Chapter 10 (2 of 2) Interlude - The World of the Hero.
Infinityphoenix
Fantasizer
- Location
- Australia
The Permafrost Glacial Abode region was full of winding grey mountain ranges, capped by snowy white peaks, visible from every corner of the region. Below the towering stone structures, wintry pine forests surrounded it. If looked at from above, one could see the winding forms of a train of carriages pulled by hardy beasts of all kinds moving through the forest.
As the armoured carriages decorated by flashing mana-circles and displays of protective spellcraft rested in a small clearing amidst the snow-covered ground of the pine forest, a raven-haired woman was seated upon a coachman bench, a small dagger resting on the flat of her palm. Now and then the dagger lifted slightly, hovering above her palm unstably, but then it would drop, and a scowl would appear on the woman's face.
A navy-haired, dark blue cloaked man walked over to her, his robes trailing along the snowy ground below him. He watched what she was doing while a brown-haired, green-eyed man approached them from the other side.
"Still working out how to do what that girl did in the shop are you, sis?" asked Garthe as he arrived before Marellen and Larena.
The woman hissed through her teeth as his question made her lose focus, the blade in her hand dropping back down. She looked up at the young man, irritation present on her face.
"As you can see, yes, I am. I have a newfound respect for Lucy after this," she said, growling slightly as she attempted to lift the dagger once more. It fell after a few seconds. "And a newfound respect for how she managed to do it without using any mana at all. I don't think she was kidding when she said she had 100 points in SPRT."
She sighed and put the dagger away, before raising her arms and stretching.
Garthe just raised an eyebrow as he leaned against the convoy carriage. "Why don't you just give up if it's so difficult? It's not like anyone in the Mystical Realm ever uses it."
Larena shook her head. "No, I can see how this will help me if I can increase my proficiency in it. Just the increase to my sensory capabilities alone is…" She smiled wryly. "Yeah, if she had over 100 SPRT then I can understand why she didn't tell me how much she could sense straight away. It's more useful than the Mystical Realm gives it credit for. I think I might aim for a main skill based around it when I next Rank up."
Garthe whistled at that; a bit surprised at how eager his sister was to use spiritual energy. "Think it would be good for my skill set?"
Larena curled her hair around her finger pensively for a moment.
"I use debuffs, so multitasking is especially useful for me. I suppose if you could incorporate the spiritual perception into your domain ability, you could be a User who controls their environment with your wood affinity. It might help you control your plants more independently."
She turned to the noble mage beside her, who was looking into the distance and unfocused on the conversation. He was wearing rounded gold-framed glasses that were slowly slipping down his nose as he remained distracted. Larena elbowed the man to get his attention, a semi-transparent shadowy thread emerging from her index finger.
"What do you say about Garthe using spiritual energy, Marellen?"
The mage blinked, turning to her before his eyes refocused. "Oh, sorry, I was just thinking of the implications spiritual energy would have concerning my magic. Spiritual energy for Garthe, you say?"
He rubbed his chin, thinking deeply. "I suppose it might allow you to be a weapon user who could use large-scale skills. I do remember my cousin saying that weapon users tend to struggle with things like that as their multi-tasking ability is lacking compared to wizards or mages such as I."
Garthe nodded, slightly intrigued by the possibility. His wood and earth affinities would be excellent for large-scale application, especially if he gained the high-level Nature element. He turned to Marellen with a raised eyebrow.
"Your cousin mentioned that Lucy had said something quite interesting at that inn. Is it true she said she was a time traveller?"
Marellen responded, enthusiastic, "Yes, she did in fact. I understand that such a concept would normally be dismissed as a joke, but she did perfectly guess what the Millennium Chapter Event would be, and if spiritual energy functions like Larena said, then it's likely Lucy really did have 100 or more points in SPRT, so it could have some merit to-"
"Spiritual energy?" interrupted a cool, feminine voice. They turned to the newcomer.
Wearing a cold and indifferent expression and having a rather unapproachable atmosphere, the newcomer wore elegant flowing light grey robes tied with a silver braided sash around her waist. A thick, heavy white coat hung across her shoulders and ended near her feet, dark grey fur trimming the collar and its sleeves. Her almost translucent silvery shimmering hair hung near her waist, and half of it was tied up in a small bun, her distinctly pointed ears decorated by sapphire ear cuffs. Holding an ash-grey staff topped with a pulsating fiery orange gemstone the size of a fist, she turned her deep aquamarine eyes upon the small thread extending from Larena's finger. Her name was Roa Winteridge, the snow elf with ice and fire affinities.
Larena raised an eyebrow in surprise. She waved her hand around. "You can see this?"
