unseen horrors beyond human comprehension. It was this same reason why he was so careful with [Eyes of the Fairy]. Without his incredible ability to focus on what he needs to see most, he would have most likely gone insane long ago. The knowledge housed within that realm was archaic and beyond mortal comprehension. At times like these, he would remember the words Mr. Unknown had left him: ¡°Knowledge is a responsibility, not a right. Not everything must be known¡­ There are times when ignorance becomes more powerful than wisdom.¡± As much as he hates the bastard, he was right. Countless times, he had debated whether this extended only to the rift or other aspects of this world. But recently, he had been leaning toward the latter conclusion. The Beyond itself was essentially a pool of infinite knowledge. From what he had heard from Sienna, those with abilities like hers or his were prone to live short lives due to their own curiosity killing them. In fact, he suspected that the reason he faces so much pain from using [Eyes of the Fairy] in the first place, was most likely due to how much knowledge he was absorbing during each session. Even with his innate focus at the most basic of elements, the amount of knowledge flowing into him would certainly be more than his mind could handle. If he went by that theory, then it would mean that each usage of [Eyes of the Fairy] was essentially being erased from his mind¡ªthe brain was too fragile to handle everything he absorbs, leaving only the most bare bones information left over for his [Record] ability to kick in. Of course, he doubted this happened in every session. After all, if that was true, he would have been able to obtain more knowledge on certain subjects after trying the ability again and again, which was not something that happened often. Either way, this danger he was constantly dancing around with every time he activated [Eyes of the Fairy] for just a few minutes, was now going to be all around him for a while. After all, rather than peering into the Beyond, he was now planning to enter it in spirit completely. Cassia glanced at him with a dubious look and sighed. ¡°Is this what Myrin had to go through all this time?¡± He remembered the first time he rushed to unlock his Soul Realm, then it was his affinities. Now, he was requesting something ridiculous from Cassia instead. He smiled. ¡°This is the last step I must take before finally being able to cast magecraft¡­¡± He paused for a second. ¡°Actually, no¡­ There¡¯s still selecting the medium, conducting runological studies, forming the first axioms, testing rudimentary spellforms¡­¡± He ran out of fingers as he counted what the next steps will be. Cassia sighed once again. ¡°You¡¯re so goddamn reckless! There are people who take entire years studying the dangers of the Beyond before even taking the venture! And yet here you are, four weeks into your journey and already planning to climb the heavens themselves!¡± Soren shook his head wistfully. ¡°I wish I had more time as well¡­¡± Cassia said nothing and made her way to the chair next to him. She activated the magitech device that allows a person to detach their Soul Realm from their bodies and glanced once more at Soren. ¡°Don¡¯t¡­ Die.¡± Her expression contorted as the words fell out. Soren smiled, ¡°I won¡¯t.¡±
An incomprehensible amount of time had passed by now¡­ No, it felt like three days? It was very hard to tell the time in this mind-numbing expansion of space. Soren was currently roaming a section of the Beyond once called the Runic Constellations. It was fairly easy to assume why such a name was proposed. Countless fractal-like orbs were currently spinning on an axis, shifting in geometries he could never hope to understand as a simple, three-dimensional being. Well, four dimensional now? He glanced down at his body. Nothing was different at all. His clothes were the same as well as the Soul Weapon currently in his hands. He could find no discrepancies in how he currently looked at the moment. And yet, he knew that what he was seeing was not his real body. It was his Astral Projection. Chapter 78: The Beyond

Chapter 78: The Beyond

¡°Why did I decide to do this again?¡± Roaming across an endless expanse of conceptual objects, a dejected smile reached Soren¡¯s face. The Runic Constellations turned out to be much bigger in size than what he had initially assumed. Before he began the astral projection, Cassia had instructed him with coordinates that lead to the Pillars of Heaven¡ªor, more specifically, reach as close to them as possible. In a sense, their name somewhat didn¡¯t really match their location. After all, there was no up or down when it came to the Beyond, and in that sense, there could be no heaven or hell. However, aside from the route he needed to take, Cassia had also imparted him with a bit of advice for this pilgrimage of his. ¡°First,¡± she said, ¡°never ever dare to look at the spirits roaming the unfounded realm.¡± This was a lesson he had to learn the hard way. Just a day ago (according to his estimates, at least), Soren accidentally glanced at a large eyeball surrounded by halos of fractal geometry. The strange being was larger than the library he was working at. It didn¡¯t even take a second for the incorporeal creature to notice his presence. Luckily for him, the creature viewed him as insignificant and simply let him go. Even though his body was in spirit form, Soren almost have shit himself. And that wasn¡¯t the only danger the Beyond posed. There were other things roaming this mysterious space beyond his comprehension. Even words and language itself could come alive. ¡°Second,¡± she reminded him. ¡°Never try to cast magecraft or even utter anything in the Beyond. All words will be interpreted in material runes unseen to you, so even the most mundane of words can have adverse effects.¡± This was fairly straight forward, but hard nonetheless. After roaming this space for four days alone, loneliness was hard to avoid. Multiple times, he caught himself talking inwardly¡ªhaving entire conversations with his own consciousness. Eventually, he even resorted to conversing with his own Soul Weapon, as sad as it was. So far, it hadn¡¯t posed enough of a danger yet, but Soren was sure that keeping his sanity in check would get harder and harder as time went on. He glanced ¡®up¡¯ at the radiant, neon sky that shifted in a warm gradient of colors. Incomprehensible shapes shifted randomly. At the moment, he was currently crossing the final stretch in the Runic Constellations. This spacious expanse of fractal stars took him countless days to finally exit. With so many spirits roaming across, each one more powerful than the one before it, navigating it became a daunting task. Even the weakest of the spirits was powerful enough to rip his spirit body apart. Why is it so damn complicated¡­ This was honestly beyond his pay grade. He wondered how the average magi was even able to complete this quest. Unlike most, his Soul Weapon gave him a certain advantage. Glancing down at the shimmering pages, a map was currently displayed. Before he chose to undertake the trip, he used [Record] on a book Cassia had that detailed many of the common locations across the Beyond. Unlike the device the Yadrians used to transport him directly into the Subterranean Shunning Grounds, Cassia¡¯s was much more inferior. In fact, not many in Celestine could boast about having a magitech device that could store coordinates and transport people directly to them¡ªmost simply sent them to a random location within a given radius from the designated coordinate. In Soren¡¯s case, he was especially unlucky. The Runic Constellations were the furthest location of interest from the Pillars of Heaven. For some odd reason, the magitech device Cassia had used had sent him far beyond even the radius of its coordinates. According to the map, beyond this stretch of runic stars, he would need to pass through the Dark Forest, which was a large area filled with even more spiritual beings, and then beyond even that, the Castle of Devastation which was a location from the Second Age of Fantasia. But by far the most dangerous location he needs to pass through has to be the Idea Vortex. According to Cassia, it was a storm that has been raging for more than a thousand years. The scary part wasn¡¯t even the ¡®winds¡¯ or ¡®lightning¡¯, it was what this ¡®storm¡¯ was made from: Ideas. And not just any ideas¡­ Ideas from the rift. Seriously, did I get infected by Julie¡¯s cursed luck or something?! According to Cassia, a large spatial crack opened that created a firm connection to the rift, leading to the Beyond to try and create a representation of it. But that proved to be a bad idea, as ironic as it was to say. The corruption from the rift propagated across the Beyond, until it finally coagulated into the storm known to magi scholars today. There is no way in hell I am passing through it. Nope, nope, nope. There was no way in hell he was going to allow himself to be near the rift any time soon. Not when his past experiences regarding it had all almost ended his life. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Soren decided to try and take a detour around it. The only problem was that he would most likely need to pass through an almost equally dangerous location known as the Daemonic Battlefield or the Fae Sword Field. Either one would equally result in a gruesome death. And yet, he still preferred these options over the Idea Vortex. This is honestly so abnormal¡­ His situation has been abnormal since his arrival here, but even still, he couldn¡¯t help but wonder if there was a god he pissed off or something. In most cases, aspiring magi hoping to make the journey to the Pillars of Heaven would at most need to pass through one or two spirit infested locations, let alone a dozen like he was currently charting. And the areas he was currently crossing were designated as ¡®Death Zones¡¯, that most magitech devices that have astral projection capabilities are able to avoid. Even with the randomness of it all, this was still far too sketchy to discount as nothing more than a coincidence. So why did he end up so far away from his desired location? That was the million lorin question. Did Cassia betray me? This was a thought that continued to spring up, but Soren always tried to dismiss it. But now that he finally reached the final stretch of the Runic Constellations, he couldn¡¯t help but feel distrustful. In the past few days, his emotions had been all over the place. Hope, despair, sorrow, doubt, fear, anger, pity¡­ It was as if his anima was splitting into several different wills. He wanted to blame someone¡ªsomething. His sanity was slowly being devoured as he continued this asinine journey. Even so, Soren knew that it was completely illogical. Cassia had no reason to harm him¡ªshe had done nothing but help him endlessly in the past few days. Even though she was somewhat annoyed by the mistakes he made that disrupted her workflow, she would still be patient enough to guide him through it. If Soren had to be honest, out of all of the members of Star Fate Guild, aside from Joyce and her talent for cooking, Soren enjoyed his time the most with Cassia. This is useless¡­ He decided to dismiss the thought. There was no point in theorizing about it when he was still trying to escape the maws of death. If he could make it back in one piece, everything would become clearer. Luckily, he still had two advantages he could utilize. The first being his Soul Weapon. Aside from the map feature, Soren was also pleased to find out that unlike in the natural world, Soren didn¡¯t need to activate [Eyes of the Fairy] here. Because the ability was meant to bridge his own vision to that of the Beyond, there was no reason to activate it, since he was already in the Beyond. It was always active, without needing to even use his Astral Anima. Of course, this did pose a few challenges in its own way. Because he was constantly piercing through the unseen, anything he looked at here could become knowledge for him to [Record], but it was also insanely taxing on his spirit. And yes, his spirit body itself did feel pain. In fact, Soren had no way to differentiate it from his actual body. He could feel his raspy breath every time he inhaled ¡®air¡¯, his heart would beat faster everytime he encountered a strange abomination, and even his very ichor could leak out from a cut¡ªsomething he tested himself on the first day of his journey. This meant that even headaches could happen¡ªand oh was Soren prone to having those¡­ If he had to be honest, Cassia¡¯s first advice about not glancing at things you shouldn¡¯t be looking at was even more important to him than the average magi. Because of this, Soren decided it was best to directly send anything he sees through the great filter known as [Record]. He didn¡¯t want to risk any of that knowledge directly going to his mind instead. And even still, with his thoughts, he commanded the ability to only chronicle things that it thinks are safe, something he didn¡¯t think was even possible to do. His Soul Weapon was him, after all, so there was no reason why it wouldn¡¯t be able to control its abilities in distinct ways. But there was also the second advantage he discovered only recently, and it had to do with his newly acquired Mesmerism affinity. Soren could now somehow turn himself invisible. This was something he discovered completely by accident. After encountering a school of spirits traversing over his head, he stupidly glanced at them for too long and a few of the spirits in the cohort managed to catch him in the act. Fear and adrenaline mixed into a cacophony of heart beats and jagged breaths. He was almost certain death had finally gotten a hold of him, when suddenly, his body turned translucent. This wasn¡¯t something he did on purpose¡ªit was instinctual. As if his very mind knew what to do¡ªa defense mechanism he was completely unaware he had. After the danger passed, many theories flew across his mind, but none of them stuck, except for one. His Mesmerism affinity had to do with it. It was a logical conclusion to come to. Mesmerism was after all, an affinity to do with misdirection and manipulation. And he had already seen some of its capabilities during his Soul Search¡ªhe had to face the wrath of countless illusions of past memories and mind storms so powerful, he continued to question their legitimacy but found nothing that could prove that they were fake. The illusions were that real. Since that was the case, it would perfectly make sense for it to also be able to allow a person to become invisible. Still, there was no concrete evidence to support this¡ªhe didn¡¯t even have a way to replicate it. In the past few days, he had tried countless times to turn himself invisible again and again, but nothing worked. And there was also the implication of why this was even possible in the first place. Magecraft, after all, needed a spellform to function, and yet he didn¡¯t utilize one at all. It was as if the raw anima associated with that affinity had been manipulated instinctually to create the effect. Soren sighed to himself in relief and shook his head. His feet for the first time in ages, finally reached down to solid ground. In front of him, a boundless tapestry of endless pillars stretched beyond the metaphysical horizon. The pillars held crowns of shaded fractal geometries that shifted mysteriously. The Dark Forest. He had finally made it to his next destination. Unlike where he was earlier, this location was even more odd. But what truly made it stranger was what was lying beneath his feet. Solid ground. This was completely uncharacteristic of the Beyond, where the concept of ¡®up¡¯ or ¡®down¡¯ were meaningless. In a way, the Beyond acted in a similar manner to outer space. There was no gravity to hold anyone together, nor was there a way to differentiate directions. In fact, his map itself was nothing but a loosely disjointed ¡®suggestion¡¯. The Beyond was prone to change over time, and even the borders of certain areas couldn¡¯t escape this rule. And yet, here he was, planted firmly on what looked to be white sand. A maddening smile took over his face. If there was even a question of whether he¡¯ll need the ability to turn invisible, now was the moment that solidified the answer: yes. Chapter 79: The Dark Forest

Chapter 79: The Dark Forest

There was one more rule that Cassia had imparted to him before he went on this perilous journey. A rule that she put heavy emphasis on. ¡°Third,¡± she said with a hoarse voice, ¡°The more nonsensical and illogical a place gets, the more dangerous it is. Stay away from such places in the Beyond.¡± Soren¡¯s lips widened into a silly smile. ¡°Well, I guess that¡¯s kinda unavoidable now, isn¡¯t it?¡± He said sarcastically as he glanced down at the glowing, enchanted book in his hands. ¡°Besides, how strange can it really be? Pillars of granite shaped like trees with incomprehensible runes for leaves, white sand beneath my feet that shifts with the soft breeze¡­ Totally things you would see in real life! Nothing here is at all strange¡ªall of it is fine, actually¡­¡± He rubbed his chin, ¡°Now that I think about it, aren¡¯t I the strangest one here? Not everyone has conversations with a book, you know¡­ Wait, doesn¡¯t that make me the most dangerous person in the Beyond? Yep, I should !¡± Soren confidently walked forward, leaving deep footprints in his wake. He had finally entered the Dark Forest, leaving the Runic Constellations and their ever changing runic stars behind. Although he was putting on a brave face, Soren really wanted to scream right now. The Runic Constellations had already been fairly dangerous, and he had no doubt that danger was about to spike. But what choice did he have? Not only was his route back home cut completely, but he was left stranded in a remote location of the Beyond known for being infested by truly nightmarish spirits. The Runic Constellations themselves had already posed enough problems for him. Aside from the constant hiding from rogue spirits, Soren also needed to watch out from the runic stars themselves. On occasion, they were prone to explode, leaving anything in their vicinity disintegrated into nothing. And what¡¯s worse, the knowledge each one holds was not something he could even access with his own abilities¡ªit was somehow being interfered with or blocked, so there was no way to really know when one of them was getting ready to burst. He had to simply rely on his luck and intuition when navigating the strange starry array. A few times, he had gotten fairly close to ones on the verge of imploding, only to realize something was up and moving away in time. Eventually, he realized that the rogue spirits themselves also knew their way around the place, so he tried to mimic their behaviors and paths to avoid the dangerous explosions. Not that it didn¡¯t have its own set of issues¡ªafter all, rule one of not glancing at spirits still applied. He had to be extremely cautious when observing their behavior. But now that he had made it to the Dark Forest, his heart had rightfully filled somewhat with relief. Soren knew however, that it was nothing more than his emotions being out of place. After all, the book he had chronicled that listed information about the different known places in the Beyond described the Dark Forest as truly a monstrous place. Something that not even archmages enjoyed traveling through. In fact, if he remembered it correctly, the author of the book himself had perished in this section of the Beyond, never to be seen again. ¡°Maybe we can find his body while we¡¯re at it, right book?¡± He wanted to smile, but couldn¡¯t find it in him. Now that he was on the subject of death, it reminded him of his own current situation. Technically, his body was still safe in the natural world, away from harm and protected by Cassia. However, his spirit was currently roaming the unfounded. This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it. He had heard a lot about this from Cassia¡¯s nagging before he finally managed to convince her. If his body in the real world died, he would technically be stuck in spirit form forever. But the same also applied to his own spirit. If he died in this strange forest, for example, his spirit would dissipate into nothing, but his actual body would stay alive. In essence, he would become an empty husk¡ªa hollow human without a soul. To everyone else, his body would continue to exist like normal¡ªall his bodily functions would continue to function on their own. But his mind wouldn¡¯t be there¡­ It would be like staring at a living corpse. A shiver ran down his spine as he thought about it again¡­ This was the fear driving him forward. He cannot stop¡ªhe must not stop. He had to find a way out of here, and the only one he knew about was reaching the Pillars of Heaven. According to Cassia, Astral Projection requires a will¡ªsomething that ties their existence to their spirit form. After all, one cannot astral project without separating their Soul Realm from their bodies, which means their True Self was currently roaming the Beyond on its own. The will Soren has that was keeping his True Self in this rogue existence was fairly simple: reach the Pillars of Heaven. If he cannot do it, then he would continue existing in this form indefinitely. This was why so many magi took insane amounts of time to prepare before their venture. They had to be sure they were capable of coming back. Otherwise, it would all be for naught. In Soren¡¯s case however, such logic could not apply to him. He only has a year to deal with his own Soul Chain¡¯s instability. Soren sighed as he walked up to the closest granite pillar. He examined it closely with his fairy eyes¡ªthe levitating book next to him chronicled the information with a mysterious fountain pen. Memory Tree (Mystery) Who but the great lord deserves to be enshrined? Who but the one who cowers deserves to die? The preservation of these memories must take precedence over my life. For one day, I will regain them, and may oblivion cover the skies. Soren stood silent for a moment¡ªhis face holding an unreadable expression. However, all that filled his mind was confusion. ¡°Lord? Enshrined? And what¡¯s this about a coward?¡± He frowned. This was the first time he had ever received such a cryptic description for something. In most cases, his ability would simply describe what the object he was examining was, and nothing more. If there was new information to be added, Addendums would be included. Instead, this description read more like a message, rather than an explanation. ¡°What the hell are these¡­ Trees?¡± That was also very odd. His Soul Weapon called them Memory Trees, which would tie very well with the weird description. However, none of these supposed memories ever transferred to him. His Soul Weapon would have chronicled something regarding these supposed memories the trees hold, but it didn¡¯t. Which only really meant one thing. There was interference. Whoever left these trees behind made sure not to allow those with similar abilities to Soren to understand what was being left here¡­ ¡°How strange¡­¡± He glanced at his Soul Weapon and smiled. ¡°But then again, this place already breaks the logic of the Beyond anyway. What¡¯s a few weird trees going to even do?¡± Still, Soren wondered who could have left these things behind in the first place. Was it some ancient demon? Or maybe a very powerful phantasm from the ancient past. Either way, the message it left behind was very clear: whoever it was, he wanted revenge against something or someone¡ªpossibly the coward it mentions¡ªand so it left its memories here for the person to come back and remember his own promise. To bring oblivion to the skies. ¡°What a scary fellow¡­¡± He smiled at his Soul Weapon. ¡°What do you think about all of this, book? Do you think whoever is behind this can get his revenge before this world ends? After all, I plan to live and witness it all.¡± The book stayed silent, leaving Soren to dejectedly sigh. ¡°Fine, keep your thoughts to yourself.¡± He glanced around to a similar tree in the distance. ¡°Let¡¯s see if we can glean more information with my abilities¡­ Who knows, an addendum might show up.¡± Just as he was about to walk over to it, his face plummeted into darkness. Soren glanced up and noticed that the familiar neon gradient sky had fully disappeared¡ªin its place was a pitch black void that had devoured the light. The only thing keeping him from being completely in the dark were the strange trees with their fractal runic leaves that glowed in an aetherial golden color, basking the white sand into a strange cacophony of shades. Soren let out a silly yet panicked laugh, ¡°Ah! No wonder it¡¯s called the Dark Forest!¡± Chapter 80: Darkness Everywhere?!

Chapter 80: Darkness Everywhere?!

The cloud cover was beyond anything Soren had ever seen. That was if he could even call it ¡®cloud cover¡¯. In an instant, an endless amount of granite pillars that stretched for as far as his eyes could see were submerged in deep shadows. Nothing escaped the void. Well shit¡­ Soren didn¡¯t know what any of this meant. He just had a premonition that something bad was going to happen. And he was right. In the distance, in between a few sets of memory trees, a large wolf could be seen. A strange halo of fractal geometry was wrapped around its torso, radiating in light. He could tell what it was¡ªa spirit. Just as the wolf spirit reached the nearest tree to hide under its crown of leaves, tendrils of darkness shot forth from the darkened skies, wrapping around his limbs. Soren watched in horror as the spiritual creature struggled against the tendrils¡ªkicking and rolling, sinking its fangs into the sand bellow for grip, but all its efforts only caused it to get even more entangled with the sinister tendrils. It let out a deafening shriek that caused Soren¡¯s feet to shake before all its strength was finally used up. Without any further resistance, the beast was dragged away from the shining runic tree into the dark patches of sand. For the first time, Soren regretted having [Eyes of the Fairy]. He watched in horror as the tendrils sucked the spirit dry of Astral Anima¡ªits limbs slowly disintegrating into piles of dust. This continued for a while until nothing was left. Not even the fractal halo that surely represented its existence within the Beyond¡ªall of it was devoured. What the actual fuck¡­ Dark thoughts eclipsed his mind. Soren knew for a fact that he was next on the menu, no doubt. And there was something else he realized in that moment. Since his arrival in this twisted forest, he had wondered what that sand beneath his feet was. Now, he finally had an answer. It was the leftover dust of countless spirits that had fallen victim to the encroaching darkness. A hecatomb of mountainous spirit ashes. How many spirits had this¡­ thing devoured till now for there to be an entire desert of corpses beneath my feet?! Soren had no time to consider that question. He turned his head to the edge of the Dark Forest where he had initially landed. If not even hiding under the ¡®shade¡¯ (oh the irony) of the memory trees worked, then his next course of action would be to exit the forest entirely. Luckily for him, he was fairly close to the edge¡ªhe had only landed a few moments ago after all. Without a hint of hesitation, he dashed forward with all his might, leaving a small cloud of dust in his wake. His plan was fairly simple. Find the nearest set of trees, and dash in between them for momentary cover before continuing the maddening escape. Soren knew however, it was not going to be that easy. And he was right. From the corner of his eyes, Soren spotted countless tendrils chasing after him. Their speed was terrifying. Shit, shit, shit! Why am I always being chased by tentacles of all things?! Get creative, you shitty world! In the last moment, he reached one of the memory trees and dashed to the side purely out of instinct, dodging one of the tendrils aiming to wrap around his neck. However, that didn¡¯t stop them at all. The tendril he dodged realigned itself almost instantaneously, shooting past the tree he had just reached toward his torso this time. Soren ducked then jumped back into the darkness. He cursed his luck¡ªthe bastards didn¡¯t even give him time to catch his breath. He had to continue running to the next tree. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Even so, his intuition was correct. After seeing that dark wolf spirit trying to hide under the memory tree, Soren realized that it must have been a known defence mechanism the creatures here were used to using. His suicidal sprint turned out to be the right choice¡ªthe tendrils were far slower under the light of the memory trees compared to their usual speed in the darkness filling the gaps in between. It was because of this that he was able to dodge the tendrils. Without wasting the precious chance, Soren continued sprinting toward the next tree; the tendrils behind him wasting no time to chase after their weak prey. Think, think¡­ These things will definitely catch me eventually! Even if Soren reached the next tree, he was sure that the tendrils would actually catch him this time, regardless of whether they were slowed or not. This was because the tendrils exhibited not only autonomous movement in accordance with each other, but also some spark of intelligence. He could tell that they were somewhat angered by his arrogant attempt of avoiding them with such a silly trick. They were not going to fall for it again. Soren knew he had to try something different this time. But what could that be? What else could he do to escape the tendrils? As his mind flashed with useless thoughts, his feet landed below the radiating light of the memory tree. He had reached it, but the danger wasn¡¯t over. But at that moment, he noticed something else¡ªa rogue spirit roughly the same size as him. It was a large skeletal horse with dark flames radiating from across its bare spine. Enchanted flames radiating from its eyes and a strange dark halo around its neck that shifted in the usual fractal randomness. Both spirits had reached for the same tree, seeking its shelter. But Soren wasn¡¯t just a spirit¡ªhe was also a human. An idea flashed in his mind. Without any time to think it over, he dashed toward the horrifying spiritual entity as the sound of the tendrils closing in on him reached his ears. The rogue spirit had also noticed his presence and was about to initiate an attack, but Soren didn¡¯t care. In the last moment, cornered in between the maw of a skeletal monster and dark tendrils reaching for his body from behind, Soren dropped to the floor and skidded across the sand, right under the skeleton horse¡¯s torso. Without stopping, he lifted himself clumsily and continued sprinting as his lungs burned with heat. He didn¡¯t need to take a glimpse behind him. He knew for a fact that the tendrils had chosen to discard their prey for the meal before them. However, Soren knew he couldn¡¯t relax just yet. Picking up his shaky feet, he continued to run to the next tree¡ªthis time, not sensing anything chasing after him. He finally landed squarely beneath another circle of light where his body gave in¡ªholding onto the granite pillar for support. Soren finally glanced back with bated breath. In the distance, he could see the skeleton horse spirit battling against the tendrils. Luckily for him, the spirit looked fairly strong¡ªit was putting up more resistance against the tendrils than the dark wolf he had seen earlier. Still, he knew that this was nothing more than a pointless struggle. Eventually, the horse was going to lose, and he will become next on the menu once more. Without a moment to waste, Soren glanced at his Soul Weapon which was busy chronicling with the familiar fountain pen. Ordering it to stop, the pages shifted to what he needed to see most. Spirit Void Cloud (Corrupted Spirit) A corrupted being that exhibits the visual features of an endless misty cloud. This entity was once a large coalition of ideas merged together into a spirit that was infected by the Nameless Mist. Its Runic Existence has been transformed, absorbing and mixing with the anima until it became a factor of its own influence. Now, its single aim is to grow larger by absorbing and transforming more astral anima from its surroundings into itself. An ever growing plague of forgetfulness and existential erasure. Soren¡¯s heart dropped as he read the description. The Nameless MIst¡­ Again¡­ Is this fate? Since the day he had arrived on this twisted world called Yarian, this malevolent presence had continued to haunt him, wherever he went. Even now, however, he couldn¡¯t understand what it was, or where it came from. He had assumed that it was something entirely new¡ªa threat not seen before at all, since even Myrin and the mistress were completely unaware of where it had come from. But now that he was seeing it again in this ancient forest of memories, that whole theory of his had collapsed. An equally more terrifying thought emerged. The darkness of the nameless mist¡ªit had always existed as a part of Yarian¡¯s history. But no one that has ever been touched by its presence, had survived to chronicle its existence. And since its properties were that of forgetfulness, not even the Beyond itself could understand its nature¡­ An ever growing darkness¡­ An abyss that no one could escape from¡­ Chapter 81: An Ordinary Rock

Chapter 81: An Ordinary Rock

If he had to be honest, it should have been obvious from the very start. From the fact that his very arrival in this world had caused a major shift in the orbits of fate¡ªsomething unseen in more than a millennium, paired with the fact that this ancient evil known as the Nameless Mist which had suddenly emerged from nowhere mere days before his visit to this world¡­ Could all of that really be just a coincidence? He doubted it. Fate was most definitely involved with this. Or maybe it was Mr Unknown pulling the strings¡­ No, maybe both? Who really knows¡­ During his journey across the Runic Constellations, Soren wondered if things could have been different if he had enacted a different will before astral projecting¡­ Maybe if he had chosen to scout out the Beyond with a simpler goal in mind, he would have been able to return back to his body if things had gone wrong like they did now¡­ But now that these revelations had finally made themselves known, he doubted that prospect. If fate had truly driven him here, nothing he could do could stop that outcome. Soren wasn¡¯t a fool. He knew that if not even their mysterious mistress known for her divinations and prophecies was able to twist the hand of fate, then what chance did he have? None¡ªzero. Well, at least not yet¡­ He shook his head with a wry smile. At least I know what its goal is¡­ Soren was sure of it¡ªthat he somehow had a strange connection of fate tying him to the Nameless Mist. And that connection was forcing them to meet in this way¡­ But it also made him question whether the Nameless Mist itself also had a connection to the ruination of this world¡­ It was definitely a plausible theory, but he currently had no time to entertain it. Staring at the distant struggle between the tendrils of darkness and the skeletal horse of lesser darkness, his lips twisted into a frown. Soren was sure of one thing at the moment and it had to do with these strange memory trees. If going by their names counted for anything, it was obvious to him that they contain some sort of counter to the darkness above. After all, the Nameless Mist could be considered the embodiment of forgetfulness and erasure from the world itself, while the trees seem to hold the symbology of memories and preservation¡­ These two forces clearly oppose each other. And then there was his own Soul Weapon as well¡ªit too was some sort of counter. Ever since his traumatizing encounter with that Memory Void Spirit, Soren had wondered why his abilities worked so well against that strange entity. Yes, he did lose in the end and was saved last minute by his own corrupted memories of the rift destroying the creature, but the results spoke for themselves¡­ If Soren had figured out the creature¡¯s secret much earlier, he would have been able to easily stop it from ever harming him. This was all no doubt thanks to his [Eyes of the Fairy] ability which had chronicled its existence. For the longest time, he had wondered why this ability worked so well against that thing, and now he finally had a concrete answer. Just like how the Memory Void Spirit had consumed his thoughts, emotions and memories, he too had consumed a part of its existence in return, thanks to his ability to acquire unseen information with [Eyes of the Fairy]. In a way, while the memory trees surrounding him had the effect of preservation in the face of erasure and forgetfulness, Soren had the ability to remember what was lost regardless of when or how he lost it. This is so damn tiring¡­ He sighed with bated breath. Even though Soren knew that he could counter the effects of the Nameless Mist with his abilities, that didn¡¯t mean that his situation wasn¡¯t still hopeless. The tendrils clearly operated at a much greater speed than he did¡ªtheir ability to siphon Astral Anima and erase his existence was much faster than what he could hope to achieve with [Eyes of the Fairy]. And then there was the ultimatum he was currently facing. Soren knew that the skeletal horse only had a few more moments of struggle before succumbing to the tendrils¡ªtime was running out. He had to decide quickly¡ªshould he venture out of the perimeter of light shining down from the memory tree above his head and risk getting detected again by the tendrils, or stay under this tree and hope to not be noticed? He gritted teeth. ¡°Ah, fuck it! I¡¯ll just stay here!¡± Even though Soren made it sound like it was a rash decision, there was a bit of logic behind it. And it all had to do with his newly discovered ¡®ability.¡¯ The narrative has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the infringement. Invisibility. If he could turn invisible right now, would he be able to hide unnoticed under this tree? He had to try. There was no better solution to think of. If he runs out into the darkness now, who knows what other horrors that sickening cloud of darkness was hiding from him? Well, actually¡­ He did have one other solution, but he was unwilling to give it a try¡­ At least not yet. Soren shook his head and began channeling his anima. From what he remembered last time, there was a strange sensation that enveloped him when he was hiding from a group of spirits trying to find him. It was during that sensation that his body became partially invisible. Although his previous attempts at trying to replicate it had failed, he had nothing else left but to try again and hope for the best¡­ After all, was it not imminent death that drove him to unlocking it in the first place? This situation should count the same way, no? Come on! Come on! He gritted his teeth and tried ordering his anima to move in the same way he would his Soul Realm. As much as he hated to admit it, it was much harder than anything else he had tried before. Because his Soul Realm was currently solidified as his own spirit body, what he was actually trying to accomplish was moving the anima inside it¡ªsomething that only those in the third circle could do without a spellfocus. Soren however, wasn¡¯t even a first circle magus. He was still nothing more than an apprentice. Curses! How the hell did I do it last time? He decided to check in on the skeletal horse one last time out of curiosity. Safe to say, he did not like what he was seeing. The mighty spirit was slowly disintegrating into dust, adding to the neverending pile beneath their feet. Soren was running out of time. Hurry! He closed his eyes and tried to focus again. Beads of sweat rolled down his cheeks as time slowed down to a crawl. There were nothing more than a few seconds left before the tendrils decided to find their next target, and he was the closest target around¡­ In that moment, countless memories flashed through his mind in regards to his affinity: Mesmerism. Scenes of illusory lightning flashing through the skies, and waves rocking beneath his feet. Scenes of countless memories manifesting as enemies looking to attack him. Scenes of him roaming the Veil of Perception without understanding where he was at any time or what he was even searching for. Finally, a scene of where his Shade of Self was hidden¡ªin his arms all along, disguised his trusty yet distrusty Soul Weapon. It had never actually turned invisible. It was simply hiding in plain sight. Suddenly, an idea flashed in his mind. By this moment, he was sure that the tendrils had already started searching for their next prey. The tendrils must have at least remembered him, because he was hearing them getting closer and closer. Not wasting any more time, Soren commanded his Anima to move faster through the Channel of Willpower, disregarding how much resistance it was showing as his thoughts flashed with what he wanted to see most. A plain old rock made of hardened white sand. Yes, he was no longer aiming to be fully invisible. Instead, he was going to hide himself in plain sight. Almost instantly, he felt the change happen. Although his body still looked the same to him, he was sure that outside his own vision, he was now nothing more than a rock. A plain old rock. An ordinary rock that anyone could pass by and not even bat an eye. Don¡¯t mind me¡­ I am just a rock, everyone! Carry on with what you are doing to every other spirit here¡­ No, not others! I am not even a spirit! I am just a rock! A rock! Got it?! As if hearing his stupidly pretentious thoughts, the tendrils slowly maneuvered under the light of the memory tree, hovering above him with keen curiosity. He held his breath as his eyes shook with fear. He didn¡¯t dare to move. Why would a rock move anyways? Rocks are stationary after all. Come on! Leave already! There¡¯s nothing here! I am nothing more than a rock! You won¡¯t find any sustenance by trying to eat me! Go somewhere else! He wanted to so badly curse out loud but all he could do was bite onto his lips and wait. And wait even more. And more, and more, and more. The tendrils continued scouting the tree stubbornly. It was as if they knew he was hiding somewhere here but weren¡¯t sure where. No, it was more like they were stunned¡ªin the same way a person would if they left a plate of food on the kitchen counter only for it to disappear the moment they turned away. Blind rage mixed with panic in his stomach, but he couldn¡¯t do anything at all. It was now up to his luck to save him. Soren was too fearful to even breathe. He was watching from down below, waiting for the damned things to find someone else to feed on. Worse yet, he knew that his anima was slowly running out. It wasn¡¯t at a rate where he was in immediate danger of being discovered, but it was still worrying. If only I had more Channels of Willpower! Damn it¡­ But there was no point in regretting things now. All he could do was continue waiting. And waiting even more¡­ He was sure by now that an entire hour had passed¡­ No, it might have been two or three hours? He wasn¡¯t sure. There was no one to count the time, anyway. Eventually though, much to his relief, the tendrils moved away. Maybe they simply thought that it was a waste of time, or they found something even more delicious than him¡ªhe wasn¡¯t willing to know or ask. Still, Soren knew that the danger was not over yet. The darkness encompassing the world was still there, drowning everything in its shadows. And he also didn¡¯t trust that the tendrils had fully left yet¡ªthey might have pretended to leave to lure him out. Hah! How can all of you be so stupid? Why would a rock be lured out of anywhere¡­ Sheesh. A rock stays where it is forever, unless moved by someone else! He glanced down with only his eyes at his Soul Weapon and smiled. Don¡¯t you think so as well? Chapter 82: The Expedition Begins

Chapter 82: The Expedition Begins

A decrepit old room filled with beakers and other scientific tools shimmered with light from a lone candle that was slowly reaching its end. Its wax had slowly melted¡ªdripping from the wooden candlestick before sizzling out. Instantly, the room became dark. Cassia glanced up at the dead flame and sighed. She walked over to the table and replaced the candle with a new one, then lit it with her fingers before walking back to her usual workstation. ¡°That¡¯s the fifth one¡­¡± She frowned then glanced at the brown-haired young man sitting on the floor peacefully. It had been a week since he began his pilgrimage to the Pillars of Heaven. Even now, nothing has changed. His astral projection was still roaming the Beyond endlessly, seeking out the will that it had enacted to travel there in the first place. Still, the situation concerned her. ¡°This is too abnormal¡­¡± In most cases, an aspiring magi would either find their way to the pillars and establish a connection with the Records of Enigma, or turn into a hollow human without a soul. And this journey usually only takes 3-5 days to accomplish, though, it was a fairly difficult thing to quantify since the Beyond could have adverse effects on one¡¯s perception of time. A person who spends three days in the outside world, would feel as if a month had passed during their journey to the pillars or even worse. The effect was fairly random and hard to predict. And yet, they have now reached the 7th day since he began, and nothing had changed. She wondered how much time had passed for him¡­ A month? Maybe two or three? Or could it have been even worse? She was extremely worried. The mortal races were not designed to handle long periods of time within the Beyond. Physically or spiritually, the worst that could happen was getting devoured or attacked by a rogue spirit or daemon. But mentally¡­ That was another discussion entirely. The effects the Beyond has on the mind were not something that well studied, even amongst some of the more famous schools of thought in Luvinica. Even so, Cassia did know a few things from first hand experience during her own pilgrimage. First, extreme loneliness would start to kick in. Then, disassociation with themselves begins to fester. Finally, the seeds of madness bloom, causing irreparable damage to one¡¯s psyche. Even with memory erasure, the effects would linger¡­ What¡¯s worse, there was no way to quantify how long each stage took. Some magi with little mental resistance would show symptoms after only three days of exposure within the Beyond. Others would take much longer. However, the effects applied to everyone regardless, no matter how much of a genius or how well talented they were¡­ She sighed deeply as her face contorted into a frown. ¡°I warned the idiot! I knew something would go wrong! He should have given it more time¡­¡± Although the Beyond¡¯s mental strain wasn¡¯t a fully understood phenomenon, there was a leading theory that had been proposed by a famous archmage she couldn¡¯t for the life of her remember the name of¡­ Essentially, it had to do with the Astral Anima that propagated all of the Beyond. Because Astral Anima was the combined willpower of all beings living in the world, that meant that the emotions of said beings also flowed through that anima. The more one interacts with that Astral Anima directly, the more interference in one¡¯s own emotions occurs¡­ The corruption of everyone¡¯s combined emotions mixing and coagulating inside a person¡¯s soul was prone to cause psychological damage if prolonged exposure occurred¡­ She sighed and stood up. This was nothing more than a theory, but the effects themselves were real¡­ She couldn¡¯t sit around and wait any longer¡ªSoren¡¯s situation had clearly gone wrong somehow. ¡°I have to ask the mistress¡­¡± Just as she was about to walk toward the door, a knocking sound appeared that startled her. She sped up her steps and opened it, revealing the handsome blonde magi who was her senior. Myrin was grinning annoyingly just like he always does. ¡°Ugh, what do you want! I am busy!¡± Myrin opened his mouth to answer, but then his eyes trailed to where Soren was sitting with his eyes closed in a meditating position. ¡°Wow, what a familiar scene¡­ I feel like I¡¯ve seen this somewhere before¡­¡± Cassia rolled her eyes. ¡°Are you here to waste my time, or do you have something to say?¡± ¡°How rude¡­¡± He cleared his throat. ¡°I am here to tell you that I¡¯ll be leaving soon¡­ Well, not just me. Tina and Nicholas, along with the mistress too.¡± Cassia¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°...Why?¡± Myrin sighed and walked past her, entering the room unannounced. Sitting in a nearby chair, he glanced at Cassia and asked a simple question:Royal Road is the home of this novel. Visit there to read the original and support the author. ¡°Have you heard about the expedition to the Avalon Ruins?¡± Hearing this, her eyes widened. ¡°Oh, so this is what it''s about¡­ I¡¯ve been too busy dealing with my own studies and the negotiations with a new alchemy guild¡­¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°Yes, the mission me, Tina and Tyrel had undergone was seen as a success by the Aelloran government. They will allow us to join them on the expedition later this month¡­ Actually, it''s going to happen around the same time as the Greenfather Festival¡­ Kinda ironic if you ask me,¡± he chuckled. Cassia glanced down for a few moments before asking: ¡°Who will be heading the library then? Candice I am guessing?¡± ¡°Yes, and Soren as well.. If he comes back from his¡­ trip alive, that is.¡± He glanced at where he was meditating and frowned. ¡°Has he been like this for a while or has he just started?¡± Cassia sighed, ¡°To be honest with you, he started his pilgrimage seven days ago.¡± Myrin stood up from his chair in shock. ¡°S-seven days?! By the blossoms¡­!¡± He glanced back at Cassia as his face contorted. ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say anything sooner?!¡± ¡°Two reasons,¡± she answered. ¡°One, he had still not turned hollow after all this time, so he must be still surviving¡­ somehow. Secondly, I wanted to trust him¡­ I know it sounds foolish, but¡­ A part of me wanted to wait a bit longer before taking any drastic measures¡­ I mean, it''s Soren after all!¡± Myrin frowned even more. ¡°I get what you are saying¡­ Even I have grown to accept how ridiculous he is¡­ Unlocking his Soul Realm in one try, when most take it step by step, passing through one layer at a time. Then he even managed to proficiently learn how to control his newly unlocked Soul Realm¡¯s inherent ability on the fly, without much trouble. Oh, he even managed to somehow figure out how to manipulate the shape of his Soul Realm in distinct ways when I didn¡¯t even teach him how to¡­¡± Myrin glanced down at his fingers which were continuing to count Soren¡¯s stupendous feats. ¡°Then, he urged me to help him conduct a Soul Search, which he somehow managed to complete in only two days¡­ I mean, is this even normal? He¡¯s accomplished all of these things that most aspiring magi would take years of practice and preparation for in only a month.¡± ¡°To be fair,¡± she said in an even tone. ¡°Didn¡¯t you also have a speedy start?¡± ¡°Yes, but I am still not as fast as Soren,¡± he chuckled. ¡°He¡¯s a monster¡­ I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if we find out in a week that he figured out a way to accomplish casting magecraft without a spellfocus, or something else equally as ridiculous¡­¡± Cassia giggled, ¡°You sure do have a lot of compliments for someone you had a scuffle with¡­ If you care about him that much, why haven¡¯t you made up with him yet?¡± Hearing this, Myrin couldn¡¯t help but sigh. He leaned back against the chair and covered his face with his cone hat. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong¡­ I still think of him as a friend¡­ Well, sort of like a little brother? But then again, he¡¯s kinda close in age to me so that doesn¡¯t make sense either¡­ ¡°But at the same time, he kinda rubs me the wrong way sometimes¡­ That last conversation really soured my mood.¡± ¡°Not everyone is as devoted as you, Myrin.¡± She said sharply. ¡°Soren has only been in this world for a month so far. Even if he thinks highly of us and is grateful for everything we¡¯ve done for him, he also knows not to allow such debts to grow into indentured servitude. ¡°Soren knows that we need something from him, as much as he needs from us. You can¡¯t expect him to view our relationship as anything but superficial¡­ Well, at least for now. That¡¯s also why the mistress is adamant on letting him decide his future. Yes, it may also have to do with the machinations of fate, but she surely knows that giving him space to come up with a decision first will be much better than shoving guilt in his face.¡± Hearing her words, Myrin couldn¡¯t help but grimace. ¡°Yes, but it still doesn¡¯t make sense to me. Not once did we ever treat him unfairly¡­ I¡¯d say we¡¯ve even been showering him with more care than anyone else, and yet he still mistrusts us? I truly cannot comprehend this mindset at all¡­ Though, to be fair, he did warn me about his nature before I invited him to the guild house¡­ Maybe it''s on me to think he could change so easily¡­¡± Cassia sighed. ¡°This is exactly your problem, Myrin. You can only see things from your own lens. I don¡¯t fully know what Soren¡¯s background is¡ªhe hasn¡¯t disclosed anything about his past to me, yet. But I can tell it must have been fairly similar to yours.¡± He tilted his head, ¡°Similar to mine?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± she nodded. ¡°Except, I do believe there is one main difference. Although you suffered mostly due to being unwanted, Soren seems to have suffered from being too wanted¡­¡± The words hit him swiftly, like the maddening spirit gales that occasionally pass through the Feylith Forest. ¡°That kinda hurts, you know¡­ The whole ¡®unwanted¡¯ stuff¡­¡± He smiled wryly. ¡°But now that I think about it, your theory does make a bit of sense¡­ I guess Soren thinks we are trying to take advantage of him? That we¡¯re simply trying to buy his trust?¡± She nodded. ¡°Indeed. And how could he not? We have treated him well¡ªtoo well in fact. Even I would have been suspicious of that¡­ Well, only for a while¡­ I love the mistress too much now to ever be suspicious of her¡­¡± Myrin sighed and stood up, giving one last glance at his two junior disciples. ¡°You know, you always surprise me by how mature you can be sometimes¡­ Totally not cute at all.¡± Before Cassia could even curse him, Myrin spoke again: ¡°I¡¯ll be heading to the mistress to inform her about what Soren is dealing with¡­ I don¡¯t think he¡¯s lost¡ªnot when his abilities allow him to map his surroundings. And if the magitech device was the one that malfunctioned, then we will need to use divination to try and locate him¡­ Somehow. ¡°It''s good that he¡¯s even alive for this long¡­ I hope the mental effects of the Beyond haven¡¯t impacted him too heavily yet.¡± Cassia glared at her companion. ¡°No need. Just let the mistress inform me and I''ll perform the divination myself. You and the others will be busy preparing for the expedition, won¡¯t you?¡± Myrin nodded. ¡°Yeah, that will work!¡± He chuckled. ¡°Oh and by the way, since you¡¯re planning on staying, look out for Tyrel¡¯s return, won¡¯t you? I am fairly certain he¡¯ll show up around the time when the Greenfather Festival starts to kick in¡­ I wonder what he¡¯s been up to?...¡± Chapter 83: Despair

Chapter 83: Despair

¡°Hey, book¡­ Should I just stop playing hide and seek?¡± Soren hid behind one of the Memory Trees, this time disguised as a pile of white sand that had drifted toward the tree from some invisible wind. He stood motionlessly and whispered to his eternal companion. A shy Soul Weapon that loves to trick him and yet never reveals itself. Countless times, he wondered if the thing was truly sentient or maybe he was just going insane. Of course books don¡¯t talk! The hell are you thinking?! Even so, he couldn¡¯t help but try and converse with it regardless. It might have been the only thing keeping him from devolving into total insanity. Not that he wasn¡¯t already on the cusp of it, anyway. A month had passed since he had first arrived on the shores of this deranged forest. Not once during that period of ¡®time¡¯, did he have any semblance of rest. The darkness overhead arrives every 16 hours, or at least, an amount of time that felt like 16 hours. Each time, Soren would have to find the nearest tree to him and disguise himself as something to hide away. There were many close calls and even more harrowing experiences he tried his best to shut away from his mind to no avail. In one of the periods of ¡®hide and seek,¡¯ as he likes to call them, he had to hibernate with another spirit under the same tree¡ªone that was too ghastly to even look at. Soren even wondered if it would have been better to succumb to the tendrils of darkness over looking at it. But what was worse was the fact that the creature was strong. As the tendrils reached it, it fought ferociously, almost ending Soren¡¯s disguise countless times in the process. During the scuffle, Soren managed to hide himself by burying under the white sand with only his head popping up. Many days of preparation had made it much easier to predict when the darkness would arrive, so he had ample time to dig and find the best hiding spots. Even so, the image of the fearsome spirit slowly being devoured as its screeching howls of despair vibrated his very bones was not something that could be easily erased. Many times, Soren wondered when his time to join the corpse desert of white sand would arrive. And yet, each time, he survived. Thanks no less to his newly acquired ability. It was fairly strange the first few days of his journey across the mysterious forest. For one, Soren realized that the effect of the skill relied heavily on his imagination. Because he was still nothing more than an apprentice, being able to visualize highly complex objects was basically impossible. In fact, he was lucky that his first real attempt was him trying to become a rock. Rocks could come in all shapes and sizes, so there was no need to heavily concentrate on the details. And the tendrils themselves were not fully intelligent enough to notice the off-place details of his disguise. But more than that, the only reason this was even a possibility was because of his affinity. After all, creating images of your creation and projecting them into your Soul Realm through anima was not a very complex thing to do¡ªall magi were able to do it to a certain degree after reaching the third circle. That was how they could manifest magecraft spellforms in the first place. But the difference here was Mesmerism itself. Because his affinity has ties to illusions and misdirection, the images created by this affinity¡¯s anima have much more realistic properties to them that cannot be easily distinguished. So even the crudest of projections like the ones he was using for disguising himself appeared more refined to the casual observer. Soren had no doubt that those with a more keen eye could probably notice something was wrong, but that was the scary part. If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the violation. Soren was still an apprentice. Who knows what these elaborate illusions would look like once he reached a higher circle? And there was also the fact that at the moment, his body was in spirit form, meaning his Soul Realm was encompassing only his body. In fact, it might have been more appropriate to call it a Soul Frame, similar to what Tina or Tyrel have. This did get him thinking about his prospects of possibly passing through the metaphorical Fourth Layer. If he had abandoned his Soul Realm for the sake of forming a Soul Frame, what he was currently experiencing was probably the extent of what he could do with his current affinity. He was glad he didn¡¯t go through with it and stuck to just his Soul Realm. Soren couldn¡¯t imagine how monstrous his affinity would be if he could create elaborate illusions to not only himself, but his very surroundings¡­ And if his Soul Realm could grow even bigger¡­. Yes, keep imagining your future, Soren! Don¡¯t give up now! Soren was lying face-flat on the sand, waiting for the darkness to leave. It might have looked unnatural if not for the fact that to everyone else, his body was currently a pile of sand itself. Over the month, Soren had refined the few disguises he could do in this twisted forest. After all, there weren¡¯t many forms he could take that wouldn¡¯t be easily spotted by the tendrils of darkness. But Soren was fine with that. He would rather have a few options he could improve on slowly, than a horde of them. This was fairly important to his survivability too, since his disguises relied heavily on having a flexible yet constant mental image. The moment his mind thought of something else, the disguise could easily be disrupted. In fact, this has happened a few times already, leading to very close brushes with death. Thankfully, his ability to focus was at a monstrous level. He thanked his unique talent everyday in this horrifying forest. However, none of this really meant much when faced with the cruelties of time. Even with his insane drive and focus, not even Soren could escape the grasp of madness forever. Every day, a new threat would arise, and he would need to hide from it¡ªhoping the predators won¡¯t see him. He repeated this cycle over and over and over. Endlessly. And little by little, small cracks were slowly appearing and growing across his psyche. He could feel it. Yesterday, his mind was overcome with laziness. He wanted to simply lay there and wait for the darkness to consume him. Last minute, he realized something was up and slapped himself awake¡ªfinding a place to hide and disguise himself before death arrived. Every waking hour¡ªno, every minute was a struggle. A struggle against himself. He had to constantly remind himself of his goals. Of what lies ahead. Of what he could accomplish once his magi abilities bloom. After all, was it not this delusional goal that drove him here in the first place? Why waste the precious chance to finally learn magic? Soren glanced over at his Soul Weapon and smirked. I wonder if he too is also going insane¡­ After all, isn¡¯t he another version of ¡®me¡¯? The thought made him chuckle, almost alerting another tendril of darkness nearby. Soren stayed quiet for the next few hours, focusing all his thoughts on simply refining the mental image of his disguise. Even though he really wanted to give up¡ªthis month had been both grueling and terrible¡ªhe knew that the end was slowly approaching. His Soul Weapon¡¯s map was finally showing the final stretch of the Dark Forest. There was not much left¡ªif he could survive this cycle of darkness, he could finally make it out of this damned labyrinth of granite pillars and spirit corpse dust. Just as that thought appeared in his mind, Soren noticed something from the corner of his eye. He slowly shifted his face across the sand, trying not to alert anything to his presence. And that¡¯s when he saw it... Despair itself. In the distance, past the sea of granite pillars illuminating a darkened sky, a silhouette appeared. Brick towers rose high above the forest, with walls and arches in between. A ruined structure so vast, the distance he had crossed in the past month paled in comparison. But what his eyes were drawn to were not the castle itself, but what stood above it. A large crimson eye, beyond the scope of his imagination levitated in nothingness. The iris shifted, glancing across the surrounding Dark Forest with curiosity gleaming in its predatory iris. The more his vision focused due to [Eyes of the Fairy], the more details his mortal mind glimpsed into something it should have never looked at. Millions of souls swam within the crimson iris, desperately crying for an eternal end. An end that will never arrive for them. Soren¡¯s body shivered. This wasn¡¯t just fear. It was primordial. A feeling from the very soul. What he was looking at didn¡¯t make any sense at all. Suddenly, Cassia¡¯s words replayed in his mind. ¡°The more nonsensical and illogical a place gets, the more dangerous it is.¡± As of this moment, Soren was gazing into the abyss of Despair, and the abyss was gazing back with an unrelenting, insatiable hunger. Chapter 84: Crimson Eye

Chapter 84: Crimson Eye

What could be considered the definition of hope? Was it the desire to continue on, knowing that there might be a chance at salvation? Or maybe a fool¡¯s delusions of grandeur keeping them stubbornly clinging to any semblance of success or survival? Soren didn¡¯t know. Why would he know when what he was currently facing seemed utterly hopeless? Gods¡­ This¡­ This is so unfair!.. Stretching beyond the horizon of endless Memory Trees, a vast darkness loomed over the skies, which in turn, was also overshadowed by its own monstrous abomination. A planet-sized crimson eye shifted and gazed down at the mortal insects beneath it¡ªall of them struggling to survive the endless swarm of darkness over their heads. Soren was one such insect in a sea of many. No, he might have been a cockroach? The mere fact that he survived for this long, being as weak as he was, could be considered a miracle. At times, Soren himself questioned whether he was alive or not¡ªmaybe everything he was currently experiencing was hell itself and he had perished without even knowing it. No matter what the truth was, what he was currently gazing into could only be described with such adjectives¡ªhell. The massive crimson orb contained thousands of souls, both of humans and spirits¡ªsome demons, others fae. They all swam within the iris, clinging to its glassy walls, hoping for an escape from the eternity of torture they were most likely subjected to. Worst of all, Soren himself was currently going through a similar torture. His [Eyes of the Fairy] which has the effect of seeing through unseen truths was currently something he wished he didn¡¯t have. His mind, even with the great filter known as [Record] which blocked most of the knowledge from entering it, was still being invaded slowly by screeching screams and wailing howls of the damned. This was an entirely different situation from the Echoes of the Rift. Those sounded more like desperate whispers, clinging to his mind like insects and scratching at the insides of skull. The invasion of thoughts emanating from the Crimson Eye of Despair was more akin to a broken rhythm, or an infinite amount of chalkboards being scratched simultaneously. Suddenly, a bitter yet iron taste lingered in his mouth. He immediately knew what it was¡ªblood. All of his orifices were leaking blood at an alarming rate. His eyes were crying crimson ichor and even his hearing was faltering. And yet, the desperate screams continued, as if they were reaching into the deepest layers of his soul without a hint at stopping. ¡­His mind¡­ Was breaking¡­ So this is how¡­ insanity¡­ feels like?.. Wow, color me¡­ surprised¡­ Eternal screams of the damned without an end¡­ An eternity of torturous wails¡­. Soren was more surprised that he could even think at all. Or at least, think long enough to string sentences together¡­ Pain overwhelmed his mind¡ªit was as if his head had been placed inside an oven and was being roasted at the highest temperature. So this is it¡­ huh?.. A continuous struggle¡­ for more than a month¡­ Only to die to a¡­ Divine entity¡­ or whatever the fuck that eye is¡­ He continued laying on the shifting white sand, awaiting with hopeful anticipation¡ªas ironic as it was to say¡ªfor his mind to finally fall into eternal sleep. In fact, he welcomed death. It seemed much more relaxing than what he was currently going through. And yet, what felt like hours had passed, and still, he was strangely awake and in pain. His mind hadn¡¯t collapsed yet. It was continuing its struggle against the screeching howls and wails of damned souls¡­ Somehow. Just¡­ Die already!... The words were hard to string together, but the more he thought about it, the more desperate he became. Die, die, die! Please kill me! The mercy of death was never granted to him. His eyes glanced back up at the crimson abomination covering the sky. It was much more blurry now¡ªhis vision had faltered to an almost paralyzing degree, and yet, [Eyes of the Fairy] was still active, adding more to his eternal torture. It was during these moments that his thoughts would wander to the countless wisdom he had gained over the years. The countless mentors he had been assigned, the few teachers that tolerated his existence, and the even fewer individuals he could even call ¡®close¡¯ friends. Their words, conversations, and laughter¡ªeven their moments of anger and fighting when Soren eventually broke their trust in some way. All of it was playing out at incredible speeds in his mind. He wasn¡¯t sure if this was a last ditch effort at trying to find a solution to his current dilemma, or simply his mind¡¯s way of trying to distract from the invading corrupted thoughts. If he had to be honest, Soren didn¡¯t care. He had no strength left to ponder over such things. The only thing that struck him was the last thing his mind replayed for him¡ªthe almost inconsequential wisdom that Mr. Unknown had imparted to him oh so long ago: ¡°Knowledge is a responsibility, not a right. Not everything must be known¡­¡± He wanted to curse out loud. He was almost sure the bastard knew that something like this would happen, but one other thing was certain now: that piece of wisdom he had imparted wasn¡¯t meant to help him. Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author. It was meant to mock him. Mr. Unknown knew how futile it was for Soren to avoid seeing the unseen. His abilities were primed as both a boon and a curse. Even now, with his eyes shut, [Eyes of the Fairy] continued to stream information into his Soul Weapon without stopping. Most of that information was filtered directly into the book using [Record], but the unholy creature he had gazed upon wasn¡¯t being impeded by such a mundane, mortal concept. The knowledge of its existence¡ªof its representation was far too great to be hindered by a mere filter created by a Tier 1 Soul Weapon. That bastard¡­ I will crush him¡­ And even if I die here, I''ll wander the Beyond until I find a way back to Earth to haunt him forever¡­ I¡­ have to¡­. Even though his thoughts were full of rage and indignation, desiring even the faintest amounts of revenge against everything that had wronged him, Soren knew that it was improbable he would live to tell the tale if he continued staying here. Even so, his mind hadn¡¯t fully collapsed. He could barely move, hear or see anything besides the constant river of forbidden information entering his mind. But that was the good thing about [Eyes of the Fairy]. He could focus his vision into what he wanted to see most. His focus had definitely dwindled from what he was capable of just a few hours ago, but it was still good enough to at least lead him out of here. Even his disguise had already been destroyed in the process. In front of him, golden lines hovered in the air, stretching beyond his blurry vision. These were the same golden lines he had seen when trying to escape from the Headless Ogre in the Feylith Forest. At that time, he didn¡¯t know what it was exactly¡ªhis instincts simply told him to follow the golden string, which eventually led him to meeting Myrin and his cohort. This time, however, the strings weren¡¯t so simple. He could see them in much more detail, even with his vision being blurred¡ªhis [Eyes of the Fairy] were proving themselves useful once again. But more importantly, the golden strings were split into separate paths this time, unlike before. Soren had two options now. Although he didn¡¯t know everything there was to know about that crimson eye, there were bits and pieces of knowledge he had undoubtedly absorbed. First, that thing was most definitely a spirit itself, but one of a higher authority than the rest. Even the cloud of endless darkness that covers this portion of the Beyond seems to be outclassed by it. And yet, the darkness, in its hunger to erase all of existence with the help of the Nameless Mist, continued to fight against the Crimson Eye of Despair. Judging by how familiar each entity was with each other, Soren could tell that their animosity was something that had been festering for ages now. While they fought, the sheltering spirits underneath the shade of the Memory Trees were hibernating, waiting out the clash and hoping to survive the aftermath. Soren, however, wasn¡¯t afforded the same chances¡ªhis own cursed abilities damned him so. But even still, rather than mope around, he decided it was best to take advantage of whatever opportunity this forbidden knowledge that was costing him his sanity afforded. The two options were very clear. Either stay under the shade and await their clash to end, or choose to move away from it entirely. Both options were bleak, but one at least gave him the agency to decide his own death. The former simply relied on luck to save him¡ªif luck even existed in this cursed dimension. Plus, he had grown to trust the golden strings¡ªthey were clearly guided by something to tell him where he needed to go to save himself. At least, that¡¯s how he hoped to interpret it. The choice was fairly obvious to Soren¡ªhe was going to struggle till the bitter end, even if his mind was screaming for the sweet release of death. Maybe it was spite that was fueling him¡ªanger at fate itself for taking him here in the first place. What the hell do you want from me?! What even are you?!... As the screeching wails and howls continued, Soren¡¯s muddied brain raced for a decision to make. If he was going to leave this damned place, there were three options the strings were giving him: one stretched far north, where the colossal silhouette of a ruined castle lay, and a large crimson eye levitated above it. The other string leads back to where he came from¡ªtoward the Runic Constellations. As for the final string¡­ It simply connected itself to his Soul Weapon¡­ Soren almost instantly knew what it was hinting at¡­ ¡­[The Faerie Court]. Nope¡­ Not yet¡­ Soren was very hesitant about the third option¡­ In fact, he had already considered it a few times during his journey, but always decided against it. For as hatable as Mr. Unknown was, none of the things he had told him were lies. Going back to Earth was dangerous, and entering the supposed ¡®Realm of Realms¡¯ could have unforeseen consequences that could make what he was currently experiencing a cake walk. Still, he wouldn¡¯t be honest if he didn¡¯t say he considered it¡­ It felt like such an easy solution to his current dilemma¡­ All he needed to do was activate the skill, and his suffering might instantly end. But, no. His situation may be dire, but he was still not completely out of options¡ªthe strings proved this to be the case¡­ And even when his situation turned absolutely impossible to overcome, his Soul Weapon will continue to follow him, so that option was never off the table, anyway. He could always change his mind later. This meant one thing, however. He would now have to pick from the other two strings. Which one should he choose? Head toward the thing causing him to slowly wither under the crumbling weight of a thousand screaming souls, or run away from it? Gritting his teeth with every fiber of his being, Soren moved his arm muscles one by one¡ªstreaks of pain shot across them, but he didn¡¯t care. Every one of his fingers dug into the corpse sand as he crawled out from beneath the shade of the Memory Tree, one agonizing pull at a time. To the casual observer, what Soren was doing was nothing short of suicidal. He had abandoned his hiding place and dove into the deep dark ocean of the unknown darkness willingly. Strangely though, Soren felt comfortable, as twisted as it was to say. He was tired. Tired of hiding away. Tired of feeling powerless. Tired of having to submit to fate and its unknown machinations. So what if he died? It would be a blessing to die at this point. He might as well take some risks. A trail of blood was left in his wake as he desperately crawled against the white sand. His now somewhat mangled throat croaked a strange sound¡ªa mix between a maddening laugh and a cry for mercy. His destination stretched across the horizon¡ªan eternal crimson prison of damned souls. If his mind was going to be invaded by forbidden knowledge regardless, he might as well find out everything about its wretched existence. Soren was no longer planning to run. He was now walking into the abyssal maw of the beast intentionally. Hehe¡­ Hehehehe¡­ A crooked smile took over half his face as he stared at the maddening Crimson Eye of Despair. Bring it¡­ Chapter 85: Break In

Chapter 85: Break In

A short-haired girl wearing the usual mage dress gifted to her by her mistress stepped out of her room¡ªher face sunken and full of gloom. These days, it was hard to even find Joyce¡¯s meals fulfilling, as impossible as that was to say. Not only was her mistress and many of the other members gone on the expedition, her new favorite junior was still wandering the Beyond with the chances of him coming back dwindling by the hour¡­ No, it was more bleak than that. Cassia was almost certain that his chances of returning were fairly close to nothing by now¡ªtwo weeks had passed since he had wandered across the unfounded plane, and many months must have passed for him during that vast journey. From what she read up, the current record holder for the longest astral projection was an archmage from 200 years ago who had managed to stay sane for three weeks¡ªan equivalent of 3-4 months in the Beyond... No one had ever gotten close to that amount of time and survived. Soren on the other hand, was entering his third week now. And the difference between him and that archmage was akin to comparing a drop of water to the sea. It¡¯s already a miracle he had survived for this long, but she was sure that even if he made it back now, he would no longer be the same Soren she knew¡­ What a shame¡­ I only got to know him for two or so weeks¡­ He had so much potential¡­ Even though she didn¡¯t want to feel like giving up, her internal thoughts betrayed her. It was simply beyond the realm of hope now¡­ Even with Soren¡¯s boundless talent and potential, the reality still remained the same¡­ What¡¯s worse, her own psyche had been under pressure as well. As much as she wanted to deny it, it was still her fault that Soren entered the Beyond this early on¡­ Had she warned him even more or barred his request, would things have gone this way? She wasn¡¯t sure. Soren was stubborn, but she was still his mentor in a way¡­ If she had denied his request, he would have had no choice but to suck it up and wait until she felt more confident about his prospects¡­ In the end, however, she was swept away by his talent and previous accomplishments and let him take the journey, anyway. It was hard not to feel guilty and regretful¡ªeven worse, helpless¡­ Sighing, she walked dejected through the familiar corridors, heading toward the lounge for a much needed break. I can¡¯t even seem to concentrate on my own research anymore¡­ Suddenly, a voice startled her from behind: ¡°Cassia? Are you heading for breakfast? It''s already somewhat late¡ªhow unusual.¡± Recognizing the voice, she glanced back briefly¡ªCandice was holding a few books in her bosom, presumably for study. Unlike the other members of Star Fate Guild, Candice was the only member to not be either a Sentinel, Magi, or Phantasm. However, despite her weakness, no one would dare to say she doesn¡¯t deserve her place in the group. There was more to running a guild than just strength¡ªwit and cunning were also necessary¡­ Especially a guild like theirs which was designated as a criminal organization in the eyes of many. Vagrant Phantasms didn¡¯t really have the best reputation, after all¡­ ¡­And that was exactly her role to play. Unlike the facade she displays, Cassia¡¯s eyes could see through deception fairly easily¡­ And the smile Candice was currently displaying was anything but real. Cassia sighed, ¡°I¡¯ve been busy tending to our sleeping princess¡­ Soren has still not come back from his pilgrimage.¡± ¡°What about your divinations? Didn¡¯t you say you will be pinpointing his location soon?¡± If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. ¡°I was¡­ I even obtained a dream vision. He¡¯s in an area full of darkness? It was fairly hard to even see anything though¡­ Dream divination isn¡¯t that accurate, after all, and it tends to only show partial glimpses of certain events¡­ But this is by far the worst case I¡¯ve had¡­ There¡¯s absolutely no details to the scene I was shown, and I can¡¯t even tell if what I saw was a glimpse of the future, or the past¡­ Either he¡¯s stuck in an area with high amounts of anti-divination anima fields, or¡­¡± Her voice trailed off. ¡°Or?...¡± Candice held her breath. ¡°Or, he¡¯s in a section of the Beyond that doesn¡¯t even have full representation¡­ An area full of darkness¡ªthere is really only one that I can think of that fits the details somewhat.¡± They both reached the same conclusion: ¡°The Dark Forest.¡± Candice covered her mouth with her hand. ¡°But¡­ But that¡¯s impossible! The Astral Projection magitech device I lended to you doesn¡¯t even have the range to transport anyone that far!¡± ¡°I know¡­¡± Cassia rubbed her forehead. ¡°I just can¡¯t think of anything else¡­ And even if my theory is right, the both of us know just how hopeless navigating that treacherous place is¡­ Not even archmages are able to survive there for long, let alone me who¡¯s only a 2nd Circle magus¡­¡± ¡°So then, what do we do?¡± Cassia wanted to shrug, but couldn¡¯t bring herself to. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know. When I spoke to the mistress, she told me to simply wait and see¡­ I know Soren¡¯s fate holds some sort of importance, but at the same time, can we even deduce when that importance comes into play? What if fate wants him to die there, alone in the Dark Forest? Should we just accept that?¡± Candice shook her head. ¡°No one can understand fate. The more you chase after it, the more you fall into its grasps. All we can do is hope that Soren¡¯s end is not destined to be now.¡± Even without her ability to detect deception, Cassia knew that what Candice was saying was the truth. It was no wonder the mistress assigned her as the guild manager. Without her pragmatism, they would have most likely sunk into debt, or worse, gotten in trouble with the authorities. And even more so, the delicate balance between the hidden factions of the underground shadow guilds was not something anyone could navigate safely¡­ Even the last deal she had tried to broker with the Silver Vial Distillery ended roughly. If not for Candices guidance, they would have caused a much bigger rift between the guilds, something they couldn¡¯t afford to do when the group was aiming for a major expedition in the coming days. I wonder how they are all doing over there, in the Avalon Ruins¡­ Her string of thoughts were cut by Candice who brought the girl close in for a warm hug. ¡°Do not worry too much about Soren¡­ Although he might look a bit silly at times, he¡¯s definitely very smart. It might sound improbable to you, but I have a small hunch he might prove us all wrong¡­ Well, we can only hope so anyway.¡± Cassia smiled a bit. Although Candice¡¯s real personality was always hidden behind a thick veil, she knew for a fact that the woman loved and cared for all of them like family. It was moments like these that proved it to her. After all, the mistress wouldn¡¯t have entrusted her with so many important responsibilities otherwise. ¡°Thanks¡­¡± She replied softly as she embraced the hug. To say she didn¡¯t feel burdened would have been a lie¡­ Cassia¡¯s heart had grown heavy in the past week or so. Even though it was hopeless, a part of her still wanted to believe in the boy who had diligently helped her with all her experiments. The next few minutes flowed rather quickly as they conversed about the expedition and everything else happening around Celestine¡ªmostly about the Greenfather Festival preparations which were going to happen tonight. The event was meant to last for three days, after all, with those from the Church of Nature conducting mass on the first day, followed by festival celebrations on the second, then finally, a sacrificial ritual to the Greenfather, Nurtured of Nature, on the final day, marking the start of a new year, according to the old Dulval calendar that they still follow. As they passed by Noctharn¡¯s smithing hall, the giant shadow continued to hammer at a glowing rod of hot metal. Booming sounds echoed across the chamber and into the corridors, urging Candice and Cassia to speed up toward the next corridor, away from the deafening noise. Just as they were about to finish crossing, however, a colossal sound was heard¡ªone that made even the vibrations of Noctharn¡¯s anvil seem silent in comparison. The ancient stone hallways of the abandoned dungeon creaked and shook, raining dust and rocks on them all. Cassia hissed and glanced at the distant corridor that the sound emerged from. Her feet were almost thrown off balance from the blast. ¡°What¡­ Just happened?¡± Candice coughed, ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ But that sound¡­ It came from the entrance to the dungeon, didn¡¯t it?¡± Suddenly, Noctharn stopped his rhythmic hammering and stared out into the distant corridor¡ªhis face was obscured behind countless ancient shadows, making it hard to read his thoughts. The mysterious giant stirred¡ªa hoarse voice entered Cassia¡¯s mind: ¡°Prepare yourself. Intruders.¡± Chapter 86: Guild Defense