The elf's voice turned frigid, and her expression darkened, or her eyebrows seemed to have bent inward when looked at closely. "Just because I have the affinity for fire, does not mean I am not a true full-blooded el-"
Larena held out a hand to stop her. "Sorry, that wasn't what I meant. I had no intention to insult you." She smiled at her. "Of course, an elf could see spiritual energy, you wouldn't live among spirits if you didn't. No, it was just because I haven't met someone from the Mystical Realm who could see or use this yet, so I was a bit surprised. I didn't mean to insinuate anything."
Roa's expression returned to its normal indifferent expression, and she nodded in acceptance of the apology. She came closer, inspecting the little thread of energy. "I suppose it isn't very common for even us. We elves normally only use it to bind spirits in an attempt to further ourselves along our Sorcery classes. It normally doesn't play much of an active role."
She tilted her head as she looked at the strand, before raising her eyes. "Are you learning to do this just by feeling? No visuals?"
Larena nodded.
"Then to gain spiritual sight, you need to send the spiritual energy into your eyes, just like mana vision."
Larena made a face as Garthe snickered beside her, and Marellen let out a small 'oh' at her suggestion.
The raven-haired woman went a bit pink and put her face in her hands. "That… was so obvious in hindsight. Thanks for the information, even if I should've come to that conclusion myself."
"Maybe you need to rethink this whole spiritual energy thing," added Garthe beside her.
Larena shot him a glare and took out her dagger. He flinched away but she just held it in her palm, focusing her spiritual energy into her eyes. She blinked as her vision changed, and she could see the multi-layered mist-like substance drifting in specks throughout the wintry pine forest, and her shadowy spiritual energy coalescing around her small dagger.
"It's not as colourful as I imagined. Most of it is barely more than white spots that could pass for snow, although I can see the normal mana of the environment."
Roa nodded. "I've heard that the Heavenly Realm is different, and they have multi-coloured spiritual energy due to their 'five phases', but all the other realms have only the neutral white spiritual energy in the environment. The colour of personal spiritual energy is different. Have a look at us."
Larena turned her eyes upon the three others and blinked in surprise. "Huh. You guys have this weird… sphere of sorts just below your neck and in the centre of your chest. It has two layers, one solid looking one in the middle, and a thinner, more translucent outer shell. I'm guessing that's your soul. Wait, I can see the multi-coloured elemental mana inside of you guys as well. Spiritual energy can do that?"
Roa had an expression that could almost pass for a smile… if you squinted. "Indeed. Spiritual energy enables someone to control mana, and so is capable of viewing it. When you have greater spiritual energy quantities, the outer shell of your soul grows larger and more solid. Those with more spiritual energy can bond more spirits, or fewer, more powerful spirits, as it enables them to keep them in the material world for longer before they return to the spirit realm."
Garthe cocked his head. "What happens when your soul grows larger than your body?"
Roa frowned faintly in thought. "I do not know much. From what I have heard, those with more spiritual energy have their souls begin to conform to the shape of their bodies, and then it becomes less translucent as the energy condenses. I do not have the specifics beyond that."
Marellen piped up, "Actually, I'm pretty sure that's what the Heavenly Realm calls Nascent Soul. From what I've heard, it gets to the point that their soul is strong enough to detach from their body and move independently, and exists in the spiritual realm, so it can grow in strength without restraint. It's the equivalent of Rank-1 I think… or maybe Rank-1 and a half?"
Garthe scowled slightly. "Oh, those guys have that weird half-step thing, don't they? Then they have those 'Daos' they're supposed to comprehend to do their 'cultivation' thing. And people wonder why the Empire has struggled to put their claws into that realm yet when the whole realm is so confusing."
Roa turned to Larena, an eyebrow raised so slightly it may as well be no change in expression. "What led you to pursue spiritual energy manipulation, if you don't mind my asking?"
Before Larena could respond, Garthe cut in, a cheery grin on his face. "Well, my beautiful elven lady, do we have a story for you!"
Larena noticed an eyebrow twitch on Roa's expression, the greatest show of emotion from her yet, and she let out a silent prayer for Garthe's failed flirting once more. Then she leaned back with a big smile as she listened to her brother regale the elf with a grandiose retelling of Lucy's thieving and grand escape, with a lot more involvement than was true on Garthe's part, and a lot less actual fact. Even Marellen listened curiously, who she knew had already been told the real story by herself earlier. It was mid-afternoon by the time the story was finished. Roa had a vaguely intrigued expression on her face.
"She sounds like an… interesting personage," responded Roa. Then a slightly puzzled expression formed on her face. "However… how many objects did you say she lifted at once?"