Chapter 86: Guild Defense

The words rung vividly in her mind. This was the last thing Cassia expected to hear. ¡°Intruders?¡± She frowned deeply and hurriedly activated her Soul Weapon. Beams of radiant gold weaved into strings across her body, manifesting into a pair of draconian wings on her back. Her tail grew larger, as the scales reflected more of the ethereal light surrounding her body. Then her cheeks and hands began to morph, covered in a thick layer of scales and the latter growing sharp claws. Finally, her pupils dilated then changed into narrow slits as she eyed the distant corridor like a predator. Cassia turned to Candice, who had a worried expression on her face and ordered: ¡°Go back to the lounge and warn Joyce about what¡¯s happening. Head deeper into the dungeon together with her.¡± Candice glanced at the little girl and frowned. She wanted to protest but nodded along and turned away in a somewhat calm sprint. ¡°May the Gods be with you.¡± Cassia scoffed, I hope not. She turned to Noctharn, who had stopped hammering and was now staring at the distant corridor with his cold, dark gaze. ¡°What should we do?¡± He answered, ¡°We wait.¡± And so they did. Seconds ticked slowly as both prepared themselves for the incoming assault. At first, Cassia began to doubt they would ever come. The dark passage before her had not changed one bit since the massive explosion that occurred just earlier. The only thing that kept her from dropping her guard was the distant echoes of footsteps slowly approaching their direction. Then, the footsteps disappeared, alarming Cassia even more. Just as she was about to turn to Noctharn for advice, all hell broke loose. A speeding arrow shot forth from the darkness, splitting the air in its wake¡ªits target was Cassia¡¯s head. She had but a half a second to react and twist her body, letting the projectile leave only a faint scratch on her scally cheek. The impact of the arrow hitting the wall behind her left an entire crater of damage to the mortar and brick. Cassia grit her teeth and expanded her Soul Realm as she took flight. In just that moment, a hundred more arrows streaked in the air toward her direction, however, this time, she was prepared. With her Soul Realm expanded, her spellfocus ring blurred with faint light as her anima shaped into rigid formations. The spellform instantly stabilized, forming a wall of amber flames around her. In an instant, the super sonic arrows passed through the smoldering flames, disintegrating into ash before reaching her. However, she wasn¡¯t done yet. With her mind racing to calculate everything, her Soul Realm morphed into a straight line, shooting toward the distant corridor as three radiant beams of light shot forth through them toward the approaching intruders. At the same time, Noctharn stayed silent for a moment, then almost instantly, the room dimmed as shadows hidden underneath his mysterious cloak escaped out into the open hall. It was as if a dam had broken, unleashing a flood of darkness onto the world. Cassia glared menacingly toward the distant corridor, waiting to see if her attack had done anything. And only a few seconds later, she got her answer. In the dim dark world created by Noctharn, strange shapes were seen growing out from the distant corridor. It took a moment for Cassia to register what she was seeing¡­ Vines. Wooden vines covered in moss were stretching across the floor, ceiling and walls of the corridor, expanding out in all directions to meet the ancient darkness. Stepping out from the abyss¡ªthree hooded figures appeared. One was holding a wooden staff with flowers growing out from the top of it¡ªeach of them looked carnivorous in nature. At the bottom, small roots could be seen, stretching to connect themselves to the network of vines beneath their feet. To their left, a shorter hooded figure stood with two curved swords radiating in a shimmer of pale white light. But the most dangerous of the three had to be the one standing to the right of both of them. Although she was hooded, Cassia could tell that it was a woman. In her hands, a lustrous glaive that hid the colors of the moon could be seen. Although she didn¡¯t know why, something about that weapon screamed dangerous. Cassia¡¯s Soul Weapon, Figments of the Serpent was a part of the Augment Class. This meant that unlike most Soul Weapons which exist as a separate entity to the person, hers would manifest as an extension of her own body. However, this did come with a cost to her humanity. When she manifests the full extent of her Soul Weapon, a part of her mind also morphs to account for these changes, making her thoughts more bestial in nature. Usually, this would be seen as a negative, but not for Cassia. After all, she has always been known for her temper, anyway. What difference would it make if she became even more crazy in battle? And for the most part, it also gave her a slight advantage in fights since her instincts would heighten to a monstrous degree, unlocking some form of sixth sense that could keep her from falling into truly dangerous situations. But that was exactly the problem right now¡­ ¡­Her sixth sense¡­ It was desperately trying to get her to run away¡­ Cassia bit her lips to ease her dread and glanced at Noctharn. ¡°That¡­ That lady¡­¡± Noctharn nodded. ¡°Leave that little one to me. Handle the other two.¡± Even though it was shameful, Cassia couldn¡¯t help but be relieved. Before the enemy had time to launch another attack, she refocused her Soul Realm and raced to channel two more spellforms. A second later, her claws which were already menacing enough, were now enchanted in deep ember flames. With her wings moving in a blur, she shot fourth toward the enemy holding the wooden stave. Unauthorized content usage: if you discover this narrative on Amazon, report the violation. The hooded woman with the scary glaive gave her a glance. She was about to skewer Cassia with its sharp end, but the shadows around them morphed in shape, turning into several sinister tentacles that wrapped violently around the brazen intruder. She struggled for a second then thrusted her glaive downwards into the nearest tentacle. Pale white light exploded outward, destroying the ancient shadow. Just as she was about to reorient herself out of the trap, Noctharn manifested himself in front of her out of the darkness, like a god of destruction looking to cast judgement. It was hard to tell what exactly enacted the attack¡ªalmost in a blur, the hooded woman flew all the way back, slamming against the wall, leaving a large crater behind. Incredible¡­ This was Cassia¡¯s first time seeing Noctharn fight. She had heard rumors from Myrin as well as small stories from the mistress herself, but nothing could have prepared her for what she was seeing before her eyes... He was¡­ a monster¡­ Are all the Aretores this strong? All giants have powerful bodies, but a giant who¡¯s also able to teleport in the dark was truly a frightening thing to see. With both strength and speed, Noctharn didn¡¯t have many weaknesses to exploit. Good thing he¡¯s on my side. Cassia had no more time to admire the shadow giant. With her wings moving in a blur, she readied herself for the pounce. The hooded figure holding the wooden staff moved it to block her attack, but that was exactly what Cassia was hoping for him to do. She grinned menacingly, then landed a few feet in front of him, before jumping once again¡ªthis time leaving an afterimage behind. Her real target was the man holding the two curved swords. Steel met flame covered claws as a ring of sounds exploded in the closed off dungeon. Catching the hooded figure by surprise, she slashed with her hands, leaving trails of dragonflame behind, then twisted her body mid air to end her pounce with a powerful lash of her armored tail, slamming him to the floor violently. Cassia had no time to gloat about her attack, however, as wooden vines shot up from beneath her feet, wrapping around her body. She grit her teeth to fly away, but it was no use. Each of the vines felt heavier than metal and sturdier than molten rock. ¡°You seriously think this will stop me?!¡± She roared. Constricting her Soul Realm, a new, more complex spellform began to take shape. She was just about to form its first set of axioms when the man holding the two curved swords returned her earlier hospitality with some of his own¡ªslashes of cold pale light lingered in the air, carrying the fury of its wielder. Curses¡­ She grit her teeth and twisted her body to gain a better grip of the vines. With her flame covered hands, she burnt through them easily, stumbling away last second before the two curved swords slashed across her torso and throat. Cassia flew away for a second to give herself some space and time to complete the spellform from earlier, but that turned out to be a big mistake. Out of nowhere, even more vines erupted from behind. She had underestimated the hooded vine magus. The man was clearly never intending to battle her directly¡ªhe was simply bidding for time in order to infest the battlefield with his plants. His plan¡­ Had finally succeeded. With nowhere to run, the vines shot through her body from all sides, skewering her. She hissed in pain¡ªluckily, she managed to avoid the most lethal of the vines, making sure none of her vitals were impaled. But this was only the beginning of the torture. Almost instantly, she began to feel the vines growing inside her, as if they were feeding on her blood¡­ She glanced painfully at the distant magus, who was standing silently alone. I¡­ I can¡¯t stay here for long¡­ The shrouded figure holding the two curved swords realized that the trap wasn¡¯t going to last for long. His body left an afterimage as it dashed forward for the kill. Seeing his approaching figure, Cassia grit her teeth. She knew she had to act fast. However, the problem she was currently facing wasn¡¯t something that could be solved with Dragonflame¡ªafter all, the vines had burrowed deep into her flesh and were now feeding on her blood¡ªburning them away would be impossible without burning herself in the process. Even so, there was one other trick she could try. Rather than magecraft, this one was a Mystery. Unlike Myrin¡¯s Artist¡¯s Wand, her Soul Weapon was much less creative. There was little variety that she could do with it. However, that didn¡¯t mean it was completely useless. Figments of the Serpent granted her two abilities for her first tier. The first was something she liked to call ¡®Serpent Transformation¡¯, which augmented her body with those of a mythical serpent, giving her an increase in several areas, such as speed, strength, and even vitality. Injuries she would sustain would heal on their own, given enough time. The other ability however, was something she called ¡®Eyes of the Serpent.¡¯ It was a fairly strange ability¡ªone that she was not able to figure out a proper use for until she discovered Runology and began using it as a medium. Essentially, it would allow her to twist the properties of things that have representation in the Beyond, disrupting their existence partially. Although it sounded useful on paper, it was hard to utilize properly in battle because of its inherent randomness. And since magecraft uses one¡¯s own anima that comes from their Soul Realm rather than the Beyond, it did not grant her the ability to disrupt magecraft itself. Which left only Mysteries on the table. Abilities granted by Soul Weapons use Astral Anima, which was the anima of the Beyond. Which meant that although this strange ability had no effect on magi, it did have some effects on Phantasms. And by now, she was fairly certain that the enemy holding her in place was one such fighter. Without wasting any more time, Cassia activated Eyes of the Serpent and twisted the logic behind the vines themselves. She couldn¡¯t change their entire identity¡ªthat would take too much anima and time. Instead, she focused on some of its properties¡ªone being its ability to absorb blood. Even if the effects of this skill were random, she had learned to focus their area of effect on specific properties, narrowing down the possible outcomes by a lot. Luckily, her plan worked. Instead of growing rapidly, the vines will now whither when absorbing blood. Their logic and representation had twisted to account for such a change. The effect was immediate¡ªCassia couldn¡¯t hope for a better outcome. Her binds instantly shriveled away into nothing, giving Cassia a small opportunity to jump away from the incoming blade attack. She grit her teeth while holding some of her wounds, which were finally healing slowly. Her eyes, however, were focused on the two enemies in front of her. By now, the effect on the vines had already ended, returning them to their original state. She breathed haggardly¡ªthinking about what to do next. It was obvious to her that both of her opponents were much more skilled than her. Worse yet, the battlefield was in their grasp¡ªnot even her ability to fly could make a difference now. Then there was the issue of her wounds. Although they were healing, that didn¡¯t necessarily mean she would be able to regain the blood she had lost. Fatigue was setting in at an alarming rate. Her body wanted to shut down¡­ Cassia knew she would need to end this fight quickly. Should I try that now?.. Her thoughts raced. There was one last trick in her grimoire that she could try, but it was one that hasn¡¯t been tested yet. A rune of unimaginable power that she had only gained recently¡ªnamed Sulinar¡­ On its own, the rune was fairly inconsequential, but its importance would bloom when added to a certain spellform¡­ One that she had been theorizing for over a year¡­ I guess it''s now or never¡­ Cassia will now try to reach the third circle in battle, or perish trying. Chapter 87: Motive Found

Chapter 87: Motive Found

In a similar vein to the rankings of Phantasms, magi circles followed the same path of progression with nine main steps¡ªeach exponentially higher than the one before it. It was through these jumps that a magi¡¯s power truly blossomed. But not all steps are earned equally, and the third circle was one such step. While unlocking the first circle might require ten Channels of Willpower, the second will demand a hundred. The third¡­ A thousand¡­ Cassia however, already knew this. She had already prepared and unlocked these channels many months prior¡ªone by one, accumulating them patiently like a farmer harvesting his crops. However, the truly hard part comes when trying to control these channels. Although Soul Realms are usually described in a similar fashion to that of an extra limb, there was more that goes to controlling it than just the basics of contrasting and expanding. Morphing the shape of the zone itself took much practice, and the same could be said about controlling the channels to release the correct ratios of anima needed to cast a spellform correctly. With exponentially more channels to control, a magi¡¯s job will in turn also become exponentially harder. More and more focus will be needed, and even more attention to detail will be demanded. If even one Channel of Willpower releases more than needed or less than intended, the result could either turn out disastrous, or simply fail. Neither were things you wanted to see happen when you¡¯re fighting against a fearsome foe. It was no wonder then that most magi rarely reach higher than the third circle. The demand on the mind would become too strenuous to handle, even if your grimoire had the spellforms necessary to cast such powerful magecraft. No wonder that lazy bastard Myrin refuses to aim higher¡­ And why would he? Simply reaching the third circle would give him enough privileges to last a lifetime¡­ The fool was content at living a simple yet lavish life while painting away mindlessly at his numerous canvases. Of course, if the mistress insisted on him going further, then he would most likely oblige. Sighing, she briefly gave Noctharn a glance. The giant was waging a chaotic battle against the master of the glaive. Her flow in battle was truly beautiful¡ªa work of art, even. She danced elegantly in between the shadow tentacles, slashing them casually as one would slice a fruit or vegetable while occasionally orienting herself in exotic ways to attack the colossal being chasing after her. Even though the battle looked to be in favor of the hooded woman, Cassia could tell that the opposite was true. Her movements might have seemed perfect to the casual observer, but her eyes could see through such simple deception. For every elegant dodge and maneuver, a slice of her momentum was cut. Slowly but surely, Noctharn was gaining more and more control over the battlefield. Still, it wasn¡¯t enough to break the delicate balance between them¡ªat least not yet. That glaive¡­ Does it have the power to erase darkness?.. She had seen its power briefly a few times when slicing through the tentacles. Each time, the darkness would recede, as if it was being corroded from the inside out. Focus, Cassia¡­ She cut her own thoughts short as her eyes gazed back at the two hooded figures standing before her¡ªtheir minds were filled with bloodlust, and all of it was aimed directly at her. Even so, they did not move. Both were content with simply watching her from a distance. She could tell they were planning something or might have been worrying about what she was planning. Either way, the time they were giving her was much needed. She took a deep breath and expanded her Soul Realm beyond its usual range, which put a bit of strain on her soul. She brushed the pain away and focused every single Channel of Willpower in her possession. It was finally time to ascend to the next stage, or die trying. Cassia¡¯s plan was simple. She needed to regain the field superiority from the bastard magus and his cursed blood-sucking vines. And what better way to do that than to burn it all away? Weeds were meant to burn, after all. The rune she had obtained recently was fairly important to this plan of hers. Sulinar would act as the catalyst within the core axiom of this spellform of the third circle. The only third circle spell she had been able to theorize so far¡­ A magecraft spell she rightfully named Scorched Earth. Leaving every bit of hesitation behind, Cassia¡¯s mind raced to perform every calculation with cold precision. Her ring spellfocus illuminated in the amber light of her anima, as an image of the countless Scripted Runic axioms appeared before her eyes, shaping and morphing into exact geometries of her liking. The anima from her Channels of Willpower flowed and stirred, like great rivers, getting redirected by the puppet master herself to the various functions of the spellform. She made sure that not even an ounce of anima was overspent, or leaked from the countless shimmering runes. The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. She held her breath in anticipation, It¡¯s now or never¡­ In the distance, her two enemies realized something was wrong. The hooded knight holding two curved blades rushed for the attack, while the other ordered the vines to slither their way to the enemy. But it was simply too late¡­ With great speed, an immense heat took over the grand dungeon hall. It was as if the entire room had turned into an oven. With an explosive roar, dragonflame burst from their confines, surging like waves hungry to consume all in their path. Even Noctharn and the hooded woman he was fighting froze for a second to glance at what was happening. The ancient shadows he had layered across the floor disappeared as the room was instantly covered by an explosion of blinding light. Shielded from the flames, Cassia looked on with both shock and awe. She didn¡¯t think she would actually do it¡­ ¡­But she did. She had successfully become a third circle magus. At least, at a superficial level¡­ The grand hall had turned from an opulent blacksmith of legendary weapons, to the very insides of the furnace used to forge said weapons. All around her, soot and ash layered the floor¡ªthe remains of the vine infestation that had once propagated across the dungeon hall. Sadly, she doubted her enemies themselves had perished in the attack¡ªthey would have had ways to counter such a magecraft spell. And she was right. They stood before her in the same menacing poses, but there was a major difference to what she had seen earlier. A difference that made her blood run cold and her skin to pale. Their hoods had been burnt away by the flames, leaving them standing in their actual battle armor. But what left her standing frozen in place was who the intruders were¡­ She had recognized them. Knights of the Silver Moon, the companions of the Silver Valkyrie. How¡­ Is this possible?! This was the last group she would have ever suspected. In fact, it didn¡¯t even make sense. The Silver Valkyrie and her loyal group of knights had arrived in Celestine much earlier than the other expedition forces¡­ And they¡¯re aim according to Nicholas was clearly to join in on the fun of exploring the Avalon Ruins¡­ Did we miscalculate something?! Her thoughts were racing to find a solution to her questions, but she couldn¡¯t find one. The situation truly baffled her¡ªeven Noctharn looked a bit startled as well. Even if the Silver Valkyrie was aiming for something else in Celestine, their absence from the expedition forces would have been noticed immediately. And the Aetolus Royal Family themselves would have announced such a thing to them directly¡­ So why would her mistress not inform her about such a strange turn of events?.. As these questions played out in her mind, her eyes trailed once again at the intruders¡ªthis time with more accurate details to take note of. The knight holding the two curved swords was wearing full body armor¡ªhis face hidden behind a well decorated visor. The mage on the other hand wore a simple green tunic. It was a man of medium stature¡ªhis auburn hair was slightly burned from the flames, but he looked fairly healthy. In fact, both didn¡¯t seem to have sustained much injuries from the massive blast¡ªsomething she had expected. After all, even if the spell was of the third circle, expanding its radius to such a degree that it put a strain on her Soul Realm had to have lessened its effectiveness drastically. Still, she had achieved her goal and removed the sinister vines covering the field. Even if the magi standing before her tries to spread their control over the field again, it would most likely take a few minutes at least¡ªminutes they didn¡¯t have since she was ready to attack them again, this time with much more fury behind her flames. Even though she wanted to be happy, Cassia couldn¡¯t help but frown. Something was odd about this whole situation¡­ She just couldn¡¯t put her tail on it¡­ Whatever¡­ Kill first, ask questions later¡­ As she readied herself to pounce, something strange happened.The trio of intruders froze for a second, then with hurried expressions dashed toward the exit in a controlled retreat. To make sure Cassia didn¡¯t chase after them, the magi activated his Soul Weapon and spread more vines, this time to cover the corridor they were escaping from. What the¡­ She glanced at Noctharn with a puzzled expression. He too was about to catch the fleeing woman with the scary silver glaive when suddenly, her strength became explosive, shooting past the ancient shadowy tentacles toward the rest of her group. In just a matter of seconds, the conflict had ended¡­ Their enemies had escaped¡­ And they had taken the motive behind their attack with them¡­ Perplexed, she glanced at Noctharn for answers, but he stood silently for a few moments, contemplating something. Then he asked her a simple question¡ªone that made her eyes widen: ¡°The one that attacked with the arrows at the start of the battle. Where was he?¡± A shiver ran down her spine. Cassia had completely forgotten about that person¡¯s existence. Her mind was preoccupied with the two main attackers, then she had to focus on ascending her abilities as a magus on the fly¡­ She had overlooked the existence of a possible fourth intruder. Panicked, she let her wings turn into a blur and flew into the nearby corridor that led to the lounge. Her mind was eclipsed with dark thoughts, but thankfully, neither Joyce nor Candice had been hurt. Both were huddled together with weapons ready to exact violence on anyone that approaches. When she saw that they were both fine, she sighed in relief, but then her frown deepened. If neither Candice or Joyce were their targets, then who or what was? At that moment, an idea entered her mind. Her face flushed pale. ¡°Cassia?¡± Asked Joyce with concern, but the half-dragon girl simply flew away before answering. She blasted through the corridors with great speed, reaching the door to her room. With her heart feeling heavy, she twisted the knob and glanced inside. Her worst fears had been realized. Soren¡¯s body was gone. Chapter 88: Reunion

Chapter 88: Reunion

Cassia walked dejectedly back to the grand dungeon hall. Her shoulders carrying the weight of both sorrow and confusion. Noctharn was still there, awaiting her. The silent shadow giant decided to ask: ¡°They took the young fellow?¡± Cassia looked up in surprise. ¡°Yes¡­ How did you know?¡± ¡°Just a hunch.¡± She stayed silent for a bit, trying to figure out what to say next. ¡°I decided to check the rest of the rooms we use¡­ They didn¡¯t take anything else. Not that there would be much to take anyway.¡± Star Fate Guild was a bit more well off compared to other shadow guilds in the city, so they could afford to have a few Spatial Bracelets to carry most valuables with them. Of course, nothing could be more valuable than their guild members themselves¡­ And now, one of them was missing. She sighed. ¡°What should we do now? Do we chase after them? They are still Silver Moon Knights, Celestine will not take our side if we decide to fight them again.¡± Noctharn¡¯s voice echoed in her soul: ¡°That is not entirely true, young one.¡± She tilted her head. ¡°What do you mean?¡± ¡°Remember who the intruders were. Two of the ones we saw were most definitely apart from the Silver Valkyrie¡¯s cohort, but the other one¡ªthe vine manipulator¡­ Did he look like someone from the Silver Moon church?¡± His question rang in her mind as she remembered the fight from earlier. Indeed, the magi that manipulated the plants was highly suspicious. Holy Phantasms of the Silver Moon Church do not possess such abilities. And if he was a Vagrant instead, that would also be highly suspicious since the church views their existence as heretical. So then, why were they fighting together? And why would they kidnap Soren of all people? None of this made sense. She glanced over at Noctharn who was moving back to his smithing station¡ªnot much of it was left after Cassia unleashed her Scorched Earth magecraft spell. ¡°Are you saying that these knights were acting on their own? Did the desert from the Knights of the Silver Moon? Why would they do that?¡± ¡°Nay,¡± his voice echoed once more. ¡°I do not believe they are working alone. They are most definitely working for someone.¡± Just when she was about to ask again, faint footsteps echoed out from a distant corridor¡ªthe same one that the enemies escaped from. Cassia¡¯s muscles tensed as she prepared for another assault. This time, she began preparing her spellforms in advance too. Soon, the footsteps reached closer to the net of vines the enemy had left behind. She watched it away as if they were all cleanly sliced into tiny pieces or simply passed through a shredder. Out from the corridor¡¯s mouth stepped two gentlemen, one much taller than the other. The moment Cassia saw who it was, her guard was instantly dropped. ¡°Tyrel!¡± The short young man was wearing his usual dark tunics and light armor underneath. A sword was sheathed to his back that blurred slightly every time a vine fell close to him. His face, which was half covered by a veil, looked fairly annoyed. To the left of him, another man stood¡ªsomeone unfamiliar to Cassia. He was a fairly handsome elf wearing a similar garb to Tyrel that hid him in the shadows. His hair was green like seaweed and covered his eyes partially. In his hands were two sinister daggers radiating in a cold, lethal, aura. Stolen from its original source, this story is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings. ¡°Tyrel,¡± Noctharn¡¯s voice echoed. The young man glanced up at the shadow giant and lowered his head in a respectful bow. ¡°Master¡­ I have returned.¡± Noctharn stayed silent for a bit then asked: ¡°I am assuming you know who is behind this?¡± Tyrel nodded and turned to the elf standing next to him. ¡°I believe it is an individual or a group of individuals called the Whispering Dream. Not much is known about them, but they are most likely the ones behind the incidents that happened in the Feylith Forest and Yadria¡­ And now, they are most likely the culprits behind this attack as well.¡± The man standing next to him bowed toward Noctharn and Cassia. ¡°Greetings, I am known as Virion, Captain of the Court of Nightshade. After the incidents that happened in Yadria, I trailed some of the clues left behind there and on the orders of the holy Saintess of Dreams, I was tasked to infiltrate Celestine and find evidence of their existence here.¡± Cassia frowned. ¡°I don¡¯t get it. Don¡¯t get me wrong, I have heard about those incidents from my companions who visited your nation, but what does this have to do with Soren? The members who attacked us kidnapped him. And better yet, why are they involved with the Silver Moon Church?¡± It was Tyrel this time, that answered: ¡°It is because they have something that they want. A connection to the Subterranean Shunning Grounds.¡±
The world was cold and unfeeling. His mind was both conscious and unconscious. And his body was on the verge of breaking apart. Another day had passed since Soren made the foolish decision to challenge the Crimson Eye. A truly foolish decision indeed. His mind which had been begging for mercy was now giving up on such a salvation as well. His thoughts which were much more pronounced just a day ago were now nothing more than a puzzle for him to assemble through long forgotten letters and syllables. And yet, he persisted. He could tell that he was still moving to some unknown location. His muscles were slowly dragging him across what felt like broken glass¡ªthe sand beneath him must have been painted red from the ichor leaking every second. Even in this half-lucid state, the screams of eternally damned souls continued to linger, just a breath away from his ears, as if begging for his attention. Sh¡­shut¡­ up¡­. It was unknown to him how long he had traveled. Did he make it to the castle? Or did he simply fall into a ditch and has been trying to climb up this entire time? Maybe he was already dead. Maybe he was now just another soul inside the Crimson Iris, clinging to its walls, trying his best to escape an eternal torment. He didn¡¯t know. His eyes had long given up. Thankfully, his Astral Anima had also run out, leaving [Eyes of the Fairy] disabled as well. And yet, the screams were still lingering, as if the very memory of their existence was tainted. The wind brushed against his skin as his arm stretched once more to drag him further into the unknown. But there was something different this time, a voice unlike the wailing screams of despair. A voice that called out to him. ¡°Another fool enters the land of the damned. How exciting.¡± What¡­ It was hard to distinguish the words from the screams he was hearing. ¡°What brings you here, creature?¡± Soren didn¡¯t answer. His throat had long given up. ¡°Ah, what a pitiful existence.¡± That was the last thing he heard before his mind fell into sleep.
A cold feeling brushed against Soren, one that sent his muscles to spazz and shiver. His eyes fluttered to life once again. Where¡­ Am I? It felt as if his body had awoken from a long nightmare. A nightmare of him going through a long journey alone in the wild reaches of the Beyond, before stumbling upon an existence he had no right to know¡­ An existence that almost erased his mind. ¡°Ah, you are awake, creature.¡± The voice echoed from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Who?... Even now, his eyes had still not fully recovered. His vision was blurry and his body itself couldn¡¯t move. The voice echoed once more, ¡°It seems you haven¡¯t fully recovered yet¡­ Still, I must praise your tenaciousness, Foolish One. Remaining sane after witnessing the glory of a million sins is not a feat any insect can accomplish. You have my respect.¡± This time, Soren¡¯s throat croaked, trying its best to speak. ¡°Who¡­ are¡­ you¡­¡± It ended with him coughing up blood. ¡°Me?¡± He asked. ¡°What an interesting question. I assumed you¡¯d ask something else first.¡± Soren¡¯s mind raced to interpret the harsh words. ¡°It is a question that could answer most questions.¡± The cold being laughed hysterically. ¡°Ah, how foolish! But I do find such insolence amusing.¡± Soren awaited his body to return to its usual state while the disembodied voice entered his mind once more. ¡°Very well. You may call me Hurion, Eternal Knight of the Slumbering Wolf.¡± Chapter 89: Castle of Devastation

Chapter 89: Castle of Devastation

Great, at least he¡¯s not some obscene horror beyond human comprehension¡­ I¡¯ve gotten sick of seeing those. Still, the name the mysterious voice gave Soren sounded somewhat familiar. ¡°Hurion¡­¡± Had he heard it somewhere before? Or was it his title that was making him feel this way¡­ Soren felt like he was on the cusp of knowing, but his memory was failing him. And that wasn¡¯t the only memory that was giving him issues either. His mind felt¡­ hollow. As if there were countless gaps or pieces missing. He could still partially recall scenes of the harrowing Dark Forest, the grotesque monstrosities he had to hibernate with, and their intense fights for desperate survival, only to succumb to the dark embrace of the tendrils and be instantly turned into piles of ash¡­ All of it was just a finger¡¯s length away from being fully recalled, and yet he couldn¡¯t. The intense dread and emotions were gone too, as if he was simply scouring through a random album book of pictures that didn¡¯t belong to him. Of course, the Crimson Eye was also there in all its glory¡­ Or debauchery, depending on the perspective. The silhouette of the castle also¡­ But he could tell there were many sections missing. For example, what happened after his mind was assaulted by the screams of the damned souls? And speaking of the screams, the voices that had crawled their way into his mind forcefully were also gone. He could recall them happening, but not the experience itself. Did he really find a way to crawl toward the castle? Was that where he was currently? How much time had passed? Time always tends to get twisted whenever the golden strings appear¡ªit happened the last time as well¡­ And of course, there was the question of whether he was even alive at all¡­ He couldn¡¯t tell¡­ At least not yet. His mind was too hazy and his vision was still fairly encumbered by the maddening pain his mind was drowning in. Luckily, he did have a solution to the memory problem. Simply put, Soren had made sure to allow [Record] to run indefinitely during his journey, as well as chronicle every experience he had into the book. After experiencing the horror and hopelessness of having your memories being consumed by that rogue spirit oh so long ago, Soren vowed to himself to never let it happen again. Thankfully, his Soul Weapon inherently had defenses against this¡­ It was akin to having an entire backup server in case the original crashes and burns. Still, he needed to be careful. What if the corrupted screams he had experienced after staring at the crimson eye also returned to him? That would be a problem¡­ He needed to obtain his memories slowly in chunks¡ªabsorbing everything at once might overload his brain, anyway. With a sigh, he gave the command to his Soul Weapon and felt the memories flowing into him. [Record] was working backwards, chronicling things into his mind instead of the book itself. The first set of memories he decided to recover were his experiences in Star Fate Guild, since the knowledge he obtained there through reading as well as his practice sessions with Cassia were important to understanding where he was currently. Other memories also returned to him, such as his journey across the Runic Constellations and Dark Forest. To his surprise, the screams of the damned didn¡¯t return. The raw emotions of dread and madness itself was there, but he couldn¡¯t recall the cries of a million souls begging for the mercy of death. It was all as if¡­ it never existed in the first place. How odd¡­ Not that he was complaining. It was in fact better that way¡­ And yet, the madness still persisted. A part of his soul and mind was still broken irreversibly¡­ Does therapy exist in this world? He had in fact considered going to therapy many times back on Earth for countless reasons, but always dismissed the idea. Why the hell would he trust a stranger with his issues if he couldn¡¯t even trust his own mother? But after everything he had gone through so far, it didn¡¯t sound like such a bad idea anymore¡­ He smiled to himself dejectedly as his eyes adjusted to the light. He could finally see again. Soren was lying face flat on what felt like a rough concrete floor. All around him, visages of colossal walls and devastated buildings could be seen. He instantly knew where he was. The Castle of Devastation. I made it inside the castle?! He was utterly shocked. Until now, he truly believed that he was either dreaming or already dead. But now that his memories of the harrowing events were back combined with what he was seeing¡­ The picture it painted was beyond miraculous. Somehow, defying all odds as his mind broke apart from the insanity of a million screaming wails forcing their way into his mind, Soren crawled his way across the Dark Forest, avoiding all other hostile spirits in the process and made his way to the distant silhouette of the castle. And all of this while his very body resisted the call to move. He had simply forced himself, and his very mind which was begging for death, to continue moving. ¡°You are truly a tenacious creature.¡± Said the mysterious voice from everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Soren was instantly startled from his reverie. He glanced away from the menagerie of corpses, weapons and death lining the streets of the castle, to the crimson sky above his head. Instantly, the horrors returned to his mind.The narrative has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident. The Eye¡­ The grim reminder of despair was now levitating high above him, covering the heavens with its crimson hue. He shuttered and looked away for a second, afraid that his mind would once again be assaulted by horrific screams of the damned¡­ And yet¡­ Nothing happened. Huh? ¡°Are you surprised you aren¡¯t dead, creature? You better thank me for that.¡± Soren slowly turned his somewhat numb body¡ªbehind him, stood something truly incredible. A trunk of a tree so massive, it was hard to even quantify its circumference. It rose to the sky, reaching the crimson abomination above them. The branches of the dead tree slithered their way across its surface, like sinister snakes trying to usurp the very heavens¡­ Across the hundreds of branches, a dark fog could be seen stretching out like a titanic veil of doom. Luckily, he didn¡¯t need to crane his head too far up, since it was far away enough to bask in its immense glory. The remnants of the castle surrounded the tree akin to lifeless husks of a bygone era. It made Soren wonder what could have happened here for such an immense wonder to be left in this state? Was a war waged here? Or did a god smite it down from the heavens? And better yet, why does it even exist in the Beyond? Structures like these are said to be somewhat common in this dimension, but they are nothing more than copies of the real thing¡­ If that was the case, where or when did this castle exist in Yarian? What era did it belong to? As he pondered over these questions, his eyes darted across the devastated land. It was strange¡ªjust earlier, it felt like Hurion¡¯s voice came from this direction, and yet¡­ He couldn¡¯t feel the presence of anyone else for miles¡­ ¡°Look above you, Foolish One.¡± The voice echoed and Soren obliged. His eyes widened the moment he noticed Him¡­ Up above, hanging from a distant branch of the dying elden tree, a silhouette could be seen. Like a grape vine, a skeletal body covered in broken armor was lynched from the branch, swaying from an invisible wind. The terrifying skull hid two abyssal eyes with dark embers burning inside¡ªboth of them staring directly at the insect crawling on the floor below. Soren could tell that they hid a sliver of desire, but also an immense amount of curiosity. Even so, he couldn¡¯t help but smile. He stood up and bowed: ¡°I must say, this was not what I imagined from the famed Hurion, The Sleeping Slayer¡­¡± Indeed, Soren had already recalled who this person was. How could he not know one of the most famed heroes during the War of Swords? A legendary knight that was said to have fought both daemons and fae alike¡­ Some stories even depict him as a demigod of war¡­ And that was exactly the kind of era the Third Age of Fantasia was. From what he had read, prior to Yasini¡¯s Demise which happened at the end of the Third Age, most of that time period was mired with both war and famine. Back then, only three orthodox gods existed¡ªthe Beast of Knowledge, the Flower Maiden, and another deity which in many canons, does not exist any longer¡­ A god usually known as the Slumbering One. The other three¡ªthe Gold-Giver, the Mother of Silver, and the Greenfather were all born after the events of Yasini¡¯s Demise and the start of the Fourth Age of Fantasia which was the current era they were in according to the Vyak calendar. But aside from the mysteries of that event, what truly matters in this case was the one god that could be considered dead according to most: The Slumbering One. God of dreams, war, desire, hope, life and material supremacy. He was also known as the Eternal Wolf of no Ends, or the Howler of Unending Dreams. And now, above him, hanging by a lone thread was the talking corpse of one of the most famed paladins blessed by that god¡­ The skeletal corpse swung freely as it spoke once again into his mind: ¡°Oho? What did you imagine me as then?¡± Soren shrugged. ¡°I don¡¯t know¡­ Anything but a talking corpse¡­ In fact, a part of me wants to believe this is all a prank and I am lucid dreaming.¡± A hoarse laugh echoed across the devastated castle ruins. ¡°Such shameless bravery! What are you but mad? Has the poison of the Beyond corrupted you? Then again, your theory does sound very interesting, indeed¡­ But truly, I am very impressed¡­ The sheer fact that your existence hasn¡¯t crumbled onto itself yet is truly fascinating¡­ What a profane creature you are.¡± Ignoring his last words, Soren shrugged. ¡°Even I don¡¯t know how I survived¡­ I am assuming you saved me from the corruption of that¡­ Disgusting thing over your head?¡± He pointed up at the crimson sky. ¡°Calling it a disgusting thing¡­ I accept such a description¡ªits truly fitting.¡± His voice was filled with indignation and hatred¡ªit almost made Soren shiver. He continued: ¡°As for the other matter¡­ I suppose you can attribute the credit to me. I simply sealed your spirit body from regaining its Astral Anima. The rest was up to fate.¡± Hearing this, Soren¡¯s eyes widened in shock. He finally realized why he wasn¡¯t experiencing any of the symptoms he had been suffering from for the past two months. [Eyes of the Fairy], which was by its nature always active in the Beyond, was currently disabled¡­ There wasn¡¯t a constant stream of information flooding his mind and Soul Weapon. Using [Record] earlier to acquire his memories again must have used up what was left of the Astral Anima in his spirit body¡­ With no way to replenish it, his abilities will stay deactivated. Things finally make sense¡­ He was wondering why the screams didn¡¯t enter his mind when he glanced up at the crimson eye bloating the heavens. With a respectful bow, Soren said, ¡°Thank you for the help¡­ I truly appreciate it.¡± ¡°Save the praise for someone else. I am nothing but a dead man talking. If not for this vile thing, I would have already shed myself away from this mortal life and followed my master into the darkness.¡± Soren slowly digested his words. He decided to ask: ¡°So what exactly is this place? Does it have to do with Yasini¡¯s Demise?¡± The being laughed. ¡°Yasini? What a familiar name¡­ As for your question¡­ It''s a bit of an old story by now...¡± Chapter 90: Story of Old

Chapter 90: Story of Old

Soren studied the dangling skeleton with curious eyes. The mere fact that He knew Yasini personally made his emotions flare up. He was currently conversing with a being that spoke directly to a god¡­ Or at least, gazed upon Her visage personally. ¡°So is that why I am here then? To learn about your story?¡± His voice hid layers of trepidation. If Hurion could shrug, His next words would be the closest to one: ¡°Why in the name of Yarian would I know? However, there is indeed an invisible driving force behind this¡­ Most likely fate. Have you messed with the three orbits, creature?¡± Knew it¡­ Hurion¡¯s words only confirmed his suspicions. Fate had driven him to this remote section of the Beyond¡­ It had jeopardized his goal and almost cost him his life¡ªeven driving him mad¡­ Frowning, he asked: ¡°What does fate want from me?! Why must it control me in this way?!¡± Hurion stayed silent for a few moments. ¡°Creature, that is not a question any being could answer. For not even the gods could escape fate.¡± His eyes widened in shock. Although Soren knew that an abstract idea like fate was not something any mortal could go up against, hearing that even the gods couldn¡¯t resist its encroachment made him feel¡­ hollow. A part of him was clinging to any semblance of hope that there might be a way to avoid being controlled. Seeing his reaction, Hurion couldn¡¯t help but laugh. ¡°Oh you truly are a Foolish One! How pitiful¡­ The rule of the elves¡­ And even the fall of us spirit wolves¡­ Ah¡­ How ironic indeed. Every age this world has seen always strives for the same end¡­ To escape fate, only to realize you had never left its grasp at all¡­¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but be irritated by His tone. ¡°Why do you keep calling me foolish? Is it really foolish to want your life to be solely in your own grasp? To be free?¡± The corpse swung freely in the wind¡ªmimicking His mood. ¡°It is indeed a foolish endeavor, creature. I for one know personally¡ªfor I too challenged fate. Nay, even the remnants of this hold are nothing more than a reminder of such failures.¡± Him too?.. It was starting to spook him. Did fate drag him here just to teach him a lesson? To show him what his fate would be¡ªas ironic as it was to say¡ªif he dared to try and challenge his invisible shackles? But the wording of Hurion¡¯s answer also struck him as odd. ¡°What do you mean that this place itself is a reminder?.. You mentioned something about an old story too...¡± Soren could have sworn that the skeleton grinned eerily as it answered: ¡°The Crimson Eye, creature. It is a prison of a million long forgotten sins¡­ Sins that could never be washed away¡ªthat could never be forgiven¡­ And the one who committed them did it in defiance of fate.¡± Hurion¡¯s voice trailed off for a bit before continuing. ¡°Why else do you think this world¡¯s Celestial Fate had frozen in place? The remnants of that deed lay here, Foolish One¡­ And yet, it is ironic indeed¡­ for even that dreadful event had been fated to happen all along¡­ Oh what a wonderful joke! Fate truly has its way with humor!¡± His laughter was an odd mixture of despair and madness¡ªSoren couldn¡¯t help but be infected by it. ¡°That does sound pretty funny. To think that it was fated for fate to be frozen¡­¡± It was so funny, it was dreadful. The fact that even the very action of trying to escape fate was ordained itself¡­ He tied this with the story the mistress had told him. Even she tried to escape her fate of following in the footsteps of her ancestors, and yet¡­ Sienna eventually returned to her sacred duty as a Witch of Star Fate¡­ Her attempts themselves were already ordained for her from the very beginning¡­ And yet, what he was hearing sounded even more terrifying. All around him lay the ruins of some unspeakable act that was committed more than a millennium ago. And that sin was so powerful and influential, a spirit was born from its existence¡ªthe Crimson Eye. Abstract Runes represent abstract ideas and they gain their influence from Astral Anima¡ªthe energy of the collective subconscious. The ideas, thoughts and emotions of everyone in this world all pool together to influence what exists in the Beyond. And this extends further to spirits as well¡ªwhich are the embodiment of such ideas. For example, the collective belief in a certain symbol, will give birth to a spirit that represents that symbol within the Beyond if given enough time¡­ In fact, most fragments of Abstract Runes become roaming spirits themselves. So for a spirit like the Crimson Eye to exist means that at some point in time, the horrific sin that was committed was so grave or despicable, that enough people¡¯s belief or trauma resulted in its birth¡­ And that trauma and belief must have been colossal¡­ cataclysmic even. Soren didn¡¯t know much about the rankings of spirits when compared to Phantasms, but he doubted even the Saints from Yadria could take it on¡­ ¡°Who the hell is it? Who committed this sin you speak of?¡± Soren stared daggers at the hanging corpse. Hurion stayed silent for a bit before answering. ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡± ¡°What?¡± He couldn¡¯t help but tilt his head. ¡°How can you not know? You were there during Yasini¡¯s Demise, weren¡¯t you?!¡± Soren doubted Hurion knew that the events that took place at the end of the Third Age of Fantasia were called the same thing as ¡®Yasini¡¯s Demise,¡¯ but He should have been able to tell what he meant by now. The dangling skeletal corpse stayed silent for a while, swinging left to right from a mysterious blowing breeze. Soren decided to wait patiently for his answer. ¡°My memories of that event have been erased by that vile thing outside the castle.¡± Soren digested his words instantly. The Spirit Void Cloud?! The memory of the tendrils of darkness returned to him¡ªa shiver ran down his spine. The Castle of Devastation was surrounded by the Dark Forest on one side, while the Fae Sword Field lay on the other, so it would definitely make sense if Hurion had some sort of altercation with it. Even the Crimson Eye seems to have a vendetta against the formless void creature made of the Nameless Mist¡­ Still, the idea of battling against that¡­ thing terrified him. He had witnessed hundreds of powerful spirits try and escape their grasp, only to have their existence erased¡­ Soren only managed to survive because his weakness had made him partially invisible to the tendrils. If his anima was a bit more pronounced, he doubted that his disguises would have lasted long at all. Mesmerism could become a powerful affinity, but he was still nothing more than an apprentice. The sheer fact that Hurion fought against that thing and managed to survive in his current state proved just how powerful He was¡­ This did also bring up a big question. Was Hurion the one who transcribed the messages into the Memory Trees? Was the Dark Forest his creation? The timeline wouldn''t really match but he decided to ask anyway. ¡°So you don¡¯t remember anything from the final battle? Are you the one who created the forest of Memory Trees outside the castle? And what exactly happened to Yasini and Yadr¡ª¡± ¡°Silence creature!¡± His voice roared across the ruined castle, vibrating on every part of its cobbled surface. Soren flinched and gave him an apologetic bow: ¡°That was indeed disrespectful of me. Apologies.¡± Those questions were far too personal. Soren had been lulled into a false sense of security, but Hurion was still a supreme existence that shouldn¡¯t be looked down upon. Just because He was being friendly, didn''t mean he¡¯s allowed to say anything. The tale has been illicitly lifted; should you spot it on Amazon, report the violation. ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong¡ªIt isn¡¯t that I want to hide this from you but more so because you are weak¡­ Your mind won¡¯t survive if it knew the truth¡ªat least not yet.¡± His voice bellowed once again¡ªthis time, calmer. ¡°As for the Slumbering One and the Holy Flower Maiden¡­ Both are gone.¡± The word sent shivers down his spine. The Flower Maiden is dead? What?! Then¡­ Who exactly is Myrin and the elves praying to? Before he could ask any more, Hurion changed the topic. ¡°Enough of this, creature. You should know better than most that staying here any longer will be a detriment to your soul. Leave while you still can.¡± What He was saying was right. Although Hurion was suppressing the Crimson Eye, Soren wasn¡¯t safe at all being this close to it. It may have not noticed his puny existence yet, but once it does¡­ He doubted Hurion would be able to fully stop it. He frowned. ¡°I know¡­ But I can¡¯t leave. The vow I made so that I could astral project hasn¡¯t been completed yet.¡± ¡°And what vow is that?¡± ¡°Achieving a connection to the Records of Enigma.¡± Hurion chuckled. ¡°A creature like you is an aspiring magi?¡± Soren¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°Yeah? So what. And why do you keep calling me creature¡ªI have a name you know!¡± ¡°Because you aren¡¯t human.¡± His retort came fairly quickly¡ªSoren was startled. A maddening smile took over his face. ¡°So you knew.¡± ¡°Of course I knew, creature. Who else but you can speak their thoughts aloud within the Beyond?¡± Huh? Soren faintly remembered the words Cassia told him before his spiritual departure. The second rule he must not break: ¡°Never try to cast magecraft or even utter anything in the Beyond. All words will be interpreted in material runes unseen to you, so even the most mundane of words can have adverse effects.¡± Have I not been talking to myself this entire time? I even had full conversations with my own Soul Weapon! His emotions flared¡­ He had been violating one of the few rules you must not violate without even noticing it¡­ The seed of madness that was growing within him made it impossible to keep himself in check all the time¡­ But before he could panic, he thought about it some more¡ªconfusion set in. If he was breaking the second rule Cassia told him this whole time, why did nothing happen? Why did none of his words create any ripples within the Beyond? ¡°The reason is a fairly simple one, creature.¡± Hurion said as if reading his thoughts. ¡°Your representation within the Beyond is fictional. You are not real. So the effect of your spoken word means nothing¡­ Although, that is not fully true either since your Soul Weapon still influences the Beyond regardless.¡± Soren frowned. ¡°So then how can you talk?¡± ¡°Who said I am talking, foolish one? Have you gone mad? How can a skeletal corpse talk?¡± Soren¡¯s mouth twitched. True¡­ He¡¯s been out of it since waking up just a few minutes ago¡­ But then Soren remembered his earlier conversation with Hurion¡­ Didn¡¯t this sly bastard say that he was a ¡®dead man talking¡¯ himself?! How dare he fool me! Unaware of his thoughts, Hurion continued, ¡°I am simply projecting my thoughts to you directly. You can feel free to praise me for that one. It¡¯s a trick I learned from a certain bastard¡­¡± Soren ignored his comments and glanced down at the ruined cobblestone floor¡ªfrowning. ¡°Still, that doesn¡¯t change the nature of my goal. If I don¡¯t form a connection to the Records of Enigma, then my Soul will continue to wander the unfounded plane for all eternity¡­¡± Soren was tired¡­ He knew how much further he had to go to even reach his goal. There was the Fae Sword Field, or possibly the Idea Vortex¡­ He shuddered to think about how he would navigate such a treacherous place¡­ Would he survive another month or two in the Beyond the way he currently was? He doubted it. Heck, even if he did survive, his mind would certainly not. And it seemed, Hurion agreed. ¡°The Records of Enigma¡­ Do you really need it?¡± Soren lifted his brow. ¡°What¡­ do you mean?¡± ¡°The Records of Enigma is necessary for runology, but that isn¡¯t an absolute rule. Especially for a creature like you.¡± ¡°I still don¡¯t follow¡­¡± As ironic as it was to say, Soren hated people who spoke in riddles. Myrin also had a similar habit. Hurion sighed. ¡°It seems you still haven¡¯t realized it¡­ The potential of your Soul Weapon.¡± Before Soren could ask, He continued: ¡°The Records of Enigma is a Mystery of the Transcendent Grade. Simply put, it''s powered by an Abstract Rune core fragment¡­ One that is fairly similar to your own. In theory, you don¡¯t need the Records of Enigma to do runological studies. Your Soul Weapon can act as a conduit on its own!¡± What?! Soren swiftly glanced down at his enigmatic grimoire. The ancient book stayed still as its owner admired it with clearer eyes. Now that I think about it, he¡¯s right¡­ Even the names match¡ªThe Records and The Records of Enigma¡­ He wondered if maybe the tablet was powered by a fragment of his rune¡­ Hurion mentioned it was similar, but that didn¡¯t really prove anything¡ªthere could be a number of other runes that hold some dominion over information gathering. Still, If he was able to acquire it, would it strengthen his Soul Weapon? As his mind raced with these delusions, something fell from the skies and landed squarely on his forehead. He flinched in pain. ¡°What the hell?!¡± ¡°Take it,¡± Hurion said. ¡°No need to say thank you.¡± Frowning, he glanced down at the object in his hand. It was a dark stone with countless shimmering runes etched into its surface. The runes were shifting endlessly, flowing from one glyph to the next. He had no time to even process the script as it continued to change¡­ ¡°What¡­ is this?¡± ¡°A fragment,¡± Hurion said nonchalantly. ¡°A fragment of the Records of Enigma. It¡¯s quite a rare thing, you know? I won it in a bet against a friend of mine.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. ¡°I¡­ Why are you giving this to me?¡± If there was one core belief Soren stood by, it was this one¡ªthere was no such thing as a free lunch in this world¡­ Or any world for the sake of brevity. Did Hurion want something from him? As if reading his thoughts, He answered, ¡°It¡¯s useless to a corpse like me. With this, your vow is complete, isn¡¯t it? Absorb that fragment into your Soul Weapon before you dissipate from this place.¡± But how¡­ Soren was certain that Hurion was implying that he should try using [Record] on an inanimate object. Which was certainly a thing that could be theorized¡­ He had thought about it once before as well¡ªif his book can [Record] information, could it also [Record] physical things as well? Yes, it can chronicle the information about the objects but he never figured out a way to actually store the object itself inside the book¡­ He eventually dismissed it as an impossibility. It was too outlandish of an idea to begin with. But now that Hurion was bringing it up again¡­ Suddenly, he got an idea. Flipping the book over, Soren stared at the front cover. The leather-back tome was certainly an enigma. It felt ancient in his hands¡ªthe leather itself was torn in many places and the earthly aroma it gave off reminded him of his grandparent¡¯s attic. And yet, it felt very powerful. In fact, that sense of power only grew as he added more to its pages¡­ That was certainly the case now more than ever¡ª[Eyes of the Fairy] had been at work constantly for the entirety of his journey, after all. But now, his attention was drawn to something else. At the center of the book cover was a small, circular indentation that appeared to be a socket of some kind. The gilded lines woven into the leather all intertwined and spread out from it. Ever since he had obtained his Soul Weapon, Soren had never figured out its purpose. Touching it, placing objects on it and even trying to focus his thoughts in order to issue a command didn¡¯t work. At some point, he started to ignore its presence¡­ But now, things might be different. At least, a part of him for some reason thought so¡­ Soren placed the strange stone of shifting runes above the odd indentation. With his thoughts, he focused on commanding his soul weapon to absorb the enigmatic rock. In fact, he had tried a similar experiment before, but nothing happened. Soren was expecting a similar result this time, however, he hoped that Hurion¡¯s words might have hinted at a certain change¡­ After all, Soul Weapons gain the influence of anima by first influencing the Beyond¡­ And he has most certainly fulfilled that requirement. His abilities had been working non-stop for the past two months. Much to his shock, he was not disappointed. His experiment worked this time! His eyes filled with awe as he witnessed the mysterious stone of runes slowly disintegrate into small golden butterflies, all of them swimming directly into his Soul Weapon. This was beyond his wildest expectations. He glanced up excitedly at the hanging skeleton, but Hurion continued to gaze at him indifferently. ¡°Your idea worked!¡± The familiar voice echoed in his ear. ¡°Your time here ends now. Farewell, creature.¡± Soren glanced down and watched as his body turned translucent. He was returning back to the material world¡ªthe vow has been fulfilled. Glancing back up at Hurion, he hurried to say his goodbyes, but then, the skeleton said something strange: ¡°Two things. First, give my regards to that bastard Tazzith¡ªI am sure he misses me. Second, beware of the Whispering Dream. I had met that fool before you showed up. Fate is once again playing its role¡­ ¡°Farewell, Soren Andersen. Creature of the Other Side.¡± Chapter 91: Stranger Danger

Chapter 91: Stranger Danger

Soren had a dream. A long and painful dream. One filled with dreary travels across an inhospitable abyss of runic stars, a sea of darkness and strange trees, and a sinister and menacing eye that gazed into his very soul. However, as much as it felt like one, what he experienced was no dream¡ªit was a nightmare. A nightmare that existed metaphysically. At this very moment, Soren¡¯s spirit body was plummeting through the unknown¡ªthe space that separates the material from the immaterial. The border between two dimensions. In the distance, he could see the remnants of where he was¡ªa silhouette of a castle mired in ruin, a tree holding the crimson heavens in place, and a dangling skeleton soldier filled with somber memories. To his left, lightning was flashing rapidly, with strange runes shifting in a maddening cyclone of insanity¡ªthe Idea Vortex was present with all its unholiness for display. To the right, an array of ethereal swords were unsheathed and levitating freely, like a remnant of a once forgotten army. All of these scenes were rapidly shrinking before his very eyes, turning into faint dots that slowly disappeared. Soren didn''t know how far he had fallen, and how fast. All he really knew was that his spirit body was most likely returning to the material world. In fact, this was not the first time he had experienced something like this. His arrival to the Beyond was also marked by something similar. Although, the experience ran in reverse¡ªhis body had floated up to the Beyond instead. However, he didn¡¯t really mind this at all. His head at the moment was full of pent-up thoughts¡ªhaving some time to think alone was a blessing. And there was no thought more important than the one about Hurion¡¯s last words to him. Tazzith¡­ The Whispering Dream¡­ Hurion didn¡¯t just mention one troublemaker, but two of them at the same time. Soren had no clue which was the bigger threat. Tazzith the knowledge demon was one thing, but then there was the Whispering Dream which he still had no clue about. Were his words a hint or something?... From what he understood, it seemed that Hurion shared some sort of connection to Tazzith. Whether that relationship could be considered friendly or not was yet to be understood. But from the way He said it, it could be implied that at the very least, He wanted Soren to get into contact with Tazzith on His behalf¡­ Is that why he helped me?... It wasn¡¯t like it was impossible for Soren to do so either¡­ His Soul Weapon had the means to facilitate such a conversation stored inside it. The message he had received from the demon was still patiently awaiting a response¡­ Soren sighed to himself. Let¡¯s just take things one step at a time¡­ Even though Hurion¡¯s words concerned him, his mind was overwhelmed with joy that he couldn''t help but smile to himself. He had finally escaped that damned hellscape. There wasn¡¯t a day that passed where Soren did not imagine himself back in his room in the forgotten section of the dungeon¡ªthat faint amount of hope helped him to continue moving forward¡­ It might have been the one thing that kept him from losing his mind. He was sick of roaming the Beyond. Even his taste buds had grown numb. For the past few weeks, the only thing he was able to taste was his own blood. On many occasions, Soren was forced to bite into his own lips just to stay sane or awake¡­ Falling asleep was especially dangerous in the Dark Forest, since his disguise would unravel itself the moment his consciousness drifted away. The memories of everything he had to do during that one month trek was flashing through his mind at rapid speeds. His body was shivering with fear¡­ But also ecstasy. All of it was finally over¡­ I really want to taste Joyce¡¯s cooking again¡­ Heck, I¡¯d make do with eating something Myrin made! As if responding to his thoughts, a blinding flash of light overwhelmed him, then the world turned dark. Seconds later, Soren felt his eyes fluttering to life once more. He had finally made it to the real world. With a smile, he looked over his surroundings to confirm things for himself. Cobblestone walls, check. The bright view of Celestine Citadel, check. A strange crew of handsome silver paladins, check. I am finally back in the real world¡ªwait who? His frown deepened as he glanced at the three strangers surrounding him. One was a female knight wearing all silver armor holding what looked to be a glaive¡ªits shine reminded him of the Silver-Eyed Moon. What surprised him the most, however, was her beauty. It was not at the level of the Yadrian saints, but definitely up there¡­ And yet still, something felt off to him about her¡ªas if something was missing¡­If you discover this tale on Amazon, be aware that it has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road. Please report it. To her left, a shorter man was standing with his arms crossed. His face was covered by the visor of his helmet, so Soren had no way to know who it was. Two swords were sheathed at his hips that radiated any icy cold aura. Further to the left of both of them, another man wearing silver chainmail was leaning against the wall. His face looked very young¡ªsomewhere around his twenties maybe? His curly black hair looked disheveled but it added to his charm. Just like the woman, he felt something off about him. On his back was a silver bow that gave a similar feeling to Tina¡¯s Avalonian Silver Arc, but he could tell it was more crude in comparison. All three of them were staring at him with unrelenting eyes, like security cameras or drones¡­ All of it only added to his discomfort. Soren smiled at them awkwardly. ¡°Uh, my mother told me not to trust in strangers. Who are you guys?¡± Not that I trusted her either!... The strange trio didn¡¯t answer. It was as if he was staring at three marble statues, and they were staring back at him. The only indicator that went against this notion was their breathing¡ªthey were most definitely alive. Where the hell am I¡­ It was finally registering to him that this was not the guild. Heck, not even the balcony to his left that was drowned in morning light resembled any of the ones at the top floors of the library¡­ This was a completely new building. Did Cassia move my body somewhere?.. Something told him that was not the case. Then, out of nowhere, all three marble statues changed. Their eyes, which were once hollow and felt empty, became alive again. Glancing in his direction, they all spoke in unison like broken marionettes: ¡°The Whispering Dream greets you.¡± A shiver ran down Soren¡¯s spine. Before he could react, the sound of a door being opened came from behind. He sat frozen in place, not daring to turn around. ¡°Greetings, traveler from another world.¡± The voice sounded very polite¡­ Too polite, even. His mind was racing to form a solution¡ªhis instincts were screaming to do something. In the end, all he could do was reply: ¡°Do you have a habit of making your puppets mention your name everywhere they go?¡± A chuckle escaped from behind him. ¡°Hardly¡­ It is more so they, who greet me on their own accord. The worlds their minds lay in¡­ They are most thankful to me for the opportunity.¡± Soren digested his words. ¡°I take it you kidnapped me from Star Fate Guild?¡± No answer came. The Whispering Dream walked over to the balcony and glanced down from above. Soren finally had a clear view of the mysterious person. A dark hood covered his body, and in his hand was an elongated wooden staff with three black bells attached to its top. The same visage he had seen back in Yadria¡ªthe Nameless Culprit. A sliver of a smile crept up Soren¡¯s face. ¡°I see¡­ I did have my suspicions, but I guess I was right. You are one of the nine saints of Yadria. Right, Luvin?¡± Once again, the enigmatic man didn¡¯t speak. Soren didn¡¯t mind¡ªhe just wanted to stall for time. He glanced over his surroundings again. Aside from the balcony and the door to the room, there were no other exits. And with the three strange knights watching over everything he does, he doubted he could use them to escape. His Soul Weapon was also missing. That¡¯s when he noticed that the Whispering Dream was holding on to it in his other hand. Without turning around, the shrouded figure spoke again. ¡°What do you think of this world, Soren?¡± The question startled him. He lifted his brow. ¡°The mistress asked me something similar.¡± He chuckled. ¡°It would be strange not to ask. Rarely does a person get to converse with someone from another world.¡± Soren grit his teeth. ¡°I think it''s a pretty great world. If I discount people like you existing.¡± Not responding to his incitement, he simply shrugged. ¡°My existence is demanded by this world¡ªnot the other way around. But it does seem interesting, doesn¡¯t it? Thousands of lives coming and going, all oblivious to the very gods they worship. All of them blissfully unaware that their world is crumbling around them. Truly fascinating.¡± From the balcony, Soren could see many people moving to prepare for something. Priests, nuns, believers and soldiers all worked hand in hand. He had seen their garbs somewhere before¡ªthe Church of Nature. He frowned. Are they preparing for the Greenfather Ritual? That told him that three weeks had passed since he first began his journey across the Beyond. Soren wondered when it was that he was kidnapped. Was it a few days ago? Or much longer? And was Star Fate Guild actively searching for him? If that was truly the case, maybe he didn¡¯t need to escape himself. He could try to signal to his location somehow¡­ Seeing that the enigmatic saint was silent, Soren raced to respond to him, but then he spoke again: ¡°You¡¯ve seen it, haven¡¯t you? The Castle of Devastation.¡± The words invoked images of what he had experienced. Soren¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°You bastard¡­¡± ¡°Did Hurion treat you well? I spoke to him before you arrived. He was a fairly interesting fellow. I offered him a deal most wouldn¡¯t bat an eye to accept, and yet, he rejected me almost instantly. I wonder what he was thinking at that moment¡­¡± Soren smiled. ¡°I guess he liked me more than he liked you.¡± The Whispering Dream chuckled. ¡°Indeed¡­ But then again, his cooperation would have certainly helped me a lot, however, it was never necessary¡­ Your cooperation is certainly far more important, Mr. Traveler.¡± Soren stayed silent for a few breaths. ¡°That sounds interesting. And what exactly are you trying to achieve, pray tell?¡± Without an ounce of hesitation, he answered: ¡°Accelerating the end of this world.¡± Chapter 92: Ultimatum

Chapter 92: Ultimatum

The words were spoken in such a soft tone, that he was almost lulled by them¡­ How can he say something this ominous and still sound innocent?.. It terrified him. This person wasn¡¯t just a rogue saint that had a vendetta against the Unblessed like he first assumed. No, the person before him was much more insane. ¡°What the hell are you planning?!¡± ¡°I thought I phrased it well, didn¡¯t I? This world is crumbling¡ªbut the process is far too slow. I hope to speed it up a bit.¡± He said it as if it was the most normal thing to do. ¡°And how exactly does that benefit you?¡± Soren asked. ¡°Better yet, why the hell would I help you?¡± The Whispering Dream paused. ¡°These are definitely questions I had seen coming. Luckily, I already have an answer to both! ¡°Firstly, the benefits to me¡­ None, really.¡± Huh? Soren had no time to process his words before he spoke again: ¡°As for why you should help me¡­ That¡¯s also fairly simple. Do you not hope to escape the clutches of fate? Destroying this world will certainly achieve that.¡± Soren¡¯s eyes widened. He silently sat there, thinking over the man¡¯s words. What the Whispering Dream was saying certainly hid some truth in it. His desire to escape fate had certainly risen¡ªespecially after all the horrors he had experienced in the Beyond¡­ No mortal his level should have been able to survive there, and yet, Soren did. But in the process, a part of his mind had forever been altered¡­ The madness followed him to the material world. Whether it was hatred or pure insanity, a part of his reason for living now was simply to spite fate. And if given the opportunity to escape its clutches, Soren wouldn¡¯t hesitate to take it. Atleast, that was what he had thought¡­ until he heard the Whispering Dream¡¯s offer. It was very appealing to him, but something was telling him not to accept¡­ What exactly was he missing? This world had already been fated to be destroyed anyway¡ªwhy should it matter whether that happens a week or a year from now? Was he feeling sentimental? Did the brief relationships he had forged in Star Fate Guild hold more weight than he had initially assumed? He doubted it. No, his instincts were warning him against something else¡­ Maybe this too was a part of seeing the unseen¡ªdid [Eyes of the Fairy] also have a passive effect? Shaking these thoughts away, he narrowed his eyes and asked, ¡°What¡­ do you need me to do?¡± ¡°Oh? You are accepting? This quickly?¡± The enigmatic figure tried to sound surprised, but he could tell that his whole persona was nothing but a lie. Not that Soren himself wasn¡¯t lying as well¡­ Soren shrugged. ¡°Who knows? It depends on what you need of me.¡± ¡°I see.¡± He chuckled. ¡°I don¡¯t need much from you, really. In fact, your role, Mr. Traveler, is simply to be a messenger for me.¡± ¡°A messenger?¡± He lifted his brow. The Whispering Dream nodded. ¡°Indeed. A message of spirits? Or a herald of spirits? A spirit medium? Whatever name fits. You would fit into that role fairly well.¡± Soren¡¯s lips curved up. ¡°A messenger of spirits¡­ Are you certain these spirits aren¡¯t daemons?¡± ¡°I¡­ Can¡¯t guarantee they aren¡¯t.¡± The slyness of it all didn¡¯t eclipse him. Soren chuckled. It was obvious to him what he was hinting at. He didn¡¯t know why The Whispering Dream was avoiding to say Tazzith¡¯s name directly, but now that he understood what was being demanded of him, he could finally plan accordingly. Tazzith, the Knowledge Demon was said to be a Sovereign that had been imprisoned in the deepest layer of the Subterranean Shunning Grounds. A mysterious place within the Beyond that was created to seal powerful daemons during the War of Swords¡­ Hurion seemed to also be connected to the enigmatic demon. And now, the Whispering Dream had kidnapped him because of that connection¡­This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author''s consent. Report any appearances on Amazon. This gave him a bit of leverage. If the Whispering Dream¡¯s plans are tied to Tazzith, Soren could theoretically stop them from happening. After all, it didn¡¯t seem likely that the saint knew another person with a method to contact the daemon. But should he even do that? That was the main question behind this conversation, and the Whispering Dream also knew that. He was probing Soren for a decision¡­ An ultimatum: Stand with me, or against me. Which will it be? Decide now. Of course, Soren hated playing along other people¡¯s rule¡¯s the most. What difference was there between the Whispering Dream¡¯s actions and Star Fate Guild¡¯s? Yes, he was a bit more forceful, but the intended outcome was the same. Both demanded something from Soren. How annoying¡­ It was as if his debacle with Myrin was repeating again, but this time, rather than an argument, it was blackmail. Seeing how indecisive Soren was being, the Whispering Dream sighed. ¡°Let me ask you this. Have you ever wondered why the War of Swords even happened in the first place?¡± Soren shook his head. ¡°No¡­¡± Although it was hinted that the Spirit Blossom Seed sparked the conflict, Soren felt like there were other factors that the books he read never mentioned. As if reading his thoughts, he answered: ¡°Let me tell you then. I assume you are familiar with the story of the Spirit Blossom Seed? That thing may have seemed like it was the cause of every misfortune layed down upon this world, but the true culprit behind everything is something far more sinister.¡± The words struck Soren as odd. Had it not been for Yasini¡¯s Demise that this world¡¯s Celestial Fate ended up frozen? The cold voice echoed out once again: ¡°The Avalon Ruins, Traveler. They hold the key to unlocking the real truth. The history of the First Age of Fantasia which has lain dormant all this time¡­ The gods knew something about that history and tried to defy fate. And the result¡­ Well, you know it now.¡± Soren frowned. Obviously, he was fairly familiar with the different ages. The First Age of Fantasia: Age of Mysteries. To this day, no one has ever known about its true history. The only remnants that exist come from the Avalon Ruins¡­ But even they are not very reliable, since Avalon¡¯s existence continued toward the Second Age of Fantasia, under the rule of the dragons. And there were also subsects of humans still living there too that persisted. Historians had trouble differentiating whether the relics they uncovered were from the first age or the second age¡­ Still, the discovery of the Spirit Blossom Seed was what started the conflict during the Third Age¡­ Spirit Wolves serving the Slumbering One, fought a bloody and devastating battle against the Elves who served the Flower Maiden. A war that involved the very gods themselves. So why would the Avalon Ruins be involved in this? Sensing his question, the Whispering Dream sighed. ¡°Haven¡¯t you ever wondered where the Spirit Blossom Seed even came from? The answer lies there, beyond the walls of this castle¡­ The dungeons of yore that are now nothing more than remnants of a bygone era hold the truth behind this world¡¯s mired existence. The long forgotten Avalon Empire and its people dabbled in things unimaginable to the magi and phantasms of today¡­ And it cost them everything.¡± Soren stayed silent for a bit, contemplating his words. ¡°Fate is such an interesting thing¡­ The Three Orbits dictate many things, all at different levels of magnitude. Celestial Fate, you see, is not a well understood topic amongst scholars. How can one quantify the fate of the universe itself? This world is nothing more than a pawn in a much larger game. ¡°I too, am nothing more than a pawn. And so are you. And so is everyone in this world, and every world beyond it¡­ Well, not that they matter anyway, since this world and all of its inhabitants will cease to exist, including you.¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°How can you be so sure of that? I am not a part of this world¡ªnot even the Beyond can represent my existence. So why should I perish with all of you.¡± The Whispering Dream shrugged. ¡°Ah, you said your goal was to witness and chronicle the beginning and end of this world, was it not?¡± Soren stayed silent, but he took it as an answer. ¡°You see, that goal is still achievable even if you die. After all, the rune that represents your Soul Weapon will continue to exist regardless of what happens to you. Once this world is destroyed, the rift will consume everything anyway. Your rune will roam the infinite darkness alone, carrying your legacy with it¡­ Ah, how envious. Sadly, I and many others will not be afforded the same privilege. ¡°You also seem to possess a strange blessing that grants you some protection from the void, but I can already sense its powers waning¡­ If you were hoping to survive because of it, you are mistaken.¡± Soren wanted to stay calm, but it was extremely hard to. He had glimpsed a few things from what the enigmatic saint had said¡­ Ever since his conversation with the mistress, he had wondered about something: What exactly does it mean for a world to end? What happens to it? And now, he finally had the answer: the Rift. Things finally started to make sense. The mistress had told him that entrances to the Rift have always been a documented thing that happens in this world. But in the last few centuries, their numbers have spiked. And the amount of Vynasians arriving from the other side has also dramatically increased¡­ Were the Vynasians hoping to take over this world once it ends? Chapter 93: Failed Attempt