Larena told her she had counted around 50 and Roa frowned.
"And you are certain there were no mana fluctuations?"
When Garthe and Larena both nodded, Roa raised an eyebrow. "That girl was definitely lying then."
The sibling pair looked at each other in mild surprise and turned to the elf. "Why is that?" asked Larena.
"I believe you have noticed how hard it is to manipulate a singular object," Roa said, gesturing to the dagger in Larena's hand. She nodded, so Roa continued.
"Compared to mana, manipulating spiritual energy to have an impact on the environment in the magic realms requires vastly more of it in return for a lesser impact. That is why the Heavenly Realm, which has no mana and is full of dense spiritual energy, is best suited for cultivators to use their abilities. If they try to do so in the other realms, besides the Demon Realm which contains demonic power in similar quantities, spiritual energy will have reduced effectiveness, while mana does not."
Roa could see the others were still confused by her explanation, so she added more. "So, to manipulate an object the size of your dagger in the Beast Realm, without aid from mana, and singly that item, would require roughly 50 points of SPRT, without taking the energy density into account. This Lucy girl certainly had more than 100 SPRT points. Now, how she could have that much while being Rank-0, I do not have an answer."
They sat in silence for a bit, considering that, and they looked up when they heard footsteps coming their way. A platinum blonde-haired, grey-suited man was standing before them, looking rather chilly as he rubbed his gloved hands together.
"Getting along are we?" asked Efratel cheerfully.
Garthe grinned in return. "Look, the weakling approaches."
Efratel rolled his eyes. "Ha, ha, we're close enough to use nicknames are we?" He shook his head wryly and came closer. "Anyway, I just wanted to go over what we would be doing in a few days. We're almost at the city, and so I need to talk about what will happen at the drop off-"
Without warning, a tremendously loud rumbling noise occurred in the mountains to their right. They watched as a white cloud started rolling down the side of the range, heading towards where they were, even as the ground started to shake beneath their feet. They all prepared to run away, and Roa's eyes widened as she sensed the energy coming from it.
"Avalanche triggered by a mana storm?!"
Marellen squinted, but then his pale face paled further. "That's not natural mana, that's a User's mana! That was summoned intentionally!"
They all carefully backed off, before turning around and running together as fast as they could. Marellen, Roa and Garthe were all focused on escaping, but Larena turned to Efratel who was hurrying the best he could, which wasn't very fast when you were in a grey suit. She yelled out to him over the noise of the avalanche.
"So, you didn't get told about this by your superiors?!?"
Efratel, red and breathing heavily, barely managed to get out an answer.
"There were supposed to-" He stopped for a bit to catch his breath. "To. Be. Protectors," he got out, looking dreadfully weary. Larena clenched her teeth but ran back to him, and the Rank-3 woman hoisted him over her shoulder and continued to dash away from the avalanche with the others. If it were any other time, the blonde man would've probably been rather mortified by the position, but then was not a good time to have room for embarrassment.
Unfortunately, no matter how far they ran, the avalanche wasn't slowing, the rumbling insistently getting louder, and was nipping at Roa's heels behind them. As the one with the least physical stats, as elves happened to have, she was the slowest. Barely able to keep herself from stumbling, she struggled to catch up with each passing moment. Then they had to slow as they noticed the ground ending abruptly within 20 metres of them, the sign of a valley edge.
Garthe clicked his tongue but turned around, standing before the avalanche. He pushed Roa behind him, before removing the spear from his back in one swift movement. He pushed the emerald spear blade first into the icy soil and raised a hand to the others.
"Accept the link!" he shouted, and they all felt their mana attach to the streams of green mana emerging from him. Then all went dark and silent as heavy snow encased them within its hold.
The entity was angry. They were also a bit frustrated, curious, wary, and suspicious, but mostly just angry. It was not a common occasion for them to feel such strong emotions about something, but they were willing to accept them for just a little bit as they ruminated over how their past month and a bit had been.
To start the month off, two new anomalies appeared. And they were both apparently linked. The serpent they had known about for a few months before he had become a User, and had high expectations for his new hybridisation, but what they hadn't known about was the strange… girl who had somehow achieved a perfect Tutorial result……. And gotten a piece of it stuck in her eye. Why that piece of ancient history decided to finally involve itself with mortals was an utter mystery to them… until they finally entered the Obelisk together and they discovered soooo many things wrong with them both, it was a wonder they could even characterise them all.