Chapter 93: Failed Attempt

The Vynasians. A term he had heard numerous times, but only understood it when the skies shattered before him some time ago. A cataclysmic scene, one that held the visage of a vast armada of flying warships traversing through the Rift between worlds. But now, he had to reconsider his understanding of it once more. This wasn¡¯t just a far away threat that sparks up occasionally past the horizon of the Endless Sea. No, what he had seen was a warning. A showing of the future. Soren sat before a sun-drowned balcony where a hooded figure stood, watching the men and women below prepare for a ritual to their god. A scene that could inspire hope, warmth, happiness¡­ You fools¡­ Pangs of pity flooded his chest. None of these people knew what this insane asshole was planning. Not that he had time or the head space to care for others¡­ There were far more important things to solve. Namely, his escape. Not once during that brief conversation did he not consider his options. But as hopeless as it was to say, he could think of nothing to save himself. The three silver knights surrounding him might have been hypnotised in some way similar to that shop owner he and Tina fought across the rooftops of Yadria, but they were far more powerful. Especially the beautiful woman holding that terrifying glaive¡ªone casual swing from it could probably sever him in half. The other two were no less scary¡ªespecially the one with the two curved swords. No, it was still not time yet. He needed to buy more time. Trying to escape now would be suicide. Soren chuckled to himself as he stared at the silhouette of the Whispering Dream. ¡°I must say, you make a somewhat convincing argument. But, I still do not understand your motive. If the world is fated to end, why does it matter to you whether it happens more quickly or not?¡± ¡°Unfreezing this world¡¯s Celestial Fate,¡± he said nonchalantly, ¡°is not a very easy process. Nor does it need a single catalyst. This is especially so when dealing with an accord enacted by a divine being.¡± Soren swiftly interpreted his words. An accord¡­ He remembered the accord he had enacted with the help of Mistress Sienna. His promise was spoken out to the stars and given importance through a conditional vow¡ªthat a year from now, Soren¡¯s Epoch Fate would unfreeze once more, and a year¡¯s worth of corruption would return to him all at once. But from what he understood, accords aren¡¯t just related to one¡¯s Epoch Fate. They can also be used in formal agreements with divine witnesses instead of mortal ones¡ªSoren did something similar when he visited the Brilliant World Church and agreed to the conditions offered to him by Star Fate Guild. With this context, he was able to piece together a few things regarding what he said. Some time during Yasini¡¯s Demise, an accord was enacted between a god or multiple gods. One that froze this world¡¯s entire Celestial Fate, dooming it to crumble slowly as the three orbits continuously misalign with each other. At the same time, the corruption from the rift encroached upon this world, eating it slowly over the many centuries since that dreadful event. Of course, he still couldn¡¯t correlate how the Rift was connected to The Three Orbits. That would require more probing. As these thoughts raced in Soren¡¯s mind, the Whispering Dream continued: ¡°That is why, to fully unravel the state of this world¡¯s fate, the accord that took place 1367 years ago must be broken. And the conditions to do just that¡­ are before us now.¡± Soren could sense the maddening smile he was holding beneath the veil of his cloak. He glanced over to the balcony once more¡ªthis time, eyes widened. He had realized what exactly this mad saint was hinting at. The Greenfather Ritual. A celebration to honor The Greenfather, Nurtured of Nature, Guardian of Forests. Soren didn¡¯t know much about their celebration and their customs¡ªonly that the Church of Nature does this event every year and that on the third day, a certain offering would be made¡­ If you encounter this narrative on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. This year¡¯s offering was brought up by many as being very special¡ªSoren heard numerous conversations regarding it when scouring the library halls. Apparently, the church was able to acquire Spirit Saint Ash and Spirit Blossom Wood, materials only found deep within the Feylith Forest. Unlike the general public however, Soren was aware of how these materials were acquired. It was a part of the deal made between Yadria, the Church of Nature and the Royal Aetolus family¡ªa deal that his handsome elven friend had brokered himself. And in exchange, Yadria would be granted the opportunity to send in their people into the labyrinth to bring back the ancient relics of their ancestors. Soren wasn¡¯t fully aware of all the details regarding that deal, but still, he knew just how important the work Myrin had done was. And now, his efforts were being shown to the world¡ªthe materials they had acquired this time made this Greenfather Celebration far more exciting than the ones before it. But of course, in this cursed world, nothing nice lasts forever. ¡°Why¡­ are you targeting this event? Does the Greenfather have anything to do with that divine accord?¡± The maddened saint nodded. ¡°He is indeed related to that dreadful event. And that is why, I will be breaking the first of many promises from back¡ªstarting with Him. The ritual as you know, is an offering to the Nurtured of Nature. But what not many know is that the offering made is very important to Him. He requires it for His pitiful existence, like any other faker would.¡± The seething remarks made Soren shiver. There was so much anger hidden behind those words. ¡°Now Mr. Traveler, what do you think would happen if these holy materials were offered to someone else the moment before the ritual completed?¡± Soren frowned but stayed silent. ¡°Chaos! A lot of it. But more importantly, another would rise from that chaos.¡± Soren quickly interpreted his words. Tazzith¡­ The Whispering Dream was planning to offer these materials to the Knowledge Demon instead. The purpose of such an action alluded him for a bit, until he realized something. Since The Whispering Dream¡¯s goal was undoing each of the promises of the accord to break its grasp on the world¡¯s Celestial Fate, then it would be fair to assume that none of his actions would stray from that objective. If his first action¡ªinterrupting the Greenfather ritual was one such catalyst, then granting these materials to Tazzith was also fulfilling his goal in some way. Tazzith was chained at the bottom layer of the Subterranean Shunning Grounds after his defeat in the War of Swords¡­ Was his imprisonment also a part of the divine accord? If that was the case, then strengthening him with holy materials that might grant him a way out of cell was another way of breaking that eternal vow from a millenia ago¡­ The Whispering Dream was hoping to hit two birds with one stone. I seriously need to escape¡­ Fast. This was no longer a matter of just saving himself. It was something he needed to do to stop the Whispering Dream¡ªthis enigmatic saint would not be able to complete his plans if he managed to run away¡­ somehow. Luckily, he did have one thing up his sleeve. His inherent ability, Hermit¡¯s Eye, granted him the effect of seeing the world through any angle and perspective, as long as it was within the range of his Soul Realm. Long ago, Myrin had joked that one day, he¡¯ll understand the true value of having such an ability. And although he did find it useful for scouting, it was the other effect of its power that truly shocked him¡ªSoren was able to pair it with [Eyes of the Fairy] to see the unseen outside of his own bodily perspective. Of course, such an ability would have been very helpful in the Beyond, if not for the fact that Soul Realms were restricted only to the shape of the person¡¯s body. This was something that continued to anger him everytime he encountered a rogue spirit that he otherwise could have seen much farther ahead and avoided. But now, Soren suspected that there was more to this ability than sight. No, if it was able to activate [Eyes of the Fairy] remotely, then it should be able to do it now as well, even with his Soul Weapon held by the enemy directly. Quietly, Soren expanded his Soul Realm around the room. Of course, he knew there was a chance that the enigmatic saint would have a way to detect such a thing¡­ But it was a gamble he was willing to take. But also, he was hoping that his Mesmerism affinity¡¯s anima, which holds a lot of authority in the realm of illusions, would be able to help in deceiving him¡­ With [Eyes of the Fairy] viewing the enigmatic saint from outside the balcony, Soren tried to spark a conversation again: ¡°So do you just hope to disrupt the ritual? There won¡¯t be any foul play that will harm the civilians? I am kinda surp¡ª¡± ¡°This won¡¯t do.¡± The Whispering Dream¡¯s words sliced cleanly through his questions, as effortlessly as a knife through butter. ¡°I expected you to try something, but once again, you surprised me.¡± A shiver ran down his spine. Shit¡­ Attempt failed. His [Eyes of the Fairy] hadn¡¯t even fully activated. Everything ended so fast¡­ ¡°No matter. Let me take you elsewhere¡ªwhere the hope of escape will never reach.¡± Before Soren could even react, the hooded figure turned into an afterimage and reappeared next to him. His hand reached out from underneath the cloak and touched his forehead. ¡°Wha¡ª¡± Soren couldn¡¯t finish his sentence. The world had turned black. Chapter 94: Deception vs Deception

Chapter 94: Deception vs Deception

The world had turned dark once more. But that only lasted until he heard the echoes of his thoughts¡ªa sensation he had grown familiar with. ¡°What the¡ª¡± Soren cut himself off. This was the sentence he wanted to say before being whisked away somewhere by the enigmatic saint. ¡®Whisked¡¯ was an appropriate description too. What he was currently seeing shocked him greatly. An endless blue sky, sprinkled with faint clouds here and there. Storms raging in the distance, moving ominously across the endless ocean floor beneath his feet. Soren was back in a very familiar place. The Echo of Mind. ¡°Relax,¡± said the boisterous voice that seemed to cause more and more ripples around him. Soren nervously glanced down at the dark ocean¡­ Something was hiding there. His thoughts echoed out more and more as he raced to understand his situation. But when he did, he finally snapped back into his senses and began to suppress his thoughts as much as possible. ¡°I see¡­ That¡¯s very smart of you to do.¡± Soren frowned. If he hadn¡¯t reacted fast enough, many of his secrets would have been revealed¡­ The Whispering Dream had invaded his three layers. A grim sensation took over his body¡ªhe leaked one of his thoughts to the mad saint: ¡°So this is how you control your puppets?¡± No answer came, but it was pretty much a confirmation. Soren¡¯s frown only deepened. If the Whispering Dream could invade any person¡¯s three layers at any moment, what¡¯s stopping him from going down to his Heart¡¯s Shroud to read his memories? He could also try to take control of his True Self, which Soren didn¡¯t doubt held the key to his ability to control others¡­ Better yet, he could simply invade a person¡¯s Veil of Perception and create subtle changes unnoticeable to anyone¡­ The Whispering Dream could steer you to the left and make you think you are going to the right¡­ A shiver ran down his spine. This person was too dangerous. There was no way for him to escape¡­ His thoughts leaked again, causing even more ripples. The enigmatic saint chuckled. ¡°No worries, I have no intention of taking over your body. It would do me no good¡ªespecially not with that vile thing hiding itself down there¡­¡± ¡°The whispers of the rift¡­¡± Soren thought. ¡°So even he can¡¯t counter them¡­ No, he could be lying.¡± ¡°Believe whatever you want to believe!¡± The being said confidently. Soren continued to suppress his thoughts until the next one showed itself: ¡°You need me to contact Tazzith, correct? Will you promise to let me go afterwards?¡± Another chuckle rolled across the dark and calm ocean. ¡°Maybe? Depends on what Tazzith thinks! I might need you to be my messenger for longer if our cooperation takes a deeper approach¡­¡± ¡°That¡¯s a lie,¡± Soren thought accidentally and the enigmatic saint replied: ¡°Interesting. What makes you say so?¡± Not suppressing his thoughts again, he answered, ¡°Our affinities are shades of our true selves, and yours marks you as a bigger deceiver than I am.¡± ¡°Ah yes. Your affinity! When you tried to play that trick earlier, I noticed just how similar it was to mine¡­ Though, you are mistaken about one thing.¡± Soren¡¯s frown deepened. ¡°And that is?¡± He could almost feel the sinister grin from beneath the ocean waves: ¡°Simple, really. If your affinity is that of misdirecting the truth, mine simply ignores it. So no, you are still the bigger deceiver out of the two of us.¡± He raced to suppress his open thoughts but the echoing voice continued. ¡°Truth requires someone to believe it is the truth. But who would know the truth if they weren¡¯t even listening?¡± He chuckled. Soren grit his teeth. ¡°Bastard.¡± He had purposefully leaked that thought out so that it could be heard. And, he was perfectly reasonable for being angry as well. Soren had finally understood what that asshole¡¯s affinity was. Simply put, rather than deceiving others through direct deception, his was a much crueler game. Help support creative writers by finding and reading their stories on the original site. While Soren might use illusions to twist the truth to make his enemies believe in his lies, the Whispering Dream would snake his way into his enemy¡¯s mind directly and simply hypnotise them to ignore the truth. The manipulation was far less detectable and much more subtle¡ªeven for the person being hypnotised themselves. As of this moment, Soren was essentially facing his direct counter. Because if a person could be controlled to ignore the truth, then they could just as likely be able to ignore lies. And worse yet, as enemies, they might be comparable to fire and water, but as allies¡­ He had a creeping suspicion, but it was now somewhat obvious. Even if Soren completed the task required of him, The Whispering Dream would still try to enslave him. Why would he not? With their abilities paired together, who could even stop them? External and internal illusions, ones that influence reality directly, while the other subconsciously¡­ The Whispering Dream would be a fool not to covet a powerful tool like Soren¡­ All of these thoughts leaked out, causing the ocean to grow more unsteady. Waves rose and fell, and the skies turned grey, foreshadowing a coming storm. Opposing his thoughts, the enigmatic saint laughed loudly as the echoes propagated across the world. ¡°Your worries are fairly logical, I must say. I wonder what I would have done in your shoes?.. You see, in my youth, I studied philosophy. Those groomed to be the next saints of Yadria had to be the most brilliant scholars of their generation on top of being competent magi. I was one such genius in a pool of many. But do you know why none of them were capable of making it to the grand position I now take for granted?¡± Soren stayed silent, trying to suppress his escaping thoughts. ¡°It is because they had a goal, while I didn¡¯t. All of them had desires, hopes and dreams. Desire to reach for the heart of the Spirit Blossom Willow. Dreams to ascend above their current lives and reach for the status they had revered all their lives. Hopes of becoming what their parents demanded from them¡­ They all clung to such fallacies.¡± Soren smirked. ¡°Are you sure you¡¯re any different?¡± If desiring to destroy the world wasn¡¯t a goal, then he didn¡¯t know what would constitute one. ¡°Indeed, that may seem like it¡­¡± The disembodied voice sounded a bit wistful, but Soren didn¡¯t care to trust his own conclusions¡ªthere was a chance he was being misled. The Whispering Dream could be called a master of deception, after all. If it weren¡¯t for the fact that he was an enemy, Soren would have loved to have him as a teacher. ¡°Apologies mistress Sienna,¡± he chuckled to himself, and the Whispering Dream who heard his thoughts also did the same. ¡°You know, you really don¡¯t have to view me as an enemy. Our goals align.¡± ¡°Did you just admit to having a goal?¡± Soren couldn¡¯t help but grin. Nothing this bastard was saying had a sliver of truth to it¡ªeverything was twisted around. Rather than denying it, the Whispering Dream simply said: ¡°My point still stands.¡± Seeing this, Soren couldn¡¯t help but sigh. He was exhausted¡ªboth mentally and physically. And just when he thought he might finally obtain some well deserved rest, he showed up and ruined everything. After hearing about the struggles this world was facing from the mistress, all Soren could do was stay silent and state his goal clearly: to be a bystander. He had no intention of being a hero, but also no intention of being a villain. Witnessing how this world ends, if it will even end, was the only thing he could hope to do with his meager abilities. After all, his goal according to Mr. Unknown was to explore, to dream, and to discover¡­ He was nothing more than a Traveler and Scribe. But after what he experienced in the Beyond¡­ A portion of him wanted to be petty. It desired revenge against fate, but also¡­ an escape¡ªno matter the cost. Whether that was killing the innocent or spreading the plague, that part of his mind demanded a solution. The madness from the Astral Anima poisoning had definitely changed him¡ªhe could feel it in his bones that he was no longer the same person he was before that dreadful journey. As for memories of that Crimson Eye¡­ They were fueling that fear and rage even more. The Whispering Dream¡­ His whispers were enticing. The offer he granted felt so so right. It was as if the heavens had answered his calls for salvation, and given him the perfect solution: Kickstart the end of this world, and maybe fate will go down with it as well. Then, there will be no one left to control you. Soren sighed again. ¡°I¡¯ll accept, but only if you guarantee that I''ll live till the end of it all. I want to witness the end of this world¡ªthat was a promise I made to a certain someone and I don¡¯t wish to break it, as hypocritical of me that sounds.¡± ¡°Very well,¡± the disembodied voice replied. Soren looked around and realized the clouds receding and the waves calming again. It was as if the turmoil within him had ended after his decision became clear. The enigmatic saint chuckled. ¡°Here. Thought you might need this.¡± Just as Soren was about to interpret his thoughts, the ocean water in front of him rippled then shot up like a fountain stream. Emerging from within was a hooded figure holding a wooden stave¡ªthree black bells were attached to its apex. In his other hand, an ancient tome that radiated in an aura of mystique and power. He quickly handed the book to Soren, who glanced down at it and frowned. ¡°You went down into my Heart¡¯s Shroud, didn¡¯t you?¡± The figure shook his head. ¡°Nay, the book appeared before me on its own. I found it very interesting¡ªit was as if your True Self sensed my intentions and gave itself up. Not that I mind¡ªmade my job a lot easier.¡± Soren scanned the tome closely and grinned. ¡°Damn traitor.¡± Without hesitating further, he pulled the cover back and glanced at the first page which listed his status. Soren ignored it and continued flipping. Standing before him, the Whispering Dream patiently waited as Soren flipped through the book toward the Event Log section. Event Log New Message Received: [Title: Contract?] (Author: Tazzith) For the longest time, Soren had dreaded opening that message. It was simply too risky¡ªespecially when he was not even a fully recognized first circle magi yet. Of course, to a being like Tazzith, magi of the first circle were probably comparable to insects in His eyes. But now, another unreasonable threat was forcing him to confront his other perceived threat. His luck was truly rotten. Of course, that would be the case if he was even planning on following through with his promises. With his eyes glued on the book, Soren asked the hooded figure something strange: ¡°You know, you were definitely right to come to me. I am a very vindictive person at heart¡ªholding grudges is something I am very good at. Which is why, when fate decided to make me its target since my arrival in this world, I vowed to myself to escape its clutches or to destroy its control over me.¡± The Whispering Dream nodded. ¡°Indeed. That is why our goals alig¡ª¡± Soren cut him off, ¡°But fate isn¡¯t the only one I hold a grudge against. ¡°Mark my words, Luvin, or whoever you are cowering under that cloak. Your days are also numbered, and unlike fate, ending you is a much simpler process.¡± With a cold smile, Soren let his thoughts run wild¡ªa command was sent to his True Self: Enter the Realm of Realms. In an instant, his Soul Weapon changed. Covered in a veil of golden light, the shimmering pages turned from an invisible force as it levitated on its own. Then, a strange vortex appeared in the middle of the pages. In an instant, the world dimmed¡ªas if an endless void had escaped the grasp of The Record¡¯s mysterious pages. The Whispering Dream was stunned, he tried to react, but it was too late. Soren¡¯s body broke apart into tiny golden butterflies, each of them flew in unison, guided by a mysterious current to enter the abyss within his grimoire. After a million years of solitude, [The Faerie Court] will now welcome a new guest. Chapter 95: The Pieces Move

Chapter 95: The Pieces Move

¡°Interesting.¡± That was the only word he could say. Not even in his wildest dreams did he expect such an outcome. In front of him now stood his three newest puppets¡ªa knight wearing full-body armor with two curved blades in his hands, a tall and graceful valkyrie who held tightly to her trusty yet deadly glaive, and a cold, menacing archer whose eyes still held clarity even after the seeds of deception bloomed within him. All of them were once illustrious members of the Silver Valkyrie¡¯s cohort of holy knights, but now, they were nothing more than walking dolls tasked with guarding a certain prisoner. A prisoner of profound importance to his plans. At least, they should have been¡­ All that stood in between them now was the fragrant air of the festival activities leaking in from the balcony. The young man was gone. His body had vanished into thin air, all while being surrounded by a vastly stronger enemy. ¡°He actually managed to fool me. When was the last time such a thing happened?...¡± His thoughts trailed back to his younger years. 50 years ago? What a short amount of time¡­ Smiling, he tilted his head toward the balcony, and the endless preparations the followers of the false god were working on. ¡°It seems I must change my strategy a little¡­¡±
Somewhere in the lower districts of Celestine, hiding in the darkness, a short young man clad in all black chainmail ran up the walls of an old alleyway while dodging arrows from both his back and front. HIs trusty blade was in his hand¡ªits cold steel turning into a blur every so often to deflect the incoming projectiles before returning to its usual stance. His face was half covered by a dark balaclava, and yet, the bloodlust in his eyes was enough to send the fear of death into any man¡¯s heart. As he swiftly approached the marksman whose face was now flushed with panic, Tyrel deflected the last of the arrows before slicing the bow into tiny pieces and sending the man flying back with a kick. The man¡¯s head recoiled as he slammed against the wall¡ªfor a second, he saw stars. ¡°Speak,¡± The voice sounded young but that didn¡¯t take away from the fear it was inflicting him. ¡°Y-yes!¡± He squirmed. Cold sweat covered his face. Tyrel pointed his blade at the man¡¯s throat. ¡°Where are you holding this young man?¡± In his other hand, a projected image was being displayed¡ªa somewhat handsome young guy with chestnut colored hair and amber eyes was smiling deviously. The archer stared and analyzed the image over and over, but nothing about it was familiar. ¡°I¡­ I don¡¯t know!¡± Tyrel¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°Then, who is the Whispering Dream?¡± The archer¡¯s face continued to look fearful, but the moment that question registered in his mind, his entire demeanor changed. Tyrel watched as the man¡¯s face twisted from a look of absolute confusion and fear, into that of madness¡ªhis eyes were filled with eerie jubilation, and his dry lips curved upwards into a terrifyingly wide smile. He spoke softly to Tyrel: ¡°The Whispering Dreams sends his regards!¡± In an instant, his head warped from inside, as if it was a balloon being filled with air. And just like one, it popped, splattering blood and brain matter all across the concrete floor. Throughout it all, the man¡¯s smile continued to linger, as if he never even realized what was happening to him¡ªor maybe¡­ he simply welcomed it. Tyrel stared at the headless corpse in awe. His armor was now covered in blood¡ªhe brushed away the pieces of brain matter clinging to his chainmail and turned around¡ªbehind him stood his familiar partner. A young girl wearing a mage dress paired with a purple cone hat. Her hands were covered in scales, like flaming gauntlets of war, and in front of her stood the enemy¡ªor, what was left of him at least. ¡°You too?¡± He asked. Cassia sighed with a nod. ¡°Yes, as you can see¡­¡± The man in front of her had his brain explode as well. No witness was left standing¡­ ¡°Isn¡¯t this the third lead that ended like this? I am starting to think that the bastard is messing with us!¡± She stomped her boot in anger. Tyrel nodded. ¡°I agree. Have your divinations given any results?¡± ¡°No, not yet.¡± She deactivated her dragon claws and watched as the scales disappeared one by one. Then, she channeled her thoughts to command her Soul Weapon to activate the Serpent¡¯s Eye instead. In front of her now stood a large crimson orb. She placed her palm on it and closed her eyes: ¡°I''ll give it another go, I guess. It¡¯s not like we have anything else left to try¡­¡± Tyrel was planning on waiting patiently for her to finish, but just as she started, her eyes opened again¡ªthis time, they were full of shock, but also excitement. ¡°I found him¡­¡± She said jubilantly. ¡°I found a trace of his anima!¡±
¡°Number 35¡­¡± The words echoed out through the hollow walls, mixing with the periodic drops of water leaking from the ceiling. From behind, he could hear the faint breathing of his precious partners as they readied themselves for another assault. The Avalon Ruins proved to be a challenging dungeon indeed. Myrin sighed as he rubbed the dried blood and dirt off his cheek. He turned around to face Nicholas who was examining a nearby mural on the wall¡ªhis trusty book and quill in hand. ¡°The corridors¡­ I feel like they shifted again.¡± The silver haired man nodded. ¡°How much Forgotten Paths Dust do we have left?¡± ¡°Enough for a few more days.¡± Myrin replied. ¡°We can keep going for a bit before turning back around.¡± Reading on this site? This novel is published elsewhere. Support the author by seeking out the original. Tina¡¯s Sacred Treasure melted back into her gauntlets as she stepped ahead of both of them. ¡°This is the thirty-fifth corridor right? It seems every five corridors, a certain change occurs.¡± Nicholas nodded. ¡°Indeed. I want both of you to come look at this.¡± He pointed at the mural he was studying¡ªboth Tina and Myrin walked in unison toward him. As their eyes adjusted to the faint light of the flickering lamp, they noticed what Nicholas had been absorbed with all this time. A giant stone mural carved into the cobblestone, stretching the entire corridor¡¯s length and seemingly even going as far as reaching the other corridors connected to the one they were currently exploring. A network of story-telling carvings that didn¡¯t exist just minutes prior. The dungeon had shifted without them even noticing. Both of them looked in awe at the unfolding scene. The mural depicted an array of towers, each reaching for the heavens. But what truly left them dumbfounded was the scene unfolding above the towers. Depictions of clouds and beings standing atop them were shown, wielding heavenly martial weapons. Their battle was so disastrous, the very stars fell, raining upon the mesmerising city of towers below. ¡°Is this¡­ Avalon?¡± Myrin couldn¡¯t comprehend what he was seeing. The art looked fairly crude, especially compared to his own skills¡­ But that didn¡¯t take away from the fear it was inflicting upon him. Something about the scene was extremely chilling¡ªas if he was witnessing something no mortal should be privy to¡­ He glanced at Tina and Nicholas, but neither of them said anything¡ªthey too were struggling to grasp what exactly they were looking at. Myrin frowned. ¡°Should we follow it?¡± He asked, but his instincts were already telling him an answer: Turn around now before it¡¯s too late. Nicholas shook his head. ¡°I know what you are thinking but no. We can¡¯t turn around now. If we leave and the dungeon shifts again, I doubt we¡¯ll be able to discover this area again for a while¡­ And the Dungeon Shroud¡¯s influence hasn¡¯t grown yet, so we still have time to explore before it begins to affect our minds.¡± Tina frowned. ¡°I agree with Nicholas. Turning around now will waste all our efforts for nothing.¡± Myrin sighed. ¡°I guess you¡¯re both right¡­¡± He commanded his Soul Weapon to shift back into a flute and brought it close to his lips. A quiet and soothing melody escaped from its pipe, calming them all. ¡°This should give us a small boost for now.¡± They both nodded before continuing to follow the mural alongside the corridor¡¯s wall. Myrin said nothing and walked behind them. Their pace was slow, but they had to be in order to see and try to understand the ancient unfolding murals before them. The story being depicted felt disjointed. Some parts of it seemed to have been scratched off or destroyed, while other parts seemed to not even be related to the cataclysmic event they first saw. It was all fairly strange. But then again, the Age of Mysteries as it was called, was known for its strangeness. The information scholars have regarding it was all completely contradictory. One scholar might note a certain civilization¡¯s rise at one period, while another might argue that it was actually the fall of that civilization. None of the archeologists could even properly date the relics from that era as many of the tribes that existed long after the fall of the Avalon Empire continued to linger even past the Third Age of Fantasia. In fact, it was because of this historical dispute that the current politics between Staterra and Aellora was so hostile. Both nations claimed ownership of the Avalon Ruins, arguing that it belonged to their ancestral heritage. Of course, this was nothing more than an excuse¡ªthe real reason for their disputes was because of the powers hidden within these decrepit tunnels. A single Sacred Treasure or magitech device found here with a unique use case could theoretically destroy the balance of power between them¡ªsomething neither kingdom was willing to allow. As they continued walking down the corridor, Myrin grew bored. The murals became harder and harder to decipher¡ªtheir meanings now lost to erosion. This was fairly strange on its own. Dungeons have the ability to repair themselves if need be, so for there to be large sections of the walls left in such a state was nothing less than odd. Was it purposefully being neglected by the dungeon, or was there a more nefarious explanation? Whatever, he thought. This was something Nicholas would have to figure out, not him. He was the archeologist of their group¡ªMyrin¡¯s role was to keep the party safe from unexpected threats. His Soul Realm was expanded all around them, listening to the faintest of sounds. Still, their situation was not something he was expecting at all. Since the start of the expedition in this new section of the Avalon Ruins, nothing had gone right. The latest thing to throw their plans off was getting lost. After a brief encounter with a fairly powerful Spirit Beast, they ended up getting separated from the main expeditionary force. This wasn¡¯t a major problem on its own¡ªthe Forgotten Paths Dust was enough to lead them back to the encampment if need be, but it was still alarming. But before even that, everything went out the window the moment they met up with the Aetolus family officials. Because of Mistress Sienna¡¯s status as a venerated teacher of Astrology from Luvinica, they didn¡¯t allow her or anyone apart of her group to wander the dungeon on their own. But in actuality, Myrin suspected that it had more to do with wanting her prophetic abilities nearby than it was to keep her from leaking secrets to the famed academy¡­ The second thing they didn¡¯t expect were the members of the expedition. The Silver Valkyrie was there, but a large swath of her loyal knights were missing. The mistress suspected that they might have been tasked with something else in Celestine, which would definitely make sense when paired with the fact that they arrived at the citadel earlier than most. However, this was still extremely strange. What could be so important in Celestine for them to ignore their mission here in the ruins? Were they just that confident or was there something he was missing¡­ This only exacerbated the tensions between the Aetolus family officials and the Silver Valkyrie, who represented Staterra. But by far the strangest occurrence had to be the group from Yadria. The Saintess of Dreams had sent not one, but two saints. Silmar and Luvin were both participating in the expedition, alongside three entire squads of magi. It was clear that the Saintess was expecting major results. As his mind drowned in these thoughts, he noticed Nicholas telling them to stop. Just when he was about to ask, he noticed what both Tina and him were staring at. His eyes widened in shock. A few meters ahead of them, the corridor expanded out into a large hall, enough to fit an entire party of giants. But what was even more shocking was the colossal structure at the end of the massive hall. A colossal stone gate, decorated in numerous carvings and murals stood proudly before them. All three humans looked like nothing more than insects before its ancient glory. At the center of the gate, two indentations were noticeable which Myrin suspected to be the key mechanism to unlocking what was left behind it. He glanced at Nicholas and smiled nervously. ¡°T-this is the dungeon¡¯s core¡­ isn¡¯t it?¡± His heart raced with excitement, but also fear. The core of a dungeon, especially one as significant as the Avalon Ruins, was said to be impossible to find. In fact, the mere existence of it was said to be a myth¡ªmany scholars simply believed that the dungeon continued on forever. For them to stumble upon it by accident was nothing short of a miracle. No wonder my gut feeling was telling me to leave¡­ Myrin stared at the colossal gate baring their way with trepidation. Nicholas nodded silently. He stood still for a few more seconds before answering: ¡°Let¡¯s mark this place and notify the mistress. We¡¯ll decide what to do then¡­¡± In fact, Nicholas was hoping they wouldn¡¯t do anything at all. A guardian spirit was always said to stand in the way of anyone who dares to try to enter the dungeon¡¯s core. These usually range in strength depending on the labyrinth and its history. As for the Avalon Ruins, a labyrinth whose history takes it back all the way to the Age of Mysteries¡­ Its guardian spirit has to be at least at the level of a Saint. No, even that might not be enough¡­ But there was something else even more worrying. Judging by the tensions between the nations, if any of the members of the expeditionary force managed to discover this¡­ War. Both Myrin and Nicholas reached the same conclusion. An all out war would break out between Staterra and Aellora. No, even Yadria might get involved¡­ A continental war not seen since Yasini¡¯s Demise¡­ Chapter 96: Falling Through the Void

Chapter 96: Falling Through the Void

The stars were streaking past him. Soren was falling endlessly through an eternal twilight. The moment he opened his eyes, a profound sense of awe filled his mind. Neither the endless amount of stars nor the dense fog surrounding his now falling body mattered. There was only one thought his mind was preoccupied by: ¡°I¡­ I escaped?! How?!¡± This was a bit of a silly question. He had planned everything out exactly, and everything unfolded just as he had assumed they would. Still, there was a portion of his mind that refused to believe what had happened. Soren, an apprentice magi with no more than a month¡¯s worth of knowledge of the arcane, managed to fool a Yadrian saint, one of the core nine members of high Yadrian rule. He had achieved the impossible. From the very beginning, Soren knew what the Whispering Dream was capable of. His interactions with his puppets back in Yadria painted a picture of a master manipulator, someone who could trick the minds of people and control them, but also, to have incredible abilities in the realm of deception. Somehow, he was able to fool the Court of Nightshade by creating a field that obfuscates the thoughts of others approaching it¡­ He was even able to create a replica of a person¡¯s three layers that was realistic enough to fool the Beyond itself. Faking a replica of a person¡¯s three layers was not something any Magi or Phantasm could do. You would essentially have to trick a portion of the Beyond to believe the truth you were telling it. Of course, after witnessing Cassia¡¯s Figments of the Serpent abilities, Soren was able to confirm that it was indeed possible. And then, when the Whispering Dream mentioned Tazzith, everything clicked into place. Ever since that incident during the Nightshade Raid, Soren wondered what the possible motive behind the attacker was. If he had faked his three layers to lure Soren into capturing the Nameless Culprit, what benefit could it have provided him? His plans at the time were on the brink of success¡ªthe Nameless Mist had grown far beyond the level of the Nightshade Court¡¯s control. If he had continued escaping, stopping the corruption from growing would have been impossible. So letting Soren capture him would contradict such a goal. But now, he interpreted it in another way. What if, rather than spreading the corruption and plunging Yadria into darkness, the Whispering Dream was instead planning to use the Nameless Mist to undo a certain promise so that the Accord from a thousand years ago grows even weaker? In fact, there was evidence to substantiate this claim. Just after the harrowing events of that night, an entire armada of Vynasian Voidstar Voyager ships crossed the rift and entered the world of Yarian. Soren himself witnessed such a scene unfolding, and from what he heard from the sailors and staff of the skyship, the rift gates that opened were much larger compared to the usual. Soren doubted that such a thing happened by coincidence. From his brief conversation with the enigmatic saint, it was pretty obvious that nothing he did was wasteful in the slightest. The unfortunate events that unfolded in Yadria were now obviously a ploy to accelerate the end of this world. How terrifying¡­ He thought. In fact, there was another element to this that was even scarier. If Soren¡¯s hypothesis was true, then that would mean that the events of the Nightshade Raid were purposefully orchestrated. Which meant that Soren¡ªthe person who acquired the intel regarding the hidden location to begin with, didn¡¯t acquire it by accident. It was leaked to him purposefully all along. And this also leads credence to something else¡­ Since the Whispering Dream was after him for his connection to Tazzith, one had to wonder if that too was facilitated purposefully¡­ Did the enigmatic saint know that capturing the Nameless Culprit would lead to Soren¡¯s imprisonment and him being sent to the Subterranean Shunning Grounds where he would gain an audience with the Demon of Knowledge, Tazzith? It seemed that from the very beginning, everyone had been dancing in the palm of his hand without even realizing it. All of this painted a clear picture to Soren; that the Whispering Dream¡¯s personality was that of a deceiver¡­ One that hides in the shadows and only strikes when the odds are in their favor. Indeed, all deceivers have one thing in common: their desire for control. No matter how much the Whispering Dream wants to deny not having any intrinsic goals, even the most basic of living things have desires. And deceivers are the biggest wish makers of them all. Soren of course would know this, since he himself was a deceiver. Control could be considered his lifeline¡ªeverything felt ten times more awful without. Without control over a situation, employing effective deception would be impossible. And that was exactly the weakness Soren wanted to exploit. If the Whispering Dream craved control, he was going to hand it to him on a silver platter. From the very beginning, he was hoping that his stunt at trying to discreetly expand his Soul Realm would be detected. He wouldn¡¯t have minded if it had actually worked¡ªthat would have given him more intel to work with regardless. But because he was caught so helplessly in the act, that only added more to the Whispering Dream¡¯s control over the situation. The more control he assumed he had, the worse his guard would drop. Of course, Soren didn¡¯t know that he would be dragged into his own three layers afterwards. That was outside his predictions. But in the end, it all served his plan regardless. In fact, it might have been more effective than he had assumed. With his thoughts echoing for all to hear, Soren was in the most vulnerable state of being he could have ever been in¡ªthe Whispering Dream had full control over the situation. Not even his thoughts could escape his grasp. In the Whispering Dream¡¯s mind, there was no way for Soren to defy him anymore. Every trick, every plan, every lie was brought out into the open for him to see¡­ This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it That was until Soren played his final hidden card. If he had to be honest, this plan had many layers of luck associated with it. First was the fact that the Whispering Dream had no awareness in regards to Soren acquiring a forgotten rune fragment. He was able to confirm this fairly early¡ªthe Whispering Dream mentioned that even if Soren died, his legacy would continue on through his Soul Weapon. But if the enigmatic saint had been aware of his connection to [The Faerie Court], then such a statement would make no sense. Even if this world was destroyed and consumed by the Rift, Soren would still be able to escape. What he was witnessing all around him was proof of this. The second thing that went in his favor was the corruption lurking within his Heart¡¯s Shroud. It was fairly ironic for him to say, but he was grateful for the existence of those faint and sinister whispers hiding deep within the fog of his three layers¡­ At one point, he almost died to their influence, but this time, they played heavily in his ability to escape. If they did not exist, the Whispering Dream would have waltzed his way into his Heart¡¯s Shroud and read all of his memories, learning all about the existence of the forgotten rune¡­ But by far the most surprising thing he had seen had to be his True Self navigating its way toward the enigmatic saint on its own. Although the Whispering Dream did say he had no reason to try and confront the whispers of the rift, if forced to, he didn¡¯t doubt that the enigmatic saint would have taken the risk anyway. After all, Soren wouldn¡¯t be able to communicate with Tazzith without his Soul Weapon. All of this played a significant role in his escape. If even one of these factors was missing or changed slightly, his fate¡ªas ironic as it was to say¡ªwould be entirely different from what it was now. Of course, there were still other things to consider. For one, the existence of the forgotten rune fragment as well as [The Faerie Court] has been revealed to the Whispering Dream. Not only did that mean that his trick wouldn¡¯t work again, but the enigmatic saint might even covet the ability for himself¡­ And then there was the fact that the Whispering Dream would probably continue his plans regardless¡­ Even if he couldn¡¯t kill two birds with one stone, he could still settle for one. The Greenfather Ritual was still in danger of being disrupted. So many things to consider¡­ Soren couldn¡¯t help but frown. Even though he had all the time in the world to consider his plans going forward, his entire body and mind refused to act. Soren was tired. Extremely tired. His fatigue from the past two months of journeying across the Beyond still clung to him¡­ Not to mention, his narrow escape from the enigmatic saint had likely shaved years off his life¡­ Every miniscule action he took had required meticulous thought and planning. All of it was carefully crafted in order for him to enact his final plan of escape. His brain was fried. I deserve some fucking rest¡­ As he plummeted endlessly through the void, his eyes began to flutter. Just before they slowly closed, Soren¡¯s lips curved into a smile. A smile of joy mixed with a hinge of madness. A smile of victory.
An indescribable amount of time had passed when Soren finally awoke from his deep slumber. It felt as if his consciousness had drifted away for years. But with it, also came the freshness of mind to face another day¡­ Or night. The world was eternally at night after all. The scenery around him didn¡¯t change. The stars out in the distance were shining all the same, but there were some faint differences¡­ The constellations were not exactly how he remembered them. And then there was the fog surrounding him as well¡ªit too had grown much thicker than before. Soren smiled. ¡°Is this really the Rift? I thought it would be more dangerous.¡± Of course, the moment he said those words, he instantly regretted them. Somewhere in the distance, far beyond the very stars plastered across the twilight sky, colossal shadows beyond his comprehension were moving¡­ They were hard to describe with just his eyes¡ªthey looked both formless and distinct? Both purposeful yet devoid of meaning. As if laws of the world didn¡¯t apply to them. Colossal might have been the downplay of the century too. Those shadows looked bigger than space itself. Soren felt as if entire galaxies could fit within them¡­ What the¡­ Just as his eyes were about to focus even more on the strange shadows, faint whispers began to invade his mind. Soren immediately recognized them¡ªwithout even an ounce of hesitation, he closed his eyes and turned away. The whispers stopped¡­ How¡­ How terrifying¡­ If he had continued to gaze at the shadows for longer than a second, his mind would have collapsed. In fact, he had still managed to get corrupted anyway¡ªSoren could feel the whispers scratching against his skull, begging to be listened to¡­ Still, they were slowly fading away. He guessed that his Traveler Blessing was behind it. I guess I still have to thank Unknown for this¡­ Regardless of his feelings, Soren doubted he would have survived without it just now. It did get him to wonder though: was fate the reason he had acquired the fragment of a fragment of a forgotten rune? From what he understood, the blessing Mr. Unknown had granted him was only meant to be used once¡ªto allow him to travel to Yarian safely. He had never expected Soren to obtain that rune fragment during his journey across the Rift. And yet, that very same blessing was now allowing him to travel to [The Faerie Court] with a slight assurance. He doubted it would last forever¡ªthe Whispering Dream himself said that its powers were waning. If he wanted to keep using this ability of his, he would need another more effective way of defending himself when journeying across the Rift. As these thoughts played out in his mind, Soren continued to keep his eyes closed, but out of curiosity, he wanted to see where exactly he was plummeting. His body was shooting rapidly through the abyss without stopping, but the faint changes he had seen around him were enough of a hint to know that his destination was going to arrive sooner or later¡­ And eventually, it did. After what felt like an eternity, Soren saw something out in the distance. Unlike the faint and colorful stars around him, the presence of this¡­ thing was different. It felt much more alive. As his body continued to fall closer and closer toward it, more details became apparent. Large structures were scattered all around, like massive islands floating endlessly in space. At the center of them was a larger structure that seemed to link everything all together. ¡°Is that¡­ The Faerie Court?¡± Responding to his thoughts, a cold yet shrewd voice entered his mind: ¡°Indeed it is. Welcome to the Realm of Realms, Scribe of Worlds¡­¡± Soren instantly froze. This was beyond his wildest expectations. ¡°Who¡­ Who the hell are you?¡± The voice replied, ¡°Nothing more than a figment of your imagination.¡± Chapter 97: The Faerie Court

Chapter 97: The Faerie Court

¡°Yeah no. I definitely lost my mind.¡± Soren shook his head dejectedly with a smile. ¡°Is it too late for a therapist?¡± The voice answered, ¡°In cases like yours, yes¡ªit''s too late. The therapist will die of old age before he can even fix half of you.¡± ¡°I didn¡¯t know my imagination could be this crafty with words.¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°That¡¯s a lie and you know it. If silver tongues were an Olympic event, you¡¯d be taking home the platinum medal.¡± ¡°The Olympics doesn¡¯t have platinum medals though.¡± ¡°Thank you for proving my point.¡± Soren¡¯s lips twitched. What a cheeky bastard¡­ He frowned as he glanced down at the slowly approaching mysterious platforms. ¡°You called me Scribe of Worlds earlier. That¡¯s the name of the website that brought me into this whole mess¡­ What did you mean by that?¡± The voice stayed silent for a bit, as if to contemplate an answer: ¡°The meaning is fairly literal. You are a Scribe of Worlds. A traveler of planes and chronicler of stories. That is the very meaning of your journey.¡± The words Mr. Unknown had left him rang once more in his mind: Explore, Dream, Discover. At first, Soren assumed He meant it in the context of Yarian¡ªthat the question he had used in the Secrets of the Records ritual held an answer somewhere in these mysterious lands. But the acquisition of the fragment of a fragment of a forgotten rune certainly threw a wrench in that hypothesis. If the answer to that question was one that could be answered in Yarian, why did he acquire a method to travel back to Earth if need be? Was it just a coincidence? A matter of luck? No, that cannot be the case¡ªnot when his path had been laid out to him by fate. The mistress clearly stated that her prophetic abilities showed her just how significant Soren was to that world¡¯s Celestial Fate. So then why would a ritual meant for obtaining answers to certain questions lead him to another world whose future heavily depended on his existence?.. As if sensing his thoughts, the voice asked: ¡°That question¡­ Have you found the answer to it yet?¡± Soren¡¯s face didn¡¯t change. As he fell further into the void, he shook his head slowly. ¡°No¡­ Not yet.¡± ¡°I expected you to say that.¡± ¡°And why is that?..¡± He raised an eyebrow. ¡°Because if the question you asked was so easy to answer, then a paradox like me wouldn¡¯t exist.¡± What does he mean by that?.. Just as he was about to ask, Soren noticed something strange. His body, which was perfectly normal just a second ago was now glowing in an aetherial golden hue. Strange gilded strings floated all around him, as if he had been enveloped in a furious yet graceful aurora borealis. Soren lifted his hands and stared at them for a few seconds¡ªcompletely dumbfounded. He then shifted his gaze toward his Soul Weapon which was levitating next to his falling body. Its form seemed strangely alive¡ªSoren had not issued any commands, and yet, he failed to notice that it had been active this entire time with its pages flickering like hungry flames. Just before he could investigate it further, his trusty grimoire suddenly broke apart into pieces. Confused, he watched as its fragments scattered in the wind, dissipating into nothing. A hint of panic filled his mind, but the voice returned¡ªthis time to assure him: ¡°Calm down. Nothing happened to me.¡± He instantly relaxed, but that only made him more confused. Nothing happened to him? What? But there was no more time for questions. Soren¡¯s eyes widened as he noticed the distant platform his body was falling toward growing rapidly¡­ It was as if time had sped up¡ªor his body had turned into a shooting star. In an instant, millions of kilometers were covered, and before he knew it, he was no longer falling. His body had reached solid ground. Slamming into a bedrock surface at mach who knows what should have turned him into an artistic blood splatter, but nothing of that sort happened. Instead, he found himself simply laying on his stomach, as if everything he had seen just moments ago were nothing more than figments of an old dream¡­ This narrative has been purloined without the author''s approval. Report any appearances on Amazon. ¡°Where¡­ Am I?..¡± ¡°You already asked that question¡­¡± Soren recognized the voice. He shifted his body toward the source¡ªwhich was surprising since the last time the figment of his imagination spoke, he couldn¡¯t even tell whether it was all inside his head or not. What he was seeing greatly shocked him. A large bonfire, flickering everlastingly illuminated all in its presence. Like a pillar of glory, its light shone upon the earth¡ªgolden butterflies swarm and orbited around its presence, like moths attracted to the lux. For whatever reason, everytime Soren focused on one of the tiny butterflies, his mind would begin to hurt. It was all strangely attractive¡­ A portion of him wanted to embrace the flame¡­ To enter within its smoldering grasp. The allure¡­ Was vast¡­ ¡°Welcome again, Scribe of Worlds¡­¡± Soren glanced around the mystical bonfire¡ªawe was the only sensation filling his mind. The skies above were a gradient of pastel colors, shifting like an ever changing dream. It was as if the void he had been falling through was now being filtered through a mesh, blurring and blending it all together¡­ Strange objects filled the skies¡ªgears, buildings, furniture, toys, potions, magics, rainbows, stars, and everything in between. A scene straight out of a picture book. A twilight of imagination beyond the presence of mortal minds. He then glanced at his own body, and the ground beneath his feet. The ¡®island¡¯ was flat and made of cobblestone and grass, with the strange bonfire at the center. But what was stranger had to be the ever changing dimensionality of it all¡­ If Soren simply tilted his head by a few degrees, the scene would change¡­ The grass would grow taller, the cobblestone would look clearer, and strangest of all¡­ The mysterious bonfire would disappear¡ªin its place came a majestic stone canopy, with a round table at its center. All of it was made of marble and polished to an almost perfect degree. ¡°What¡­ Am I looking at¡­¡± Everything about this place seemed paradoxical in nature. The cold yet alive voice answered, ¡°This is the Realm of Realms¡­ A location beyond the grasp of any and all. A relic from the One Above All.¡± ¡°The One Above All?¡± The name felt strangely familiar, as if his soul yearned to understand it. ¡°Indeed. The creator of this universe as we know it.¡± The words shocked Soren greatly. Obviously, he had always had a hunch that something had created this universe¡ªif there can be a pantheon of gods in Yarian, what¡¯s there to say there isn¡¯t a god for the entire universe? Still, he couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. A forgotten rune fragment from such a being was now in his possession¡­ The idea seemed both exciting and horrifying at the same time. ¡°Are you regretting your decisions now?¡± The voice said mockingly. He instantly knew what it was hinting at¡ªThe Whispering Dream. Soren might have escaped from that bastard, but in the process, he had revealed what was now his biggest secret. There¡¯s no way that asshole is ever going to ignore my existence¡­ Not that Soren had any hope that the enigmatic saint would forget all about him. Heck, even he refused to forget¡ªhe wanted revenge against him one way or another. Not answering the voice¡¯s question, he stood up and flicked the dust off his clothes. With a somewhat amused look, he glanced at the bonfire and asked: ¡°So who are you?¡± He had a hunch but figured it would be best to hear it directly from the source. It answered, ¡°The Records¡­ Or more specifically, the paradox of your existence.¡± He didn¡¯t fully comprehend the second part, but it was now fairly easy to understand what exactly he had been communicating with this entire time. In fact, his arrival here wasn¡¯t when they had first communicated at all¡­ The Records. His Soul Weapon which was of the Abstract Class had somehow formed its own persona. He had known about this oddity back when he first met mistress Sienna, who revealed the truth about his own demented existence¡­ ¡°A paradox indeed¡­¡± Usually, only Soul Weapons of the Summon class are meant to house a persona. It was mainly a reflection of the kind of Abstract Rune a person had merged with. But Soren¡¯s case was special. Unlike a normal Phantasm, he had acquired his Soul Weapon in a fairly strange manner¡ªmost needed to undergo a ritual to create their Soul Chain and entrap the Abstract Rune fragment within the node¡­ He on the other hand didn¡¯t even possess a real Soul Chain¡ªthe one granted to him in Yarian was fictional in nature. But now that he was standing before this strange, towering ember, everything was starting to make sense. Although it was hard, Soren could see a strange ring inside the bonfire. He instantly knew what it was. His Soul Chain. It was here in the Faerie Court all along. He accidentally tilted his head again and the world shifted¡ªthe strange stone canopy replaced the eternally burning bonfire. Soren frowned. ¡°Let¡¯s forget about what exactly you are¡ªexplain to me what the hell is happening¡­ Why am I seeing two different versions of this place overlapping.¡± ¡°Your existence is too pitifully weak to fully grasp how space operates here. Hm, let me assist you.¡± All of a sudden, Soren felt his mind split in half¡ªno. It wasn¡¯t his mind that was splitting, it was the world itself. Then, just as quickly as it split, it merged back together, slamming with enough force to make him question his sense of direction. Instantly he threw up as he struggled to keep himself balanced. ¡°Relax your mind.¡± He took a deep breath and opened his eyes once more. This time, the world wasn¡¯t split in strange angles and directions¡ªit was whole again. In front of him stood the same familiar stone canopy, but above it, a small ember was burning everlastingly, illuminating the marble surfaces of the ancient construct. A small ring of golden butterflies were orbiting around it, with a small violet-colored sigil of an eye trapped within the ring. It was mesmerizing to look at. Wiping the small bits of vomit from his bottom lip, he adjusted his balance and walked to the edge of the canopy¡ªhis eyes widened once again. The strange shapes floating above the crayon painted skies were now all gone¡ªreplaced with strangely massive bookshelves that levitated on their own. It was as if an entire labyrinth or maze was being created by their formation as they bloated out the stars above them. Some of the shelves held tomes inside them, but the majority were empty. Chapter 98: The Corruption Within

Chapter 98: The Corruption Within

Soren found it hard to describe what he was feeling at that moment. Was it a sense of awe, fear, excitement, or yearning? Or maybe disappointment? It was hard to say. The scene covering the crayon painted skies was not something that could easily be described, but he could at least understand its purpose. Those books scattered across the labyrinth of levitating shelves had to be all the information he had [Record]ed over the past month. All of it felt so¡­. minuscule. So tiny in comparison to how much space was available. It was at that moment that a faint realization emerged¡ªone that overturned his entire understanding of what his Soul Weapon was capable of. Every one of these bookshelves¡­ Even if he had traversed Yarian in its entirety and chronicled every story, innovation, history, gossip, geography, magic¡­ Every conceivable idea¡­ It would still not total more than a few of these shelves. And right now, above his head¡ªthose same shelves numbered in the hundreds¡­ Each one was as large as his house back on Earth, and an entire city of them was now scattered above his puny head. Everything he had been proud of seemed so¡­ useless in comparison. Soren took a deep breath and turned around to face the round table, now illuminated by a flaming ember of a million golden butterflies. With an unreadable face, he sat down and placed his legs on the table then leaned back¡ªhis head full of thoughts. Thoughts about the future, but also¡­ the past. He simply stared at the ceiling of the marble canopy for what felt like an eternity. Soren wasn¡¯t at all worried about the world outside the Realm of Realms¡ªhe needed time to simply think. The flickering bonfire above the round table seemed to sense this unease. After a while, the voice decided to ask. ¡°What are you thinking about?¡± Soren answered nonchalantly, ¡°You.¡± ¡°How romantic,¡± it replied. Without even glancing at the illustrious lightshow, Soren finally asked the one thing that had been bothering him since his arrival here: ¡°So¡­ When are you planning to take over?¡± He noticed the vibrant flame flicker unnaturally for a few moments. ¡°What¡­ do you mean?¡± ¡°Don¡¯t act dumb. You should have a pretty clear understanding of my personality.¡± The voice didn¡¯t answer, so Soren followed up, ¡°The unnatural corruption. It''s from you, isn¡¯t it? You wish to take over my body, right?¡± ¡°You¡¯re not entirely correct,¡± the voice answered, ¡°but not entirely wrong either.¡± Soren rolled his eyes and scoffed. ¡°Elaborate.¡± ¡°I don¡¯t want to take over your body¡ªthat¡¯s too simple. I want to become you. I want your fate, your goals, your dreams¡­ Your reality.¡± Hearing this, Soren couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°I see. Is my existence that enviable?¡± The flickering flame¡¯s silence was louder than a thousand words. Personally, Soren didn¡¯t understand it. His life¡ªwas it truly worth it? Over the past month, his emotions on the matter seemed distant at times, and much closer at other times¡­ Regret over his decisions, despair over what he must become¡­ Even his humanity came into question many times during this period. When the Whispering Dream laid out his goal of destroying the world, a part of him wanted to join his side¡ªto see that cataclysm happen if it meant obtaining his freedom from the clutches of fate¡­ Soren had no idea anymore whether these feelings were nothing more than the lingering effects of long-term exposure to Astral Anima in the Beyond, or simply a true reflection of who he really was¡­ If he had to be honest¡ªit terrified him. Humanity¡¯s biggest fear was the unknown, so wasn¡¯t it ironic that the one person able to glimpse the unknown had become that which he does not know? This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. In the end, he still decided against joining sides with the enigmatic saint. Not completely because of moral reasons but due to what his goal really was. And now that he was able to witness the countless empty bookshelves floating aimlessly above the twilight sky, he finally understood that his decision was correct. Yarian¡ªthe world governed by fantasia¡­ There was still so much to learn about it¡ªso much history and knowledge to chronicle and absorb. If it was meant to be destroyed, then let it be so only after he finishes exploring everything there was to know. The gargantuan bookshelves floating above him still needed to be filled, after all. Letting that world and its millenniums worth of knowledge be forever lost to the embrace of the abyss seemed like such¡­ a waste. How inhuman¡­ He chuckled to himself¡­ His concerns didn¡¯t even register the human cost of what he was contemplating. The end of the world wasn¡¯t some disappointing event¡ªit was terrifying and came with the suffering of millions. And yet, even as he was saying this, pangs of pity and grief did fill his heart¡ªit was just miniscule in nature, or maybe he himself was suppressing those emotions. At the end of the day, even before his arrival on Yarian, Soren hated humans. He hated humanity and its contradictory ways. Its moral obligations that always seemed to come only when the group being affected mattered¡ªthat was the nature of his profound question after all. Every human he had ever interacted with had a purpose in mind for that interaction. Whether it was his managers at the chess federations, the ¡®friends¡¯ he made in college and elsewhere, his professors and their unending demands, or his very parents. Their empathy always ended when their goals were achieved¡ªwhen their wants were met. So in a way, him losing his humanity could be seen as a positive¨Cfrom a very twisted perspective. But as Soren thought about it more, such was the nature of not just humanity, but any living being with intelligence¡ªeven if he had become something else entirely, his desires would still be the same... His experiences in Yadria proved this¡ªthe mistreatment of the Unblessed wasn¡¯t derived from simply a religious reason, but a financial one as well. The Unblessed were seen as a necessity for their society¡ªa group had to be made to suffer so that the rest could prosper. The high noble elves understood this perfectly¡ªthat was why some even rejected the ideas of Luvin and his migration plans for the Unblessed. The irony of it all felt so poetic¡­ Luvin¡ªif we took his words as truth¡ªdespite being a firm believer in segregation, was still offering the Unblessed more than those who claim to advocate for them. In seeking to cast them out, he at least was giving them the opportunity to realize an independent future for themselves, beyond just indentured servitude. Meanwhile, the hypocrites who scream ¡°empathy!¡± only sought to keep the status quo that kept them in chains¡­ It was all so unbelievably self centered. And now, he was seeing that same nature in himself as well¡ªor rather, his figment of imagination; The Records. This existence that calls itself a paradox was too born with desires. It wants to replace Soren and become him. Not that he could blame it¡ªif he was in The Record¡¯s shoes, he too would have probably desired the same thing, even if the life he was willing to take over was rotten to the core. Aren¡¯t I the biggest hypocrite of them all? He chuckled to himself. Maybe Myrin and Tina were right about him. Maybe he really was just that ungrateful¡ªeven if their intentions were masking an agenda, they at least offered Soren everything he needed in return. He was the one refusing to reciprocate. He shook the thoughts away with a slight smile. Facing the everlasting pillar of radiance, Soren decided to be blunt. ¡°So when will that happen? When will you replace me?¡± ¡°My existence,¡± the voice said, ¡°was born from a lie. A lie that could not prove its own worth in this world. There is no need for me to rush¡ªfor I will be here much longer than you will. The accord you signed simply froze my influence over you, but it could not erase me¡ªnothing can.¡± Soren nodded. ¡°So a year from now is when you¡¯ll act?¡± The voice didn¡¯t answer and Soren never expected to hear one anyway. He simply chuckled to himself. ¡°Then I guess I¡¯ll continue my role as Scribe of Worlds for the foreseeable future¡ªuntil you decide to act upon your inner desires. Are you sure you wish to assist me with everything until then? What if I use my current control to plan ahead and oppose you?¡± The bonfire flickered with unknown emotions. ¡°The future is uncertain, but lies have a certain quality to them that is unchanging. The moment one is made, another will be needed to fight against the original until a cascade of lies is built. You will never be able to stop me.¡± ¡°We¡¯ll see about that.¡± Soren retorted then stood up. ¡°Until then, I¡¯ll assume ownership over this place¡­¡± Although Soren said that confidently, he wasn¡¯t exactly sure how he could control the Faerie Court. But still, he knew it was possible. If the figment of his imagination could exert its authority here, then so could he¡ªafter all, they were, in essence, one and the same. Sensing his thoughts, the flickering flame replied: ¡°It is no different from ordering me.¡± Soren immediately grasped what it was saying. The key to controlling this place was his thoughts¡ªthe same way one would control a Soul Weapon. But still, this case was much different. Unlike The Records, the Faerie Court didn¡¯t exactly have an instruction manual he could follow or a list of things he could achieve with his control¡­ He had no semblance of understanding in this place¡ªeven space itself seemed to act differently and needed to be controlled¡­ Glancing at the flickering flame, a smile crept up his face. ¡°I guess I have a lot to learn from you.¡± Chapter 99: Gateways and Anchors

Chapter 99: Gateways and Anchors

After probing the figment of his imagination for who knows how long, Soren finally grasped the basics of how [The Faerie Court] operated. To put it in simple terms, this place was outside the purview of normal space and time¡ªoutside of most universal laws that governed the natural world¡­ And most importantly of all, it was outside the influence of the Rift. The countless roaming shadows and whispers of forgotten bygone truths were not able to reach here¡ªmuch to his relief. But it was the abilities the Realm of Realms granted that almost made his jaw drop. Sitting off the edge of the floating space island, Soren basked in the glory of his creation. A mighty vessel fit to house thousands, with mysterious contraptions missing crucial pieces here and there¡­ It floated aimlessly off the Faerie Court Island, like a mighty ark readying for a journey into the unknown. Yes, what he was currently staring at was a Voidstar Voyager in the flesh. The same skyship Soren chronicled when the skies shattered some time ago. Although it was missing many of its components due to him not being able to chronicle everything to do with the ship¡¯s schematic, it was still fairly operable even in its current prototype state. One might ask, how did Soren, a magi apprentice without much formal training, happen to create such a marvel of engineering and magecraft? The answer was that he didn¡¯t. It was the Faerie Court that created it. One of the first things the voice of The Records taught him was the ability to command his imagination into reality¡­ This was not a fairly hard thing to do for Soren¡ªhe had already done it multiple times when using his mesmerism affinity to become different objects in order to disguise himself¡­ But the magnitude and scale of this operation was much different. Even so, it never even required any mental focus¡­ Simply thinking about what he needed was enough¡ªThe Faerie Court would listen to his thoughts and immediately execute his vision. And the result was absolutely astounding. ¡°[Fictionalization],¡± said the figment of his imagination. ¡°That¡¯s what I have come to call it.¡± Soren smiled, ¡°A fitting name.¡± How could he disagree with it anyway? That would only mean he himself sucked at naming things. And for the most part, it was fairly accurate. What the Faerie Court was doing was essentially creating projections of his imagination. The possibilities for this were endless. He could use it to experiment and simulate different magecraft spellforms, all the way to creating prefabs of anything he could imagine creating in the future with his accumulated knowledge. And that was essentially the limitation too¡ªhis knowledge. [Fictionalization] doesn¡¯t work with anything but what he has [Record]ed. His pure imagination can also be projected, but the effect was limited¡ªonly the shape and form of whatever he was thinking of would be created, but the aspects and properties of that creation were none existent. As for things brought to life from his Soul Weapon, the difference was night and day. Even with his limited understanding, the [Fictionalization] of the Voidstar Voyager was accurate to the real world representation. Every cannon, spellform, Mystery¡­ All of it was being represented accurately. The second limitation had to do with this space itself. [Fictionalization] doesn¡¯t apply outside [The Faerie Court]. He cannot bring his creations back with him to Yarian for example. What a shame¡­ He wondered what Star Fate Guild¡¯s reactions would be if they found him steering a Vynasian ship back to the library. Not that he was ever planning on revealing any of this to them¡­ Shaking his head, Soren stood up from the edge of the island and watched as the Voidstar Voyager disintegrated into a swarm of golden butterflies. There was now arguably a more important thing to find out¡­ During his initial conversations with The Records, a certain subject popped up¡ªone that had to do with his initial assumptions about the Faerie Court. World travel. Ever since he unlocked the skill, he had been wondering how the Realm of Realms was related to his ability to travel back to Earth. After all, that was what Mr. Unknown mentioned¡ª[The Faerie Court] was supposedly a way for him to return to his old world¡­ How the figment of his imagination explained it was certainly odd¡­ Essentially, gateways exist here that lead to numerous other worlds. The prospect of that excited him until Soren found out how one was supposed to use them. Anchors. Soren would need to contract a person within a world and mark them with a certain, unique signature. This signature would then allow Soren to travel to that person from the Faerie Court using the gateways. It sounded fairly interesting, until he realized the dilemma. How would he contract a person into becoming an Anchor if he had not visited that world in the first place? He would need to travel to the world first to create the Anchor, but traveling to that world requires an Anchor¡­ Ugh, who the hell designed this place? I need to scold them! The thought of him questioning the One Above All seemed so ludicrous that it made him chuckle. But he also questioned something else¡ªif his forgotten rune fragment came from the creator of this universe, does that essentially confirm that all forgotten runes had come from him also? If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation. Like for example, the Spirit Blossom Seed that stirred the war between the Elves and Spirit Wolves¡­ He shook the thoughts away and walked toward the marble stone canopy in the distance. Its presence illuminated the rest of the island, like a nexus or core of an entire world. [The Faerie Court] responded to his thoughts and the higher dimensional space shifted around him, revealing countless marble arches surrounding the stone canopy. He recognized the marble arches as the gateways The Records spoke of. ¡°Incredible¡­¡± He said. A part of him didn¡¯t want to believe in the story the voice spoke of. He had always assumed that other worlds existed besides Earth and Yariain, but seeing the gateways lined in a circle around the stone canopy confirmed it for him¡­ ¡°The Universe is certainly a Mystery.¡± The voice stated. He glanced at the distant flickering flame within the stone canopy dubiously. ¡°I would say your existence is more of a Mystery to me at the moment.¡± The voice didn¡¯t answer, so Soren simply walked to the nearest marble gateway. If he had to be honest, nothing about it seemed out of the ordinary¡ªit simply looked like a normal marble archway, similar in design to ones you would see in ancient Greek architecture. None of them were active either, which made sense¡ªhe had no Anchors to speak of at the moment. With a sigh, he walked in a circle, inspecting each of the arches. There were thirty six of them in total, with an outer ring holding twenty four while the inner ring held twelve. The only difference he noticed between each one was the strange symbol at the top¡ªthe script seemed to be the same one he had seen when the mysterious fountain pen wrote the things he [Record]ed into his Soul Weapon¡­ Even with [Eyes of the Fairy], he was still nowhere close to deciphering their meanings. At the end of his lap around the court, Soren finally reached the gateway that led to Yarian. Unlike the others, there was a mirror-like surface covering this one that rippled from time to time in mysterious patterns. The gateway was active, unlike the rest. With a slight frown, he approached it hesitantly and placed his palm on the liquid surface of the gateway. It shifted and rippled against his touch. ¡°What do you see?¡± The voice said mockingly. Soren¡¯s frown deepened. The gateway, for whatever reason, was shifting between showing him two different images. No, it wasn¡¯t two, but one. An image that shifted from place to place. And even more surprising was what the image was showing¡­ Large skyscrapers, yellow taxi cabs, hotdog stands and the usual advertisement billboards¡­ ¡°New¡­ York?!¡± This was not what he was expecting at all. His eyes narrowed, ¡°I thought this was the gateway to Yariain?¡± ¡°It is the gateway to Yariain,¡± the voice answered. ¡°But it is also the gateway to Earth.¡± How does that even make sense?... Sensing his thoughts, the figment of his imagination replied. ¡°You have no Anchor within Yarian but yourself.¡± Hearing this, his eyes widened¡ªSoren understood what it was trying to say¡­ During his previous conversation, he wondered how exactly he would return back to Yarian if he had no Anchor present there¡ªSoren hadn''t contracted anyone to become one, after all. But The Record¡¯s words cleared his doubts. Essentially, his body in Yarian was the Anchor. Or to be more specific, his fictional Soul Chain. Since his actual Soul Chain was currently inside the Faerie Court, housing the corruption coming from the figment of his imagination, then the one he had seen with the help of mistress Sienna was created using [Fictionalization]. Which would mean¡­ his body in Yarian was itself fictional¡­ He glanced at the flickering flame angrily. ¡°You did this, didn¡¯t you?¡± The reason for his anger was fairly simple. If his fictional body in Yarian had died, what would have happened to his real body that he was currently inhabiting in [The Faerie Court]? Soren had a sneaking suspicion that The Records would have taken over and become him instantly. ¡°I know exactly what you are thinking,¡± the voice replied. ¡°But no. I did not plan this at all. From the very beginning, [Fictionalization] can only work within the Realm of Realms, so I too don¡¯t know how exactly this was all enacted.¡± What the voice was saying was most likely true¡­ So then how did he end up with a fictional body and soul chain in Yarian? What exactly happened during the time after he enacted the ritual and was transported to Yarian? And did his progress in Yarian translate to his actual progress here? So many damn questions¡­ He rubbed his temples. Still, this did not really answer his main question: why was the gateway for Yarian showing scenes from Earth? From the beginning, he did find it a bit off that even after observing all the other gateways, none of them hinted at a connection to his old world. But still, he simply dismissed it due to not having an active Anchor in that world¡­ ¡°Is Yarian somehow connected to Earth?¡± The theory was plausible. After all, his arrival there was planned before even acquiring [The Faerie Court]. Mr. Unknown was clearly surprised by him somehow merging with the fragment of a forgotten rune. So it had to mean that Scribe-of-Worlds was able to facilitate the traversal between the two realms due to another connection that had nothing to do with the Realm of Realms. A connection that somehow linked the two worlds to each other¡­ ¡°But¡­ How? What is that connection?¡± Soren had no way to answer that question. He glanced at the glassy screen showing pictures of his old world¡­ A faint smile crept up his face. It was hard not to say he missed it a bit, despite how hypocritical that may have sounded. ¡°Are you regretting your decisions now?¡± Soren shook his head. ¡°No. The opposite actually.¡± He glanced back at the flickering flame. ¡°I have the ability to go back any time I want, and for any reason. Whether it is to burn it all down to the ground or simply to catch up on some of my favorite new releases.¡± But still, it did get him to wonder how exactly he could go back¡­ Since it was currently active, that would have to mean that an Anchor already existed there¡ªwho was it? The command was heard by Realm of Realms, and the image shifted in response. What he saw almost made him drop to the floor in shock. A woman in her early twenties with short raven black hair and crystal-clear emerald eyes was busy running away from a terrifying monstrosity. The decor of the hallway looked gorgeous and surreal, as if she was inside a holy church or castle. Statues of gargoyles and golden ornaments hung from the marble walls, drenching the corridor in ancient ambience¡ªcompletely opposite to panicked woman¡¯s professional office clothing. The whole scenario looked ludicrous and comical, but also horrifying. Soren recognized the person instantly. ¡°Julie?..¡± Chapter 100: The Board of Fate