Maybe the second System port in the girl's soul wasn't her fault, but it made things much harder for themself. The amphiptere was alright. He didn't have a second System port, so they were able to see what the issue was. The problem now though was that the serpent…. could only be a combat asset. He didn't have the brain to hold key information for very long. They knew the background information now because of the serpent, but there were large periods in his memories where he hadn't been with the girl and was instead just fighting. And the serpent hadn't been the girl's bond the entire time they knew of each other.
The girl was scarily intelligent, however, for a User at least. Scarily informed too. Half of the things they had barely managed to glimpse within her vast spiritual energy were all topics they had kept under firm lock and key to never reveal themselves again to mortals. Except, from what they were getting from the serpent, that lock had failed in the 'future'. Why was still an unknown that could only be revealed with time, or the girl's own admissions.
Normally, a sapient individual with such a high anomaly rating would be dealt with instantly, but this time, it was a unique situation. The girl's core beliefs seemed to align well with the System's, and themself. She didn't wish for the destruction of the Tower and even had a few plans that would be of great benefit to them all. She was also well aware of what limitations she could bypass, and what she should not do, no matter what. And she cared about sentient life, meaning she was unlikely to go on a murder spree and ruin the world with her knowledge. At least, from what they gathered. The girl was an excellent actor, even fooling herself sometimes.
But then came the later part. Once they were in the Obelisk together, the entity tried to peer closer at what exactly they were looking at when it came to them both.
Let's just say they would definitely do another intense scan of Earth, and what it was hiding. The girl seemed to be in the know, but the entity had a feeling that they would only be able to find out what they want by either asking her or retrieving the information from her mind itself. This requires an extensive set-up and an extremely long series of procedures to find a way to plug the System into her original port, while maintaining her current ego and mental integrity, AND without damaging her already unstable soul she had barely patched up before she had formed a real alter-ego. The girl wouldn't be increasing her soul size anytime soon, that was for sure.
So that was something to work on for the long term. However, even if they were going to do that right now, they wouldn't. And that was because of her unfinished Origin Skill. There was no way they were going to let that skill form itself without involving themself in the process. The girl must've taken inspiration from the simulation abilities of the System…. her soul structure also had an eerily similar makeup to how the actual System's processes worked. They may need to investigate that later.
But no, the skill they had acted on to prevent her from forming needed intervention. The incomplete Origin Skill, from what they could barely gather, was going to be capable of accessing an extremely deep layer of the spiritual realm. They weren't sure how the girl would utilise that function for herself, but they wanted to gain access to that ability too. It could be a good few thousand millennia before something even remotely similar forms elsewhere, so they would take the chance to do so.
The girl wouldn't suffer for it. They were pretty sure the girl would encourage what they were going to do. It would only be a temporary thing until the potential of the ability could be realised, and then they would allow the girl's skill to form completely. They were aware, that combined with her current soul instability issues, it would be dangerous for her to form it now, so delaying it would allow her physique, although that was another issue, to adapt to the spiritual energy she carried as she ranked up.
While that was a spot of good fortune for the entity, it was only a minor benefit among the host of issues that came with the two new User's arrivals. One of many examples was the Mansion. She managed to cause that leviathan of wasted effort to materialise a fully functioning research and containment organisation! How?!? They had been trying to do that for ages. They may have been a teensy bit peeved at that. Just a little bit. At least the Mansion didn't materialise its own pseudo-system. That was one of their fears. But no, they were fully functioning independent incarnations, complete with awareness of what they were. They would contact them very soon.
She also had some very intense hostility towards another forerunner. They were a bit worried about that, hoping she wasn't the type to ignore everything just to pursue revenge, so they checked what his other User was and-
They didn't remember handing out that Unique class. They didn't even have that Unique class in their records. That shouldn't be possible. And the Tutorial completion rate…. Why didn't they get told about this User? He almost had an anomaly rating as high as Lucy did.
..…they needed to look closer. Something was wron-
…
…
…
The entity was confused. They could've sworn they had just discovered a new issue. However, they had no idea what they had been looking for. They tried rechecking their thought processes, but there was only a small lapse in concentration. But they shouldn't be capable of being distracted…. maybe it was just the tumultuous emotions they were feeling about those two new anomalies. They should deactivate the emotion modules. Probably time to stop indulging in their frustrations.
But not before they complained to themself about the weird resources they had gained access to. All their resource allocation correspondents have said that they were detecting duplicate resources in stock for the System. But when they checked, these 'extra' resources were all locked behind timed seals that were supposed to release in a few years, at a staggered rate. Except they all bore the traces usually formed by their own authority. Authority they didn't authorize to be used.
Luckily they were able to check when these seals appeared, which was…. 3 months before the forerunner's initiation into the Tower. That would match up with Lucille and Scytale's 'return', which was very suspicious. They had some theories, but nothing that could be discovered in any short period of time. They supposed that could be sped up by the first seal unlocking, allowing them to access the information within, or by accessing Lucy's original port, whichever came first.