Chapter 100: The Board of Fate

¡°Julie! ¡°How? Why? What?!¡± His face turned pale as he watched her run desperately away from the monster chasing after her. Its details were truly terrifying. A thousand jagged teeth revolved around its open maw, as its form was swallowed in darkness. Underneath the darkness, a sea of bones could be seen. At first, he assumed the creature was translucent and he was simply glancing at its skeleton, but no. What he was seeing was the trophies of its previous hunts. Whatever this creature was, it was as smart as it was hungry. ¡°A spirit beast?¡± He had scoured many encyclopedias in the library, but none of them showcased such a terrifying monstrosity. Neither he nor Julie had any time to think any further though¡ªit was closing in on her quickly. ¡°Think! Think!¡± His mind raced with answers and solutions, but only one seemed plausible. He needed to return to Earth. But then again, even if he did use the Anchor to return, what difference could he possibly make? He was still nowhere near a 1st Circle magus. And even if he was, he doubted any offensive magecraft could harm whatever that thing was¡­ ¡°Is it hopeless?¡± His heart dropped, but then the voice replied: ¡°If you cannot go to her, how about she comes to you?¡± His eyes widened. ¡°Of course!¡± What the figment of his imagination had suggested was certainly plausible also¡­ Rather than going to Julie, what if he brings her into the Faerie Court instead? Since she was marked as an Anchor, there had to be a way to make that possible. But just as he was considering how to achieve just that, something else happened that shocked him. As Julie continued to run down the narrow corridor, a large cobweb fell from the roof onto the towering monstrosity. The threads were dark black and hard to see, but they seemed fairly powerful¡ªat least, powerful enough to hold the creature in place temporarily. Then, an even more shocking turn of events happened. The walls on either side of the now trapped monstrosity crumbled¡ªemerging from behind them were two large soldiers wearing trench coats. Each one was holding some sort of long range weapon in their hand. Without further hesitation, both pulled the trigger, shooting powerful rounds at the towering mass of darkness indiscriminately. The monster roared in agony as it thrashed its body to escape from its spiritual bindings, but it was too late. The creature died. Julie was laying on the cold marble floor some distance away¡ªher face was pale and drenched with sweat as she hyperventilated, eyes focused on the dying monstrosity that wanted to eat her. It looked like she was on the verge of passing out¡ªshe couldn¡¯t even move her limbs any more. All her strength was drained. Whether that was from fear or simple exhaustion, Soren didn¡¯t know. Either way, Julie had survived. It was obvious to him now that she was luring the monster into a trap, and her plan had succeeded. A few seconds later, he watched a strange spider climbing down from the ceiling and landing on her shoulder. The strange insect moved on its own toward her arm and wrapped its limbs around her finger like a ring. He watched as Julie flinched in disgust while glancing at her hand. ¡°A Soul Weapon?..¡± It seems the number of times he was going to be shocked today were going to reach the double digits. No wait¡ªdoes ¡®today¡¯ even exist? How long has he even been in the Faerie Court by now? Shaking away the excess thoughts, Soren finally sighed in relief. If Julie had died there, he didn¡¯t know what he would do¡­ Even now, his heart was beating out of his chest. Out of the eight billion something people on Earth, there was arguably only one person Soren somewhat cared for; that person was Julie. It wasn¡¯t always like that either¡­ From what he could remember of his twisted childhood, there were many happy moments in the beginning that were overshadowed once his talents for chess unfolded. Yes, his father was a horrible person even back then, but his child mind hadn¡¯t fully registered his actions yet. And it was also around this time that he had met Julie. Despite his inclinations to being a complete loner, she had always tried and failed to befriend him. And this only became worse once his parents discovered his talents¡­ The talents she gifted him¡ªor cursed him with. Indeed, Soren only really learned chess from her¡­ Back then, before smartphones were a thing, Julie had an obsession with board games and would force him to play with her¡ªsomething he found extremely annoying back then. Usually, these sessions would end once Soren got good enough to always beat her at the game. After that, she would then throw a tantrum and demand to play a new board game instead. This cycle would continue for a while, until one day, it didn¡¯t. It started out the same as usual¡ªJulie brought with her a new game to play. But unlike the others, this one was truly challenging. Even though he was beating Julie every time, he himself was never satisfied. It felt like there were levels of depth to this game called chess that every other board game didn¡¯t have¡­ Levels that he couldn¡¯t glimpse yet. You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story. For the first time in a while, he became excited. At the time, he rarely found anything meaningful or challenging, so the prospect of infinitely getting better at something not even adults could master was genuinely thrilling. Even after Julie grew bored of the game (and sick of losing to him each time), he couldn¡¯t stop playing. And that was also when his strings of misfortune grew longer. He shook his head¡ªa small smile crept up his face as he watched the mirror-like surface of the gateway shift away. He had invoked the Anchor for too long. If he had to be honest, Soren despised Julie just as much as he cared for her. Her tenacity was second to none, and she always seemed to view the world from a more colorful perspective. He envied her. And at the same time, he hated her for introducing that cursed game to him. If Soren hadn¡¯t learned chess, maybe his life wouldn¡¯t have taken so many dark turns. His father was an asshole, but a pragmatic one. He had no reason to mess with Soren, until a financial reason showed itself¡­ After he discovered Soren¡¯s talents, it was as if his eyes were lit ablaze with greed. But at the same time, he knew that this was nothing more than delusion. If it wasn¡¯t chess, it would have been something else. George would have come knocking on his door eventually. Just a week or so after he received his first sponsor, Julie moved away. He would not see her again until college, but by that time, both of them had changed irreversibly. He was nothing more than a failed genius¡ªa loser who gave up his success to pursue mundane pleasures in the eyes of others, while she was a low income student trying her hardest to build a brighter future for herself. It was pretty much impossible to rekindle their friendship. Soren had always been a loner, but his previous experiences and traumas only made him harder to approach. Still, they did try. No, it was better to say she tried. Soren still tried to push her away just like he had always done before¡ªonly this time, it worked. She grew busy with her studies, and they stopped hanging out all together. ¡°How pathetic,¡± the voice said. Soren stayed silent. ¡°What are you, a child? Reminiscing about something you yourself didn¡¯t want. How illogical.¡± He shook his head. ¡°Emotions are fickle like that¡ªthey never follow logic. And honestly, what right do you have to even scold me? You are literally a figment of my imagination.¡± ¡°A figment that¡¯s better than the original,¡± it retorted. ¡°I can prove it to you if you¡¯d like¡ªjust hand over your body to me.¡± ¡°Keep dreaming,¡± Soren chuckled with a smile. Still, this did get him to think about the bizarreness of this situation as a whole. The Julie he remembered was a meek girl trying to get through her studies and have fun playing video games on the side¡­ All their conversations that he could remember revolved around gacha game releases or Korean dramas. How did this normal Brooklyn girl end up with a Soul Weapon? And she seemed to be a part of a shady group or organization fighting monsters¡­ Or whatever that thing he saw was¡­ ¡°What the hell happened to Earth after I transmigrated?!¡± Did his old world turn this exciting only after he left? For whatever reason, the thought of that annoyed him a bit. ¡°You know the exact reason why this is happening,¡± the voice replied¡ªits tone hid layers of mockery. And Soren knew exactly what it was trying to hint at. Fate. There are no coincidences in this world¡ªor any world for that matter. Julie somehow contracting herself with the signature of the Faerie Court and becoming his Anchor could not have been an accident. Is Mr. Unknown involved? It seemed definitely plausible, but then again, that enigmatic being had no connection to [The Faerie Court] from the very beginning¡­ Soren grit his teeth and backed away from the gateway. ¡°Alright I am sick of this.¡± ¡°What are you planning?¡± He replied, ¡°Something that I have been planning on doing ever since I obtained that gift from Hurion.¡± The fragment of The Records of Enigma. It was time to put it to use. ¡°Status,¡± he ordered his figment of his imagination and it responded. Up above, a single book from the countless ones scattered across the shelves broke apart into a swarm of golden butterflies. They all flew down in unison, morphing into a golden window pane that was created using [Fictionalization]. It hovered in front of his face, displaying the usual information he had grown familiar with. He glanced at the flickering flame dubiously. ¡°Aren¡¯t you taking the video game representation too seriously?¡± ¡°Say that to yourself,¡± the voice retorted. Soren blinked. ¡°True¡­¡± His Soul Weapon was still a reflection of himself. The fact that it was representing the information in this way could only mean he himself wanted it that way. ¡°This is all Julie¡¯s fault!¡± He shook his head dejectedly and glanced back at the status page. His eyes trailed all the way to the bottom¡ªeverything else hadn¡¯t changed. [Fairy Witness] (4 Insight) - ??? Soren couldn¡¯t help but smile. The last time he had checked his status page, his Fairy Witness rune only had 1 insight fragment. It seems that his time in the Beyond had not gone to waste¡ªall the influence he had spread had paid off. But the most important thing to him at the moment was the Event Log at the bottom. His eyes scanned through the list until he found what he wanted to see: New Change Recorded: [Conduit] (Mystery) His smile widened. Because of the fragment he had absorbed from The Records of Enigma, Soren¡¯s Soul Weapon had now partially transformed into a conduit¡­ No, it might simply have a remote connection to the mysterious tablet itself. If a real transformation had happened, it would have been reflected on his status page directly. Either way, Soren could finally do divinations and runological studies. ¡°All I need now is a medium¡­¡± Fortunately or unfortunately, he knew one that was perfect for him. Since mediums needed to have a close relationship to the user, there was no better medium than his familiar old friend¡­ Chess. He was going to use the ancient game of war to read the complexities of fate. His face twisted into a maddening smile. ¡°I guess I should call it The Board of Fate?¡± Chapter 101: A Chess Match for the Future and Past

Chapter 101: A Chess Match for the Future and Past

The Board of Fate. Such a name was not at all unfamiliar. In fact, his entire idea itself wasn¡¯t entirely original. Soren had seen a divination medium in Yadria that was fairly similar to the ancient board game of war he was familiar with. Something his [Eyes of the Fairy] identified as a Spirit Mosaic Array. Back then, it simply seemed like an interesting idea¡ªa board game with intrinsic spellforms that utilize astrology and other factors to add more depth to each piece and movement on the board. It was something Yadrian nobles liked to play in their spare time while drinking tea and conversing in politics and other affairs, but some serious runologists most likely enjoyed it for its more practical reasons. And yet, here he was just a few weeks later, utilizing that same idea but in his own way. Soren could probably learn and master how to play with a Spirit Mosaic Array fairly quickly, but this wasn¡¯t a matter of time, experience or mastery¡­ This was about familiarity. Divination mediums, at the core of their existence, can only function through familiarity. The more closely related the object was to the person, the easier it was to interpret the hidden meanings obtained from the conduit. And currently, there was nothing else to Soren¡¯s name aside from his Soul Weapon that he was familiar with. Clicking his tongue, he watched as the wooden board manifested itself into reality. [Fictionalization] was once again showing its miraculous powers. The board sat atop the round table, illuminated by the flickering bonfire of a million radiant butterflies above it. The marble canopy was shining all around in its golden glow. Slowly, the pieces began to come into being¡ªpawns, bishops, knights, rooks, kings and queens¡ªboth in black and white colors. Their arrangement was both nostalgic and annoying. Indeed, Soren didn¡¯t really want to use this medium. Chess was not a game of joy for him anymore¡ªit was a reminder of the worst parts of his life. And yet, he had no choice in the matter¡ªfate wrote it so. ¡°Must you do this now?¡± the voice asked curiously. ¡°What will knowing that which cannot be changed do for you?¡± Soren smirked. ¡°How can one know what is unchanging without knowing its principles?¡± The voice stayed silent so he continued, ¡°What I plan to do may seem foolish and pointless, but as I said before, emotion is a fickle thing¡­ I will never know peace if I do not at least discover that which controls me from the shadows.¡± And it wasn¡¯t just him that was being controlled, it was everyone around him as well. He had suspected that to be the case during his brief conversation with Sienna, but he always assumed fate was just a collection of different goals all striving to move the pieces they control in distinct ways. Now however, he doubted this notion¡ªwhat he saw on Earth finally settled that debate entirely. It seemed that the people around him were also being driven by fate toward tackling the same thing¡ªthe so-called end of the world after the world¡¯s Celestial Fate comes undone. Julie, a girl that shouldn¡¯t have had a single reason to be involved in the Mysterious World was now both a Phantasm and a person connected to [The Faerie Court] as an Anchor, something that should have been impossible. But under the machinations of fate, even the most improbable event was possible. This was no longer about just him¡ªfate was now encroaching on anything and everything related to him. In fact, even Star Fate Guild in a way could be seen as a victim of fate¡¯s machinations. Sienna putting Myrin, Tina and Tyrel on a mission to Yadria exactly when he had been expected to arrive on that world proved this. And then there was his arrival in that world, itself¡­ Coincidentally, the Nameless Mist was propagating across the Feylith Forest and into some parts of Yadria just a few days prior to his transmigration, which always seemed suspicious to him¡ªhe even thought that Mr. Unknown was behind it at first. But now that he knew what he knew about the Rift and how it was related to the end of this world, his perspective had changed. The Nameless Mist was being used by The Whispering Dream to undo one of the promises of the Divine Accord, and that eventually resulted in the skies shattering and an armada of Vynasians arriving from beyond the Rift. So if that was the case, who could say a smaller spatial fracture wasn¡¯t created days after the first release of the Nameless Mist¡ªa fracture that spewed his existence into this world¡­ From a certain perspective, it would mean that Soren¡¯s transmigration could only have been possible through the sacrifice of countless Unblessed¡­ And fate had accepted such a sacrifice and manipulated the events exactly to allow his existence to come to this world. These theories only fueled his rage. Soren remembered the little girl he met at Point Sylvia named Liluth. Her innocence forever crushed by the injustice of being born an Unblessed and ruined even further by the horrors of having to escape the Nameless Mist¡­ He remembered her naivety and hope¡ªhope that her brother who escaped with her but was separated from them during their daring escape had survived¡­ He remembered the scenes of Unblessed women hugging the returned corpses of children who fell victim to that sickening corrupted anima¡ªtheir cries of anguish could not reach outside the slums they were born in. He remembered it all¡­ Back then, Soren was ignorant of the world. But now, with his newfound knowledge about those events, a question continued to linger in his mind: Was it my fault? Did fate drive all of these events to happen to allow his transmigration to happen? If he had never researched Scribe-of-Worlds.com and tried enacting The Secrets of the Records ritual, would none of this have happened? Or would fate have driven him toward such a conclusion regardless? Frowning, He shook his head, ¡°Enough of this. Let us begin.¡± His mind was resolute¡ªhe had to get to the bottom of this. The figment of his imagination said it was pointless to understand why, but even if that was the case, he still needed to know. After all, a Scribe who runs away from knowledge¡­ Such a thing doesn¡¯t exist. Dismissing his hesitation, Soren stared at the chessboard curiously. Reading fate using a medium was done through interpreting signs and symbolism within the chaos. The medium must present randomness that, when directed with the powers of a conduit, will present hidden meanings for the person to decipher. His current and first divination study would be no different. The interpretations would either come from the formation of the board or the pieces themselves. Closing his eyes, he imagined the different meanings of the pieces silently. Their formations, and everything they could stand for according to his subjective self. After a brief period of ponderance, Soren began channeling his anima through the board. It was now time to connect to the conduit: ¡°Begin Divination.¡± That was all he needed to say. Unlike other divinations, his technique was far more special. Myrin, when he conducts Flower Divinations, needs to invoke the name of the Holy Flower Maiden with a corresponding prayer to connect to Her holy grace. The same could be said about any other deity. As for those who connect to the Records of Enigma, the process was somewhat the same. The name of the conduit would need to be invoked regardless¡ªhe had seen Cassia perform it many times. But unlike them, he had no reason to invoke the name of the conduit. For the conduit itself existed within him¡ªor more specifically, his Soul Weapon. After obtaining that fragment, his Soul Weapon had now become a part of Records of Enigma itself. And rather than presenting a question, his Soul Weapon could read and understand his intent perfectly. And just like that, [Fictionalization] began to shuffle the pieces. The divination has begun. The first movement on the board was made. And¡­ It confused him. ¡°What?!¡± If you encounter this tale on Amazon, note that it''s taken without the author''s consent. Report it. White pawn to E4. According to the numerous books he had read on divination, almost all of them cited the same phenomena: Randomness. Divination was essentially the study of finding meaning within chaos. That was why most accurate mediums more introduced randomness¡ªthe more random the movement, the more meaning one could extract from it. At least¡­ That¡¯s what he had assumed until now. White pawn to E4. Such a move¡­ Was it just a coincidence? Soren did expect some overlap, but this opener could be said to be one of the most popular opening moves on white. It could lead to numerous opening lines like the Ruy-Lopez or the Caro-Kann¡­ Soren himself almost always started with it¡­ No, it must be a coincidence, let¡¯s keep observing. And just like that, the next move was played¡ª[Fictionalization] shifted the next piece: Black pawn to E5 to match the white pawn. Soren¡¯s lips twitched. ¡°Is.. Is this also a coincidence?¡± He continued to observe. White Pawn to F4¡ªKing¡¯s Gambit. E5 Captures F4. White continues. Bishop to C4¡ªBishop¡¯s Gambit. ¡°This¡­ This is impossible¡­¡± But regardless, he was still obtaining hidden meanings. The purpose of his divination was to understand the machinations of fate¡­ Usually, such a lofty goal in runology would immediately be met with failure. After all, if fate was so easy to understand, then his mistress wouldn¡¯t have been so helpless against its manipulation¡­ No, the reason why this divination could work at all was due to [The Faerie Court]. Soren theorized that since this place was outside the authority of the Rift, then it must at least have some ability to stop outside forces from influencing his actions here. And he was right. Just as white played the Bishop¡¯s Gambit, a vision encroached upon his mind. A vision of himself, sitting in front of his familiar computer desk, browsing through Scribe-of-Worlds.com. ¡°What¡­ Does it mean?¡± He continued to observe the game. Black plays queen to H4. Check. White responds with king to F1. Soren couldn¡¯t help but smile. ¡°This game¡­ It''s not random at all¡­ The pieces are responding to each other¡¯s movements¡­ This is a real chess match¡­¡± His mind couldn¡¯t help but be shocked. This was outside the realm of what he thought possible. But there was no time to linger¡ªthe match was continuing. Black moves pawn to B5. ¡°Kinda a bad move¡­¡± Soren understood that it was meant to pressure the bishop, but it still sacrifices a pawn since the bishop could immediately capture it. And that¡¯s exactly what happened. White bishop captures the B5 pawn. Black responds with knight to F6. White could now respond in a number of ways¡ªSoren waited in anticipation. But just then, another vision entered his mind. A vision of him enacting a ritual and setting up an altar. Several other images of him played, like him creating practice sigils for the spellform he was meant to draw¡­ It was fairly strange though¡ªthe images didn¡¯t seem to come sequentially. There were images from when he was visiting the store to gather ingredients, but also images of him that¡­ Never happened in his memory? ¡°What¡­¡± White responds by targeting the queen. Knight to F3¡ªmirroring the previous move. Black succumbs to the pressure¡ªqueen pulls back to H6. White develops its pieces with pawn to B3. Seeing this, black moves knight to H5, which Soren assumed to be preparation to move it further into G3¡ªcausing a check. If White responds with pawn captures knight, then Queen could capture the rook behind it. White also sees this and moves knight to H4 to block the pin from the Queen. ¡°Who¡­ The hell are these players?¡± The more he watched, the more confused he became. This wasn¡¯t a casual game in the slightest¡ªboth players seemed to have a very good understanding of chess. He couldn¡¯t tell what the Elo was, but it had to be at least in the 1500 to 2000 range. ¡°International Master level?¡± He couldn¡¯t tell¡ªhe had to watch more. At first, he assumed that maybe his Soul Weapon, which was a reflection of himself, was playing a prank on him. But that blunder from black with pawn to B5 wasn¡¯t something he himself would have done. He glanced up at the flickering flame suspiciously, but it too seemed confused¡ªhe could feel it. Soren glanced back at the board. Black moves queen to G5. Knight then moves to F5. Black develops its pieces again, pawn to C6. All decent moves. ¡°How strange¡­¡± Another vision plays within his mind. Images of him continuously enacting the ritual, but there were also suspiciously strange images of others as well¡­ People he had never met before. All of them had one thing in common¡ªthey were all using Scribe-of-Worlds¡­ ¡°Is it trying to tell me that fate developed this as well? The growth of Scribe-of-Worlds was a result of fate too?¡± The pieces move again. White pawn to G4 and black knight shifts to F6. White then sets up the board with rook to G1. By now, Soren was noticing the intricacies of their plays. White and Black seemed to have distinct styles that differ from one another. It was as if Soren was watching an actual game of chess from two different players, rather than reading the movements of fate themselves¡­ ¡°Who¡­ Is interfering in this divination?¡± Interfering wasn¡¯t even the right word¡­ Since even with their ¡®interference¡¯, Soren was still reading the movements of fate. In fact, the interpretations he was obtaining were far more accurate and distinct than anything most magi experience. Even Cassia, who showcased unprecedented amounts of talent in Runology would not be able to obtain visions this¡­ clear. Soren focused his eyes back on the board¡­ With white moving the rook to G1, he would inadvertently have to sacrifice the bishop on C5¡ªsomething black quickly sees by moving its pawn to capture the piece. The moment the bishop exited the game, Soren obtained a new vision. This one was stranger than every other one¡­ It showcased Soren simply¡­ Going to college? ¡°Why would that hold any significance?¡± The game continued. White plays pawn to H4. Black responds to the pressure on its queen and moves it back to G6. White continues the pressure with pawn to H5, forcing the queen back to G5, wasting a move. And then, white¡¯s queen finally comes into play. [Fictionalization] shows it shifting into the F3 position¡­ Another vision plays. This one seemed to continue the round of images from last time¡­ Soren could be seen studying in the library for an exam. And then, something finally clicked into place¡ªhe was confused as to what the divination was trying to show him, but everything now made sense¡­ What he was seeing was a scene from a possible future. Soren remembered what exam the scene was showing him studying for¡­ It was an exam he had no care for¡ªan exam that he was supposed to take on the day he enacted his last try of the Secrets of the Records ritual¡­ The fact that he was studying for it was not something Soren did originally. This was a scene that never happened¡ªa scene from a parallel future or something akin to one. ¡°Is this¡­ what my original fate looked like?¡± A fate where Soren continued to be a college student. The moves continued playing in real time. Black knight moves back to G8, bishop captures on F4, black queen moves to F6¡­ Each move brought with it another scene of a possible future or fate. A scene of him having a gaming night with Julie over at her place. A scene of him working a day job. A scene of him¡­ Revisiting chess out of nostalgia. All of these futures were broken and only partially related, but the pain they brought remained the same. Soren couldn¡¯t tell if it was simply regret or anger. His vision was blurring¡ªhe couldn''t tell if that was simply out of exhaustion from the numerous visions he was seeing or if his tears made it hard to see. The movements continued but a certain change occurred this time. Rather than the divination showing scenes of possible past fates, the board was now honing in on his current possible fates. The formation on the board heavily leaned in white¡¯s favor¡ªmost of its pieces were developed and some even have reached the fifth rank. It decides to continue that advantage, moving the knight to C3 to block the threat from the queen. Black bishop moves to C5 in response and white retaliates with knight to D5¡ªthreatening the queen again and removing the threat on his G1 rook. The black queen was practically pinned from all sides, but black still sees an opportunity and decides to move it to capture a pawn on B2, successfully maneuvering its way into the enemy¡¯s back ranks. At this point, most players might panic by either shifting the pieces to defend against the threat of the queen, or misplay by reacting to its presence. White does neither. Even though both of its rooks were hanging, white continued the attack with bishop to D6, adding pressure on both the black bishop on C5 and the undeveloped knight. If the black bishop responds by taking the bait and capturing the white bishop, white could respond by recapturing the bishop with knight to D6 while also checking the king. From these variations, Soren foresaw another set of scenes. A scene of him rejecting the invite of Star Fate Guild and finding a job as a cleaner in Celestine. Another scene of him dying to a Spirit Beast before he could reach Myrin¡¯s camp in the Feylith forest. There were others that were far stranger as well, like Soren becoming a Yadrian slave taken in by an elven noble family as a servant, as well as one where he had failed to seal his Epoch Fate and died to the corruption from his Abstract Rune¡­ Although these futures seemed similar, each one was distinct with countless variations¡­ The possibilities were endless but also finite at the same time¡­ It was then that Soren finally realized something. The two players¡­ They were playing¡­ With his fate. What he was witnessing on the board were two entities battling over what his fate could look like. Every movement was a possible fate, and each piece taken down was akin to a possible future being no longer accessible¡­ ¡°Are they¡­ gods?..¡± The realization left him baffled, but he had no time to contemplate as the pieces moved again. Black bishop captures the rook on G1¡­ But white brilliantly moves its pawn to E5¡­ Many would see this position and assume it was a blunder, since the black queen now has the freedom to take white¡¯s only other rook for nothing in return¡­ But Soren thought it otherwise. This position, while it was discrete, heavily favors white. The pawn on E5 essentially blocks the queen from leaving the back ranks to defend the pieces on G7¡­ Regardless, the black Queen moves to take the free rook. And at the same time, Soren¡¯s mind explodes with information. Information¡­ About the future¡­ Chapter 102: Fatebreaker

Chapter 102: Fatebreaker

A vision entered Soren¡¯s mind. A vision of the future. A future where he was forsaken in a land forever eclipsed. Where the endless gray fog ran from the light of the lamp. A future where he was imprisoned among a menagerie of horrors. Where the line between man and monster could not be seen. A future where he was ascending a winding tower made from the corpses of coiling dragons. Where those who were worshipped as immortals first bled. A future where¡­ A graveyard of ships swam inside an endless void, forever awaiting the war that never came. ¡°What¡­ What is happening!?¡± His mind was being overwhelmed, but not to the same degree as when he first entered the Veil of Perception. The images were jumbled and incomprehensible, like a broken cassette player. Pushing the images away, he noticed the board changing. With his eyes still blurred, he glanced down at the pieces and the formation. [Fictionalization] has to move the white king into the E2 position¡­ At least, it was doing so for a bit¡­ Until something far more jarring manifested itself. Underneath the pieces, the black and white checkered board¡­ had sprawled an eyeball. The board¡­ it was seeing what was happening¡­ A shiver ran down Soren¡¯s spine. The eyeball shifted around, gazing from beneath the pieces at the luminous marble canopy. Then, in an instant, its terrifying gaze locked on to Soren¡¯s presence. ¡°C-cease! Cease divination!¡± He screamed at his Soul Weapon, but the familiar voice couldn¡¯t be heard. Soren grit his teeth and slammed his fist into the chessboard, scattering the pieces everywhere. [Fictionalization] finally came undone, and the summoned chessboard broke apart into golden butterflies once more. The divination was over. If he had hesitated for more than a second, that entity would have most likely succeeded in usurping full control over [The Faerie Court]... Soroen leaned forward on the round table¡ªbody drenched in sweat. His breath came in ragged gasps, and his face which he could see from the reflection of the marble was deathly pale. There was nothing he could say. All he could do was stay silent and contemplate over everything. The voice finally reached out to him again, ¡°Did you finally obtain what you wanted?¡± The voice sounded concerned, but he could tell it was mocking him. Soren didn¡¯t reply. His mind was racing with thoughts regarding what he saw at the very end. The visions that played were clearly visions of the future. ¡°Do you think these are all fates that will appear in sequence, or simply different versions of what the future could look like?¡± Before the black queen took the free rook on A1, the different fates he saw clearly corresponded to the agenda and purpose of the players. He could tell for one, that white¡¯s pieces had a much closer relationship to his original fate¡ªat least, at the start. Black on the other hand seemed to showcase alternative fates that didn¡¯t happen¡ªwhich made sense because black was losing in the game. But that still came at the cost of his original fate¡ªwhite needed to sacrifice countless pieces to attack the enemy. However, this cohesion and structure to the divination collapsed the moment the black queen captured the last remaining rook on white¡¯s side. No, it might have been due to¡­ That eyeball. It was fairly obvious what it was. One of the entities playing with his fate had noticed his presence and somehow managed to pass through and influence [Fictionalization] to disrupt his flow of anima¡­ It also used it against Soren to manifest a part of itself into the forbidden space¡­ How¡­ Terrifying¡­ This level of power was not something he could ever go against. Even Hurion mentioned that the gods of Yarian stood no chance against fate, and yet these two beings were somehow manipulating it like it was a game to them¡­ Who the hell are they? There was no way to know. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel. Regardless, due to the interference, the futures he saw all became jumbled and unclear, with no coherent timeline or even a way to differentiate whether those fates corresponded to white or black. He couldn¡¯t tell at all which side wanted those visions to come true and which didn¡¯t¡­ Hearing his question, the voice answered, ¡°Does it matter? Your goal was to defy fate, was it not?¡± Hearing this, Soren¡¯s lips curved into a faint smile. ¡°You¡¯re right.¡± ¡°How foolish.¡± Still, it was possible. The fact that there were entities out there who could manipulate fate proved this. Though, whether he would even reach such a level of power seemed both delusional and or outright insane. Even Hurion had given up on such a folly goal¡­ Besides, there was still the question of what fate even was in the first place¡­ He had a theory though. From what he witnessed during the game, the futures were being played with different possibilities, with their probability of coming true fluctuating based on the state of the game. Soren was human¡ªhe could for the most part see a couple to a dozen moves ahead depending on the formations. His memory was also honed to memorizing hundreds to thousands of different variations¡ªsome popular while others more obscure. However, that was still the limit. He was a human, not a chess computer engine. But even with that limitation, he could tell that 9 times out of 10, white would win. In fact, that first blunder with the bishop already cemented the game as a loss for black¡ªat least in his (grandmaster) opinion. If it was him personally playing as black in that position, he would have immediately surrendered the match. Which meant that the probability of events going the way white fated them to be was much higher. His original fate being abandoned at the start of the game was due to white¡¯s movements¡ªhis probability of winning influenced the outcome of fate going in that direction. That was unntil he noticed something. The game¡­ It was disrupted by white¡­ He came to this conclusion because of the last move. Before the game was disrupted, it was white¡¯s turn to move. With the black queen positioned in A1, the king had to be forced up a rank to avoid the check. But when [Fictionalization] started to shift the pieces in accordance to the next turn being played, a certain change occurred. It was fairly subtle but Soren still picked up on it. [Fictionalization] which shifted the king into E2, shifted the king back to F1 for absolutely no reason¡­ As if the person enacting the move changed his mind last second¡­ From what Soren remembered of official chess tournaments rules, taking a move back that you already enacted intentionally usually results in a disqualification. This obviously introduced a question¡ªwhy? Why would white, the side that was clearly winning, sabotage themselves into losing the match? The truth eluded him, but it still aided his theory regarding fate. Fate, in accordance with standard Yarian theology and astrology, was usually denoted as the ¡®Three Orbits.¡¯ Soren had always found the name strange¡ªyes, there was a clear indication that one¡¯s fate in the three layers¡ªEpoch, World, Celestial¡ªwas denoted through the stars. When Soren enacted an accord with Sienna as witness, he spoke that promise aloud to his Epoch Star. But that didn''t really explain the ¡®why¡¯ behind such a mechanism. Why would fate, which was divided into three segments, orbit each other? The Epoch Star orbits around the World Star, and the World Star orbits around the Celestial Star. The Celestial Star orbits around itself and the other Celestial Stars¡­ So for Yarian¡¯s Celestial Fate to be frozen, its orbit in the context of other Celestial Stars would have to stop, leaving the three orbits beneath it out of sync. That did however, bring up a question, what exactly are these orbits? There were countless theories across a spectrum of schools of thought and philosophies, but none seemed to grasp an answer. Soren however, might have finally obtained one. The laws of attraction. That was what an orbit surmised to in the first place after all¡ªgravity. One needs gravity to orbit a star¡­ So in the same manner, the orbits of fate would also require an external force to keep the orbits going¡­ And that would also mean that the stars of Fate themselves play a role in manipulating each other. After witnessing those two beings playing with his fate, his theory only became clearer in his mind¡­ And when he applied it to Yarian¡¯s case of having its Celestial fate frozen, it only made even more sense. If the three orbits could be thought of in the same context as gravity, then being out of sync with one another would mean a disruption in their orbits¡ªas well as their influence on each other. And what happens if, for example, the World Star which orbits the Celestial Star in Yarian¡¯s context was flung completely out of orbit? The end of the world. Without a destiny to follow, the world would have to cease to exist, and by extension, the stars of epoch that orbit that World Star would also have their existence questioned. In essence, The Whispering Dream¡¯s goal could be explained using this context¡ªhe was plotting the ¡®acceleration¡¯ of the instability of these orbits to further separate the three fate stars from one another and bring total collapse to this world¡¯s existence. But this also proved something else. Fate might be unbreakable, but it was not unchangeable. Just as gravity governs the motion of celestial bodies, fate can be seen as a universal law shaping the course of existence. But how that future could be shaped depends on the stars influencing the orbits. Changing the stars means changing the orbits, or simply introducing new stars could simply alter the forces of attraction on fate, in the same manner that adding another planet to a star system would have an adverse effect on the current orbits¡­ In a way, the two god-like beings that were playing with his fate were doing exactly that¡ªinfluencing the orbits by introducing new fates or parallel futures. Some succeeded, while others didn¡¯t. Some were sacrificed to empower another more powerful force of attraction¡­ If one viewed the flow of destiny in such a manner, then perhaps with enough astral anima to ¡®influence¡¯ the world, fate could be changed¡­ Soren glanced up at the flickering bonfire and smiled. ¡°Perhaps it''s finally time I revisit that ill-fated contract¡­¡± Chapter 103: Crimson Ritual

Chapter 103: Crimson Ritual

If the Soren from two weeks ago knew about his current plans, he would have called him insane. But that Soren was long gone¡ªreplaced by one that has discovered far more about this world than many magi do after centuries of study. Soren knew his limitations better than anyone else. He knew how powerless he was against the pull of fate. But, that didn¡¯t mean he should submit. No, it was the opposite. Because he understood his limits well enough, he knew how far he could go before crossing the line of no return¡­ And that was exactly his plan. He was going to use all his strength, intelligence and every opportunity at his disposal to achieve his goal. There was one such opportunity waiting to be exploited: Tazzith¡¯s contract. From what he understood in regards to fate, the orbits and attractions that shaped his path were influenced by his Epoch Star. But his Epoch Star wasn¡¯t alone¡ªit revolved around the World Star, just as every other individual in Yarian had their own Epoch Star bound to that same force. If one were to use the context of gravity again, then it would be logical to assume that one¡¯s own Epoch Star also exerts this force. After all, in the solar system, just as the sun exerts its gravity on Earth, so too does Earth exert its gravity back on the sun¡­ All celestial objects in the universe have their own gravitational force, regardless of who they orbit. By using this logic, Soren figured something fairly crucial in regards to how fate operates¡­ Fate doesn¡¯t just pull individuals toward a certain conclusion, but the individuals themselves pull others into that conclusion. Just as planets have their own external force, Soren too has his own pull on the fate of those around him¡­ He witnessed this personally just an hour or so ago¡ªif time could even be measured in the Faerie Court¡­ Julie, an individual whose fate should have resulted in her simply being a normal student was dragged into the Mysterious World and became a Phantasm¡­ All because of her connection to him. Soren¡¯s Epoch Star had attracted and changed the trajectory of her Epoch Star unknowingly. The same could be said for the Whispering Dream¡ªhis fate of accelerating the end of the world intertwined with Soren¡¯s¡­ ¡°Gravity exists in all of us¡­ So fate must exist in all our Epoch Stars as well¡­ If two Epoch Stars get too close to each other, the forces of attraction apply¡­ Their fates intertwine¡­¡± The flame flickered above his head, ¡°But how will you know whether that new fate that results from such a collision will be beneficial to you?¡± Soren shook his head. ¡°There is no way to know. I am not like those gods during that divination¡ªplaying with one¡¯s fate like it''s a toy¡­ ¡°Let¡¯s just say¡­ What I am about to do is a blind experiment.¡± He smiled¡ªthe sight of it must have been terrifying. Soren could tell from his reflection off the marble round table that his eyes hid an ocean of madness underneath his amber irises¡­ ¡°Besides,¡± he followed, ¡°My Yarian fictional body¡ªlet¡¯s call it an avatar¡ªstill exists in that building where the Whispering Dream was keeping me¡­ The moment I return to Yarian, I¡¯ll most likely be transported there again.¡± Hearing this, the voice simply sighed and channeled [Fictionalization] to showcase what he wanted to see most. A golden window pane morphed into being before his eyes. Event Log New Message Received: [Title: Contract?] (Author: Tazzith) ¡°Open message,¡± he ordered without an ounce of further hesitation. The golden window pane morphed into the desired shape. Reading the message, Soren couldn¡¯t help but chuckle. ¡°Fate¡­ It truly is funny as Hurion said¡­ I wonder if this will please the Whispering Dream, or anger him beyond belief?¡±
Cassia¡¯s claws raged with dragonfire as she slashed down at another puppet. A few hours prior, she might have been more cautious in trying not to harm the person, but all of that proved pointless. The battles were getting harder and harder as time went on¡­ ¡°Fucking bastards¡­¡± She grit her teeth as she stared at the lifeless corpse before her eyes¡ªface covered in sweat. Trying to keep them alive was useless¡ªeven when she succeeded in capturing the puppets, their heads would simply explode while giving praise to the Whispering Dream¡ªwhoever that may be. It was obvious to her by now that the person behind this was messing with them¡ªhe was doing it on purpose to force them into killing their opponents. That Whispering Dream¡­ I will kill him myself! But before she could reach such a lofty goal, she had to deal with what¡¯s in front of her. Another puppet was awaiting its turn to be pummeled to the ground¡ªone that she was familiar with. Cassia¡¯s eyes narrowed. ¡°So it¡¯s you.¡± A silver knight holding two radiant curved swords approached her slowly. Every step sent echoes across his armor. Madness hid behind the visor of his helmet. Frowning, she cast a glance at Tyrel who was fighting his own battle elsewhere in the empty plaza. The night was long and both of them were fairly close to where the Greenfather Ritual was soon to take place¡ªno, from the sound of it, it might have already begun¡­ That only introduced more problems. They had been lucky so far that none of the city''s officials and guards had caught wind of their battles, but it was clear that the opponent had no such worries himself¡ªthe Whispering Dream was bringing his puppets closer and closer to that area, forcing them to fight more and more in the open. No, it might be more accurate to say that Soren was being kept hostage near the ritual. Cassia wondered if sooner or later, they might need to face off against the Church of Nature directly¡­ Just as she was preparing another spellform, her eyes trailed off to where the ritual was taking place¡­ She was sensing a familiar yet strange anima¡­ Love this novel? Read it on Royal Road to ensure the author gets credit. ¡°Soren?..¡±
The night was lit with the torches of believers and preachers. Celestine¡¯s central square had been transformed into a makeshift festival, with commoners joyfully walking between stalls, purchasing items and playing amongst themselves. The final night of the Greenfather festival was approaching¡­ The ritual was close to starting. Virion stared at the distant altar¡ªa man wearing a robe made of green silk and holding a staff of ivory stood patiently. He immediately recognized him as a Church of Nature priest. He then glanced around at the crowd slowly gathering next to the platform¡ªhis eyes scanning for anyone familiar. ¡°Where is he, where is he¡­¡± After being tasked by the Saintess of Dreams to infiltrate Celestine, Virion for the first few weeks found it extremely difficult to find any clues regarding the perpetrator of the Nameless Mist masacre back in Yadria¡­ She, the Saintess, had obtained a revelation from the Holy Flower Maiden that the person behind the attack had made his way into the heart of the Aelloran Kingdom. Of course, back then, he had no idea that his investigations would once again cross paths with Star Fate Guild. It had happened out of convenience¡ªthe shadow swordsman named Tyrel had approached him with terms to cooperate first because he too was trailing signs of the Nameless Mist being spread across rural villages of the Aelloran border. And somehow, whether it was fate or coincidence, the day they were planning on visiting his guild base was the day the Whispering Dream attacked and kidnapped one of their members¡­ And now, here he was in the middle of the festival, looking for that person named Soren. Back when he first saw him in Yadria, Virion had no impression of the young man. Vagrant Phantasms were rare, but not a very exciting sight to see¡ªmany died from their own corruption fairly quickly, and the ones that survived tended to be fairly weak and afraid of authority figures, clinging to the shadows in order to not be caught by the orthodox churches. Soren gave that same feeling to him. In fact, he was significantly weaker compared to every other Vagrant he had seen. And yet¡­ His eyes hid layers of confidence that he never fully understood. Even after witnessing the atrocities of the nightshade raid and then getting caught by him, he never cowered and begged for his life. Instead, he immediately read his thoughts and deescalated the issue, preventing a battle between him and that warrioress named Tina. And when he was put to trial in the Subterranean Shunning Grounds, he gave up the opportunity for power from a demon without much hesitation and resigned himself to die in that prison¡­ Most Vagrants he knew would have begged to even be given such a disgusting opportunity¡­ These were not the actions of an average Vagrant Phantasm¡­ After he heard about the Whispering Dream kidnapping him, his suspicions about him only grew. When the saints return from the expedition, I should inform them about him¡­ Of course, that was if he was even still alive¡­ Their search has yet to bring results. Suddenly, he heard the sound of the head priest beginning his sermon. ¡°In the name of the guardian of the forests, in the presence of the unseen forces of nature¡­ We stand here today ushering in a new era for the one who watches over us all!¡± The crowd of believers cheered. ¡°Praise the Greenfather!¡± ¡°This occasion,¡± the head priest said with a smile, ¡°Is a bit more special than the ones before it. Our offering this year is far more plentiful! May the blessings of nature reach us all!¡± ¡°May they reach us all!¡± Glancing across the podium, the head priest nodded. ¡°Then let us commence the ritual!¡± Virion watched as a large bonfire was lit before the altar. Its flames soured high above¡ªilluminating the entire plaza. The believers all closed their eyes in silent prayer as the nuns and church workers brought the holy materials they were offering one by one up to the altar. Soon, those materials would be sacrificed to the Nurtured of Nature, the Greenfather. As he was witnessing all of this unfold, Virion noticed something strange. Among the workers going up to the altar, one didn¡¯t seem like the others¡­ And that¡¯s when he recognized him. ¡°Cecil?!¡± It was a man wearing a dark green robe, holding a wooden staff with carnivorous flowers blooming from its apex. At the bottom, tiny vines could be seen sprouting and spreading across the cobblestone ground¡­ None of the people present had noticed it but him. Virion grit his teeth. He knew that his friend was now long gone¡­ What he was seeing was nothing but the husk of him¡ªbeing controlled by a person from the shadows¡­ ¡°I have to stop him!¡± He was most likely aiming for something nefarious. But just as that thought entered his mind, something else grabbed his attention. In the building behind the ritual platform, leaning on the railing of the highest balcony was a figure shrouded in shadows¡­ In his hand was a stave with three matte-black bells attached to the top. A saint? No, Luvin and Silmar are both exploring the Avalon Ruins¡­ An impersonator? No, that doesn¡¯t make a lot of sense either¡­ Before he could think about it any further, the mysterious man shook his staff, and the bells rang eerily across the central square for all to hear¡­ Then, all hell broke loose. It started with faint confusion, but the first casualty didn¡¯t take long to be noticed. Vines sprung from the ground like spears, impaling everyone in their paths. Women, children, the elderly¡­ They did not discriminate. The blood of the believers flooded the square, dressed in the screams of the anguished. ¡°What is happening!?¡± ¡°Call the castle guards!¡± ¡°Oh Greenfather, save us!¡± Salvation didn¡¯t come. Virion watched in horror as the vines grew more and more chaotic and lively. They began to chase after anyone fleeing the scene, impaling them with callous resolve¡ªabsorbing them for the blood bags they were. Dried up bodies dropped like flies. Vines grew like a cancerous plague. Screams spread their misery for all to hear. The ritual was dyed crimson. Virion¡¯s eyes trailed across the macabre scene, trying to find any hint or clue to the whereabouts of his friend Cecil¡­ He had lost track of him during the initial chaos. I have to stop him! Fast! Cecil¡¯s Soul Weapon, The Crimson Root, allows him to manifest vines that draw the blood of his victims. The siphoned ichor would then be used to summon countless floral horrors, from man-eating plants to poisonous mushroom trees that spread their spores in the air¡­ Such an ability¡­ it flourished in densely populated areas. Of course, the friend he knew would have never even imagined using it in such a horrific way¡­ Cecil was one of the kindest souls he knew in the Nightshade Court¡ªsomeone who never hesitated to do the right thing¡­ Virion raced ahead into the blood field, looking for any signs of his long-gone friend. His Soul Weapon sliced through countless vines, but it was no use. He couldn¡¯t see him anywhere. Worse, he had to ignore all the civilians asking for help. There was no stopping the vines from growing. The only way to put an end to this massacre was through killing the wielder of the Soul Weapon¡­ And, he had a faint idea of where he was. The ritual altar. He had seen him before the chaos started heading in that direction with the other workers. Gathering his anima, Virion used his crimson daggers to slice his way forward one step at a time. His senses, honed to a razor¡¯s edge, focused on only the enemy before him. The screams of anguish from those around him were all filtered out¡ªall that remained in his mind was to slice, slice and slice even more. He had to become an emotionless blade to maneuver across the battlefield¡ªthe vines were outnumbering him one to a thousand. A single wound could be fatal¡ªhis blood wasn¡¯t infinite after all. It took a bit of effort, but it worked. He broke through the sea of vines on the other side of the central square covered in tiny cuts from the sharp thorns. His weary eyes trailed up to the ritual altar where the head-priest was using all the incantations he had at his disposal to protect those around him, but it was no use. Cecil was too strong for him to handle. Curses! Virion raced up the steps, but that¡¯s when he noticed something. A strange and fragrant aroma filled the air¡­ He could almost taste it. For some reason, his mind couldn¡¯t help but want to fall asleep¡­ Shaking the mesmerizing thoughts away, he glanced up at the balcony where he first spotted the strange saint-like figure. The balcony was unnaturally illuminated, with countless tiny butterflies flying out into the field below. Then, something even stranger happened. All the vines stopped. It felt as if time had frozen over the bloodied square. Chapter 104: Fates Witness

Chapter 104: Fate''s Witness

The skies were dark¡­ and crimson. The night lights had all disappeared. ¡°Someone save us!¡± ¡°My arm! My arm!¡± ¡°The gods! They have forsaken us!¡± ¡°Mother! Where are¡ªAh!!!¡± Blood spilled, tears fell, silence conquered the screams of those who could not scream no more. But to Lynus, these sensations had mixed into a menagerie of violence he could not hope to understand. No, he simply didn¡¯t want to understand. Hiding beneath a pile of bodies, he suppressed his breathing to the best of his abilities. His face was covered in the blood and tears of those lying above him as the taste of iron filled his mouth and throat. His limbs shook, and shook and shook¡­ His eyes, even as blood dripped on them from above, couldn¡¯t be shut. He couldn¡¯t forsake his vision, for it felt as if it would mark his end. When will it end? When? When?! The question replayed in his mind. Over and over, without any answer in sight. WHEN, WHEN, WHEN, WHEN, WHEN?! The screams were relentless. He could feel the smell of death lingering and growing around him¡­ Maybe, he too would join them soon enough¡­ It all happened so fast. Just minutes prior, he was standing in prayer with everyone else¡ªhis mother, grandmother, sister and aunt¡­ All of them joyfully welcoming a new age of nature and prosperity¡­ Then it happened. First his mother was impaled¡ªkilling her instantly, then his grandmother was shredded by the vines, then his sister¡­ Finally, his aunt tried to take him and run, but she too had the life sucked out of her in the end, leaving only a mummified corpse for her niece to see¡­ Did nature betray us? Did the gods demand such a sacrifice? Was the Greenfather relishing in our demise? He couldn¡¯t tell if he was angry, afraid, or saddened beyond belief¡­ Maybe it was a mix of them all. But it felt closer to silent rage induced with fear than it did a sense of betrayal. But really, that¡¯s all his mind could preoccupy itself with. Distant thoughts to distract from the ocean of death and misery he was now drowning in. Moments later, he felt another body falling on the pile, adding more weight on top of him. Lynus kept his lips sealed, awaiting the end of this hellish night¡­ Each second felt like an hour, and every minute felt like a century¡­ Then, something strange happened. A mysterious sensation took over his body, washing away the lingering dread. A soothing voice that felt close yet far whispered a comforting lullaby, filling his weary heart with the comfort it needs¡­ The guilt of leaving everyone behind lifted from his shoulders. The rage of wanting his wounded heart to be avenged was subdued. The pain of crawling above a mesh of bloodied thorns was cooled. Sleep filled his mind¡­ It whispered into his mind: ¡°Your nightmare is over¡­¡± ¡°A fai¡­ry?..¡± The world turned dark. From the familiar balcony, Soren watched the now pacified horror show with keen eyes and a soft smile. His butterfly-filled irises lingered on the youth underneath the rubble¡ªhis Hermit¡¯s Eye seeing all that it needed to see. ¡°What an utterly boring conclusion¡­¡± Said a familiar voice from behind¡ªThe Whispering Dream. Without turning back to face him, Soren continued to glance at the now sleeping civilians and crumbling vines. The comfort they were feeling, the emotions they harbored and the knowledge they had obtained¡­ All of it flowed into him¡ªwhether through [Eyes of the Fairy] or through simple intuition. ¡°It indeed was very boring.¡± He nodded in agreement. The Whispering Dream stood next to him, watching the slowly unraveling scene bellow. City guards from other districts flowed in mass toward the bloodied square, many of them racing to catch the perpetrator who had fallen asleep on the altar platform. ¡°So what now? You said you would defy fate, but here you are aiding me in my goal. Was it not you who denied contacting Tazzith explicitly? Why do I sense his anima within you now?¡± Soren¡¯s smile softened. ¡°I learned something very fundamental after my escape from you. ¡°The chessboard of fate, you see¡­ It has no kings, but it also has no pawns. We are all formless in the eyes of the board.¡± He grasped the railing tightly, ¡°The futures we desire are no less important than the ones that go unfulfilled¡ªat least from the perspective of fate itself. It is up to the individual to choose which he wants to give importance to¡­ ¡°That¡­ Is free will. At least, how one would justify consciousness in a world filled with things destined to happen. After all, anima, at its very core, is the manifested willpower of those who wield it. We exert our willpower on the world, so why not fate?¡± The Whispering Dream stayed silent. ¡°As for aiding you¡­ I am not sure if you¡¯re being obtuse on purpose, but that clearly isn¡¯t the case. If it was, you would have had three promises of the divine accord broken by now.¡± Soren glanced at the hooded figure and sighed. ¡°Stealing the holy materials meant for the Greenfather, feeding those materials to Tazzith to free him, and finally¡­ Massacring the believers of the Church of Nature to artificially accelerate the conflict between Yadria and Aellora. You have certainly managed to achieve the last one, but the other two have been stopped by me, have they not?¡± From Soren¡¯s clear view of the balcony, he could see the perpetrator of this massacre that the Whispering Dream was controlling¡ªa Holy Phantasm from the Court of Nightshade, named Cecil Vylanus. The son of a nobleman. Indeed, the information was flowing into Soren directly¡­ After all, he had managed to expand his Soul Realm across the entire vicinity of the festival square. Mangled humans hanging from thorny vines like dried up fruit, corpses littered across the cobblestone, painting it all in a dark crimson hue, torches from the now arrived city guards, observing the horrifying scene with their legs shaking. HIs Hermit¡¯s Eye saw it all. The information held within each perspective flowed into him directly. Even¡­ The Whispering Dream¡¯s perspective. Soren¡¯s lips curved into a sinister smile¡ªone filled with utter madness and rage. ¡°So I want you to say again how exactly I aided you? In fact, judging by where Cecil was, you were planning on having him steal the holy materials¡­ What made you change your mind to command him to start the massacre early? ¡°Surely¡­ you didn¡¯t change your plans because you were scared of my return? You wouldn¡¯t be that much of a coward right, Silmar?¡± Indeed, with [Eyes of the Fairy] actively paired with the Hermit¡¯s Eye, no obfuscation could work to obstruct his vision, unlike the last time he tried it¡­ Soren was staring directly at the features of the enigmatic saint beneath his hood¡­ Silver hair that flowed like silk, gray eyes that hid a hundred different shades within them, and an enchanting smile that could capture the heart of any man or woman. Stolen content warning: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences. The Saint of Dreams, Silmar¡ªbrother of Sylia, the Saintess of Dreams. Soren was able to immediately recognize him¡ªafter all, it was hard to forget someone as beautiful as him¡­ He had only come in contact with two saints, and both gave a lasting impression¡­ He always had his suspicions, but he never expected to find proof this quickly¡­ Hearing this, Silmar smiled. He lifted the hood off his head and glanced at the young man standing next to him. He could tell that beneath Soren¡¯s calm and soothing expression was an ocean of rage and darkness. His anima is much more saturated than before¡­ The color of his affinity was manifesting clouds of violet fog around him that quivered and shook under his emotions. Indeed, it was far too early to invoke such a large-scale expansion of one¡¯s Soul Realm without enough consciousness training¡­ It was clear where this anima was coming from¡­ Tazzith, the Knowledge Demon. Their affinities might be different, but there would certainly be some overlap to allow such a manifestation to occur¡­ Though, not without a heavy cost. His smile widened as he stared at the young magi before him. ¡°I will give it to you, my earlier provocation was somewhat rude. Indeed, you have managed to achieve the impossible¡ªfate has been steered into a different trajectory than what was foretold. But, I must ask¡­ ¡°Was it really worth it?¡± He turned to face the horrific scene outside the balcony. ¡°The deal you struck with Tazzith, I am certain it wasn¡¯t entirely favorable to you. Was it worth the effort?¡± Soren stayed silent as he turned to face the massacre as well. In the distance, he noticed a soldier digging through a pile of corpses to lift out a sleeping child from underneath the blood and grime. His lips curved into a smile. ¡°One thousand two hundred and thirty three church believers, and yet only three hundred and fifty four of them survived. Out of those that did, only twenty three weren¡¯t maimed. If we are trying to measure loss, yours has already bled this city dry, and yet your goal will have you reaping the entire world soon.¡± Silmar shook his head and scoffed. ¡°I was not expecting you to say something this immature. The people of this world¡­ All of them are like grass straws¡ªeasily toppled by the wind, easily trampled on by figures who do not even register such a cost. The gods they worship see them as nothing more than pets¡­¡± He glanced at Soren with cold eyes, ¡°You also have the potential to be one of those figures. Even though my goal is self-destructive, you have the potential to stand with me at the end of this world. Of course, this was before I learnt about your acquisition of that forgotten rune¡ªhow sly of you indeed. ¡°Its powers are definitely tied to traversing the Rift¡­ I am certain now that even if that strange blessing of yours disappears, you could still find a way to survive if this world crumbled entirely¡­ So tell me¡ªwhy did you choose to stand in my way even when the cost was heavy?¡± Soren looked into his eyes¡ªthey were filled with curiosity and a strange inkling of desire¡­ That was all [Eyes of the Fairy] could read. Seeing the Whispering Dream awaiting his answer, Soren chuckled. ¡°Because I can?¡± ¡°Pardon?¡± ¡°You heard me,¡± Soren repeated. ¡°I just wanted to experiment with fate, that¡¯s all. To see where my limits lie. The cost was indeed heavy¡ªin exchange for Tazzith granting me one of his affinities, I would help him reconstruct his body¡­¡± Silmar frowned. ¡°He gave you one of his affinities? You do realize what that means, do you?¡± ¡°Yes,¡± he nodded. ¡°I am now corrupted with one of His ¡®Shades¡¯ of Self. Though, ¡®corrupted¡¯ also is too harsh of a word¡­¡± Soren rubbed his chin. ¡°Indeed, if anyone else had taken this path, they would have instantly died from having their mind split in half, but I am somewhat special you see¡­¡± ¡°Your race¡­¡± ¡°Indeed,¡± Soren replied. ¡°I am not human anymore. But that¡¯s not really the reason. You see, Tazzith and I had a lot in common when it came to personality¡­ All I needed to do was ¡®nudge¡¯ myself to be a bit like him¡­¡± Silmar looked into Soren¡¯s eyes once more, this time noticing a hint of madness different from what he had seen before. It danced like a flame inside him, but the anima of his Soul Realm blocked further probing. ¡°How¡­ marvelous¡­¡± He couldn¡¯t help but be impressed. ¡°Yes, I inherited a bit of ¡®him¡¯ within me.¡± Of course, Soren made it out to be simple, but it was anything but. Aside from the fact that a portion of his personality had been forever twisted, the biggest change happened to his Epoch Fate Star instead. Just as breaking the promises of the Divine Accord unravels it, so too does an accord enacted on one¡¯s own fate star. Soren¡¯s accord¡ªto freeze the movements of fate for his Soul Chain was essentially a will to freeze the movements of his own self¡­ That was because unlike every other being in this world, Soren¡¯s True Self was connected directly to his Soul Weapon¡ªin fact, it was a one-to-one representation. By twisting his True Self, he had inadvertently messed with his Soul Chain as well. Creating a massive change to his personality through external means was akin to going against this promise. It would be akin to signing a contract with someone then finding out that they weren''t who they said they were. Though, that anology somewhat oversinplified it. Even so, that didn¡¯t mean the accord had completely broken apart¡ªif it did, the figment of his imagination would have already taken over his body and assumed full control of [The Faerie Court]. However, it still managed to shave six months from the promise¡­ Soren now only had five more months left to find another Abstract Rune to merge with and stabilize his Soul Chain. Indeed, a heavy cost as Silmar said it was¡­ But that was the point. His theory of how Star Fate operated needed another force of attraction to change the trajectory of fate, but his anima wasn¡¯t powerful enough to achieve it alone. Fate, like gravity, had a natural pull¡ªit sought the most direct path, dragging the orbits of fate stars along the course of least resistance. Left untouched, it would have ensured that Silmar broke all three promises of the divine accord, bringing countless Rift disasters to Yarian and accelerating the collapse of this world¡­ But Soren had thrown another celestial body into that equation. Knowing that his own Fate Star was too miniscule to make a difference in the path of fate, Soren brought along a bigger star¡ªone with more pull on the fabric of fate than his. Tazzith, the Knowledge Demon. Someone stated to have been a Sovereign in his prime. Soren didn¡¯t tell Silmar this, but aside from helping Him reconstruct his body, Soren also marked him with the powers of [The Faerie Court] as an anchor in accordance to their contract. Such a move¡­ It was extremely reckless, even for his own extremely low standards, but it was the only way he knew to tie their fates to each other¡­ Of course, that also introduced a number of other problems, but he was willing to let future Soren handle it. Future me would definitely hate current me¡­ Wait, I hate current me, too¡­ He shook his head with a smile. Seeing how relaxed Soren was, Silmar couldn''t help but sigh. ¡°You really are insane.¡± ¡°I hear that a lot.¡± ¡°Even so, your ploy¡­ It has definitely worked to a certain degree. But you''ve made a crucial mistake. ¡°Even though two of the promises I meant to break have not yet been broken, that does not mean I cannot continue pursuing these goals from now on¡­ This time, it cost you a bit of your sanity and a horrible deal with a demon just to prevent me from breaking the promises of the past, but I wonder what it will cost you the next time you try to stop me? Your friends? Your life? Maybe something far more precious?¡± Soren stayed silent as Silmar continued, ¡°Not to mention, the holy materials for the ritual still stand before me now¡­ I can try to steal them before I leave, ensuring another promise is broken.¡± Hearing this, Soren couldn''t help but laugh. ¡°You might be right. This time, it was my own selfishness that lead me to trying to stop you. I simply wanted to see if I could defy fate, and the experiment worked¡­ With mixed results.¡± Suddenly, the anima in the air began to shake. ¡°I am no hero after all¡­ The people I managed to save today¡­ They only survived because the fate I twisted led to that conclusion. If you were to continue on this path¡ªseeking more and more of the promises of that ancient accord, I doubt I''ll be able to stop you. Not with my current power, at least. ¡°And that''s perfectly fine. Whether I stop you or not is not something I am all that focused on¡ªthis world has entire deities after all. I doubt that your recent antics have not alerted them to your presence... Soon, the entire world''s forces will be searching for you. ¡°Being a scribe documenting the end of the world is just as thrilling as documenting the saving of the world. Whatever the conclusion is, I will be satisfied. ¡°But¡­¡± His eyes turned to face the beautiful saint. ¡°That''s only when talking about your future endeavors. As for now, if you try to steal the holy materials¡­ I can''t promise that you''ll leave unharmed. Ah no, that''s a lie. Unharmed is an understatement. ¡°You will die if you try it.¡± ¡°Oho?¡± The Whispering Dream smirked as he rubbed his chin¡ªhis gray eyes trailed up and down the young man, but it was clear to him that Soren was not bluffing. Soren chuckled. ¡°My contract with Tazzith¡­ I can easily modify it and allow him to take full control over my body. Of course, it would result in my death, but I am certain he will be able to drag you into hell to accompany me. Of course, if you still think you have a chance, feel free to gamble with your life. I love gambling after all¡­¡± Silence took over the balcony as the anima in the air became heavier and heavier. this lasted for an entire minute before Silmar chuckled. ¡°Fine, I guess it is your win this time¡­ What a boring conclusion¡­¡± Without waiting for a reply, the Whispering Dream vanished from sight. Without [Eyes of the Fairy], he would have realized what has happened. ¡°So that''s his ability¡­ [Dream Hop]. Interesting.¡± ¡°When you acquire more knowledge on it, will you share it with me?¡± Soren frowned. ¡°Tazzith, how can you be so greedy? I already promised you an entire library¡¯s worth of history knowledge. Don¡¯t you want to learn what has happened across the continent in the past one thousand years? Or does that not interest you anymore?¡± ¡°Gods, how are you so stingy? Even during the contract, you haggled me like crazy¡­ Did Hurion tell you to act like that?¡± Soren chuckled. ¡°If you''re that adamant, we can renegotiate the contract¡­¡± ¡°Forget it, forget it!¡± Hearing this, Soren shook his head and glanced out into the balcony. The smell of blood lingered in the air, still fresh in only his mind alone¡­ Even now, more and more bodies were being carried out, and more and more cries could be heard¡­ The nightmare might have been over, but the night itself continued¡­ Even so, he didn¡¯t have the courage to look away. For this future¡­ was one that he desired and willed to happen. ¡°Tazzith¡­ If one were to view fate in the same way one would view a book¡­ Would my actions today be inline with that of a scribe?¡± There was silence in the air for a moment, before an answer entered his mind. ¡°The scribes of old that I knew all wrote with ink¡­ You, on the other hand, wrote with something darker than black¡­ Some stains never fade.¡± [End of Volume 1: Board of Fate] Chapter 0: Compendium Chapter 0: Compendium This chapter serves as a compendium of knowledge about the world in The Wandering Fairy. Information in this chapter will be gradually updated as more of the story is revealed. [As such, I must warn anyone new to the series from reading further as it will contain spoilers.]

Magic System

The Beyond: A higher dimension, one that is stacked above the natural world mortals live in. The Beyond exists as another layer to the world¡ªone that governs the metaphysical rather than the physical. Everything in the physical world has its own unique representation within the Beyond, except, these representations are all metaphysical and are nothing more than placeholders that the Beyond has imagined. Nothing that exists in the physical world won¡¯t have a representation in the Beyond. Material Runes: Runes that were made to represent the inner workings of the Beyond. Magi utilize them to create complex spellforms in their magecrafts¡ªalso known as Scripted Runic. There is no pattern to the language, so anima is needed to will meaning into them. Abstract Runes: A higher dimensional form of material runes that represent abstract ideas. While Material Runes represent physical things in the world as seen in the Beyond, Abstract Runes represent ideas powered by the collective subconscious of all beings that live in a plane of existence/world. They can be harnessed to forge Soul Weapons. Soul Weapon: A magical item or object that is able to manifest Mysteries onto the world. Soul Weapons cannot be forged without the purposeful manipulation of an Abstract Rune. There are five classes of Soul Weapons: Abstract, Object, Summon, Elemental, and Augment. Each has its own specific advantages and disadvantages. Phantasm: A person who has established a connection to an Abstract Rune and forged their own Soul Weapon out of it. Because of the very nature of the Mysteries they can cast onto the world, they must remain elusive and secretive. Their impact on the world must remain in the shadows, as Phantasms. Phantasm Types: There are three different kinds of Phantasms. Sacred Treasures Sacred Treasures are ancient Soul Weapons that for some reason, remained in existence even after the death of their owner. The Abstract Rune that powers the existence of that Soul Weapon takes full ownership of the host and gains a pseudo-form of intellect of their own. (Does not apply to Summon types who come with intelligence from the start). Sacred Treasures can also be formed when the corruption of a Vagrant takes over completely. When this happens, the body of the Vagrant Phantasm becomes in control of the Abstract Rune, and it uses it to inflict damage and chaos upon the world to increase their influence. But sometimes, these Abstract Runes will decide to abandon this control and become Sacred Treasures on their own. A person who wants to wield a Sacred Treasure must sign a contract with the Abstract Rune powering it. And unlike Phantasms who forged their own Soul Weapon, a Sacred Treasure doesn¡¯t have the ability to grow in power, as the influence one draws all directly goes to the Abstract Rune through the powers of the contract. At the same time, a Sacred Treasure user is not limited to just one Sacred Treasure. As long as you are able to find more and sign the appropriate contract, there is no issue with owning more than one. Anima: Willpower personified. An energy that comes from one¡¯s own willpower. It is used in the powering of magecraft spells. It can only be created by a person¡¯s own Inner Will or True Self and permeates a person¡¯s Soul Realm/Soul Frame. Astral Anima: The willpower of an entire world put together. It is also called the Energy of the Collective Subconscious and it resides within the Beyond. It is used in the powering of Mysteries generated by the abilities granted to Phantasms through their Soul Weapons. Magi: Those with the ability to manifest a Soul Realm and utilize magecraft inside it. They are ranked by the number of circles in their spellforms they can cast. Each magi has his or her own affinity that allows them to cast specific types of magecraft. Soul Realm: A person¡¯s own anima manifesting itself as a zone around the person. This is the hallmark of a person who has become a magus. Magecraft spells can be cast within this spiritual zone. The Three Layers of Self: The inner consciousness of what makes a person. Observing your True Self for the first time will grant you the ability to expand the Three Layers of Self outside your body using your anima, allowing you to manifest a Soul Realm and control it. Inherent Ability: These are abilities unique to a person¡¯s Soul Realm that manifest from a person¡¯s True Self. Affinities: The color of one¡¯s anima. An affinity is the compatibility or resonance that a Magi/Sentinel has with a certain kind of magecraft. Magi cannot cast magecraft that contain Material Runes not within their own affinity. They can be unlocked after a person discovers the different ¡®shades¡¯ of self that hide within their Three Layers. Magecraft: The use of Scripted Runic to manifest certain phenomena unnaturally in the world. A combination of Scripted Runic¡¯s Material Runes together form certain axioms that when combined together, form complex Spellforms. These Spellforms can then be compiled into grimoires for magi to use. Additionally, there are certain Material Runes called ¡°Material Runes of Reason¡± that act as the glue that connects different segments of a spellform to each other. Magecraft can only exist within the confines of a Soul Realm. Magi must have the skill to manipulate the shape of their Soul Realm to allow for their magecraft spells to move in the way they intend them to. Divination: Because Material Runes do not have a pattern to their existence, finding compatible ones with certain affinities becomes a daunting task for most Magi. Divination and Runology are the tools magi use to discover new Material Runes for their research. Divination needs three things to function¡ªa medium, a conduit, and a user. Medium: An item or tool that simulates chaos in certain ways. From that chaos, hidden meanings are interpreted. A good medium needs to have a close connection to the user. The more familiar the item is to that person, the better the interpretations become. Conduits: A source of answers. A conduit is needed so that the person can connect the medium to something that provides those answers. The most common conduits are the deities themselves as well as The Records of Enigma, an ancient tablet that records the runes of all magi that connect to it. (Kind of like a central database). Divinations can have interference if the person loses focus or their anima is messed with during the process. If you find this story on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen. Please report the infringement. Soul Frame: A compressed form of a Soul Realm that takes the shape of one¡¯s body. Soul Frames allow a person to take control of their anima in a much more personal matter. Rather than using your will to exert its influence through the use of Material Runes, they instead utilize Soul Manuals that create different techniques for manipulating the raw anima itself. A Soul Frame can only be formed after one contemplates and discovers the Fourth Layer of Self. It represents a person¡¯s bodily experiences, such as sickness, anatomy, and instincts. Sentinel: Those who have reforged their Soul Realm into a Soul Frame are called Sentinels. They are able to wield their raw anima and its associated affinities in a more instinctual manner. Soul Manuals teach different techniques of manipulating these forces. A person who chooses to become a Sentinel loses the ability to cast magecraft forever. This is because a Soul Frame cannot be reforged back into a Soul Realm¡ªonce the decision is made, it cannot be taken back. This is called the Divergent Paths of Mystery. Sentinels can also coat their weapons in their anima. Mysteries: Phenomena created with the powers of a Soul Weapon. They use Astral Anima as fuel. The phenomena created does not need to exist in the confines of a Soul Realm¡ªit can be manifested anywhere inside a world, as long as the Beyond exists. The abilities that manifest from a Mystery are tied intrinsically to the Abstract Rune the Phantasm wields. Therefore, a Mystery is the Abstract Rune¡¯s way of exerting its influence upon the world. The Law of Mirrored Influence: For every amount of influence exerted on the natural world through Mysteries, the same amount of influence is reflected into The Beyond. Abstract Runes grow by manifesting Mysteries in the world. The more Mysteries they create, the more influence they exert into the world that gets reflected back into the Beyond. That influence in the Beyond is reflected inside the Astral Anima itself¡ªthe willpower of the collective subconscious will start to regard the ideas of that Abstract Rune more favorably as its influence grows, giving it more rune fragments. Forgotten Runes: Runes of such power, that entire civilizations and gods fight over their existence. Each forgotten rune seems to hold the power to manifest their own energy or domain. Forgotten Runes can also exist in fragments, somewhat similarly to Abstract Runes, but the differences between these two systems is unknown. There isn¡¯t much known about them, but only 2 have been named so far. Spirit Blossom Willow: A strange tree that grew during/after Yasini¡¯s Demise. It resides within the borders of the Feylith Forest. The roots of the tree connect to every other lifeform in the forest¡ªsomething the Yadrians like to call the ¡®Dragon Vein.¡¯ A strange energy seems to permeate across these roots which is called ¡®Aether¡¯. Aether seems to be an entirely different source of power compared to anima, but not much is known about it. The Faerie Court: A strange space that exists outside the authority of the Rift. Creative control over the space is under the authority of Soren Andersen. Portals to other worlds exist there that can only function through the use of Anchors, which are markings placed on certain individuals through a contract. [Fictionalization] is an ability granted only inside the mysterious space that allows Soren to manifest anything within his imagination/knowledge into reality. The more knowledge he has on the object, the more realistic its manifestation becomes. Orbits of Fate: Fate in this universe follows the definition of the ¡®Three Orbits.¡¯ These are the three types of Fate Stars that symbolize fate. Epoch Star: The star that represents the individual. Each lifeform in the universe has its own Epoch Star, which represents its life¡¯s destiny. It has a connection to a person¡¯s soul. World Star: The star that represents a given planet. The inhabitants of said planet will have their Epoch Stars orbiting around this World Star. The World Star represents the fate of an entire world, in relation to the universe. It has a connection to the Beyond. Celestial Star: The star that represents a given realm/dimension/universe. The planets and worlds of said realm will have their World Stars orbiting around this Celestial Star. All Celestial Stars orbit around one another and form distinct and mysterious interactions. Fate can be controlled somehow, but not even the Gods of Yarian were able to do so successfully. Soren Andersen theorized that each Fate Star has its own ¡®gravity¡¯ or attraction force that forms these interactions between the fates of people. If one could distort or mess with this external force, then they might be able to twist the trajectory of fate, in the same way one would mess up the orbits of planets if another celestial body is introduced to a star system. Spirits: Spirits are strange entities that hold no physical body and are able to roam freely within the Beyond. In Yarian, they are categorized into two types¡ªDemons and Fae. Fae spirits are more playful, but tend to fool people into dangerous situations with their contracts. Demon spirits are more cunning, and tend to play on people¡¯s insecurities to get them into unfavorable contracts. Some magi specialize in dealing with spirit contracts, as any loose interpretation in the wording could leave a dangerous loophole for the spirit to exploit. Nevertheless, Yadria, the city of the elves, utilizes the power of the spirits in creating ¡®Living Hexes¡¯, which are entities inhabited by spirits.

Lore Bits

Yarian: Yarian is a world governed by Fantasia. A world of pure fantasy, according to Mr. Unknown. In the south, the Feylith Forest reigns supreme. With the Spirit Blossom Willow¡¯s roots reaching out to every corner of the forest, every part of it is a single living organism that can respond to the anima of other lifeforms. It is home to Yadria, the city of the elves, as well as the H¡¯aavast Tribes. South of the Feylith Forest is the Endless Sea where strange sightings of Vynasian Rift-crossings are a common occurrence. East of the Feylith Forest is the Eclipse Moor, a large desert that¡¯s said to be lawless. It is also home to the Aretores (Giants). North of the Feylith Forest is the Aelloran Kingdom. Governed by two Royal Families¡ªAetolus and Paeon. Their capital is known as Celestine Citadel, and it sits on top of a mountain that overlooks the Avalon Ruins to the west. The Avalon Ruins is also a dungeon/labyrinth which runs deep into the mountain. Aellora is home to two Orthodox Churches¡ªChurch of Nature and the Church of Brilliance. The Church of Nature preaches the belief in being closer to earth and that humanity exists in service of the world. These are the principles that their deity, the Greenfather, lives by. The Church of Brilliance believes in individualism and the idea that one can be closer to God through material success. Their deity, the Gold-Giver, is seen as an arbiter who acts as a divine witness to contracts and other dealings. The Aetolus family has close ties to the Church of Nature, while the Paeon family has close ties to the Church of Brilliance. The Staterra Kingdom is north of the Aelloran Kingdom and is hostile to them. They believe they have a claim over the Avalon Ruins which leads to clashes and skirmishes between the two nations. The kingdom is also home to the SIlver Moon Church, which worships the Mother of Silver. Up to the north of Staterra is Mount Tolarion where the Witches of Star Fate used to reside. And to the east is the Selkie Federation, which is home to the famed academy of magi, Luvinica. Earth: Earth is a world with modern technology and an advanced society. Magic and the supernatural is seen as nothing more than superstitious belief or stories one would tell a child. However, beneath this facade of advancement, a secret society of mages and other shady organizations exist. The most prominent one¡ªthe Human Preservation Project (HPP). They have branches across the continental United States and presumably, are active in other nations as well. They¡¯re goal is the eradication or capture of IREs (Irregular Runic Entities). These are strange ¡®things¡¯ that go against common sense. IREs come in 5 types. There are other organizations active on Earth with unknown motives.

Status Sheets

Soren Andersen: Status Name: Soren Andersen Race: ??? Age: 23 Vocation: Scribe Magi Rank: Apprentice (No Circles) Magi Affinities: Mesmerism Soul Realm: The Hermit¡¯s Eye (Unique) (Nascent Stage) Soul Weapon: The Records (Unique) (Tier 1 - Tome) Skills: [Record] (Rank 1) - Chronicle the information around you. [Eyes of the Fairy] (Rank 1) - See the unseen. [The Faerie Court] (Rank 1) - Enter the realm of realms. Blessings: [Traveler] (Unknown) - You have embarked on a journey across space and time. Echoes of the rift will no longer shatter your sanity. Rune Collection: [Fairy Witness] (4 Insight) - ??? Julie-Anne Kafka: Status Name: Julie-Anne Kafka Race: Human Age: 21 Vocation: Ensnarer Soul Weapon: Arach-Koth (Unique) (Tier 1) Class Type: Summon Skills: [Ensnare] (Rank 1) - Create spirit webs that can trap spiritual entities. [Arachnid Wisdom] (Rank 1) - Obtain the heightened senses and capabilities of a spider. Rune Collection: Web of Dominion Tazzith: Status Name: Tazzith Race: Knowledge Demon Age: 10,000+ Spirit Body: Blood of Taboo Wisdom (Unique) (Tier Unknown) Affinities: Knowledge Granting, Affliction, Wards, Mimicry, All-Seeing Skills: ??? Titles: ??? Rune Collection: ???