There were still a few factors they were hesitant about concerning the two new anomalies. Namely the 'Authority' available to Lucy. That wasn't something they had any control over however, as it was a confluence between her soul manipulation skills and her… other issues, and was an inbuilt feature of the System, so they just hoped the girl didn't end up breaking a hole into the side of reality. The two snake-swords were actually in the best possible position, and they were pleased by Lucy's naming decisions for them. They hoped they lived within the Tower without being shadowed by their origins. They had some regrets about how they went about dealing with them, but hopefully, things would be better now. If Lucy was being genuine.
There were at least another twenty issues they had about the two anomalies, but those they would activate higher privacy locks for to hide their mental processes. For now, the entity would take a passive stance with Lucille and her bond. If all goes well, they'll be a great asset to the Tower and System, but if it doesn't…. well, they were sure the new 'Department of Dimensional Anomalies' would have interest in studying two new specimens in addition to their collection within the Mansion.
They rechecked everything, wondering if they were ready to return to their normal work. They were still a bit leery about that strange lapse in focus earlier, but they guessed that it may just need a break from dealing with the two anomalies for now. They had an…. 'acquaintance' to visit.
They made sure to activate their mental monitoring processes, just to be safe though.
…
In a pitch-black area, a singular object was present. If Lucy was here, she might've associated it with the white, endless zone of the System space she was in before and after the Tutorial, just in black. Lucy would also recognise the man-sized object illuminated by the source-less light in the space. With a curly, opulent silver frame, and a crystal clear surface, it was the full-body mirror of the Tutorial. On the top half, right where someone's right eye would be if they saw their reflection within, was a small, dark irregular hole. The glass was pitch black, with no light reflecting off of it.
In the nearly empty space, a white humanoid figure appeared in front of the mirror. While they had enough definition that you could count their individual fingers, and see the shape of their limbs, the surface of their form shifted with white mist, curling around them, and hiding any identifying features.
The figure crossed their arms and looked at the mirror.
[You definitely love to give me trouble at the most annoying of times, don't you.]
For a moment, nothing happened, but like a pebble that had been thrown into a calm pool of water, the dark mirror rippled to show a dimly lit figure. With black, waist-length hair, and a hole for their right eye, the figure was a replica of Lucy, minus the eye. They crossed their arms, copying the posture of the white misty figure in front of them, and gave them a smug grin. The figure just let out a breathy sigh.
[What has you so interested in this girl that you would give a fragment of yourself to her? It's a waste on your part.]
The Lucy visage just raised an eyebrow and slowly shook their head. Then they pointed at the hole they had for an eye, and then at themself. The white humanoid shifted slightly, irritated.
[Are you pretending to be a mute now? Fine, I'll let you play your game. So, you didn't give her a fragment? What then did you d-…..you didn't.]
Lucy's doppelgänger just smiled wider and winked. The misty figure clenched a fist.
[Did you really just give her access to the entirety of your abilities?! What happens when she starts piercing through the outer shielding and sees the _______ or the ________?! She'll kill herself just from glancing at them!]
Fake Lucy formed an 'X' shape with their arms, shaking their head vigorously. They pointed to their head. It took a while for the white figure to decipher what they meant.
[You've gone senile in your old age. Her spiritual energy won't counteract her physical capability as a lower race. She'll still die from incomprehension, as her mind isn't made for that.]
The Lucy visage leaned back, arms crossed, and cocked an eyebrow. They stared at each other for a while, before the white figure shook their head miserably.
[I give up. Stop pretending to be incapable of communication. I need answers.]
Lucy's doppelgänger just smiled slightly and leaned forward, rapping their knuckles on the glass pane of the mirror. It rattled in its frame, and the Lucy fake shrugged. The white figure got angrier.
[Just, I don't know, change form or something! I have things to do, so please just tell me what it is!]
Surprisingly, the Lucy visage did so. The glass rippled once more, and in place of where Lucille's form had been, was a lanky young individual, possibly male. But this form could not be mistaken as human. Its skin was pure white and unblemished, and it was dressed in a white coat, like a doctor. The facial features were human, but below its eyes were four light blue glowing lines, going straight down from below its eyelids to halfway down its cheeks, two on either side. Its pupils were light blue, the same as the four neon lines on its face, but the irises of the 'man' were a luminous white, barely a shade darker than the whites of its eyes. A messy white hairdo rested upon its head, reaching its ears, glowing with the same intensity as its eyes, and the hair drifted slowly, like a head of moving tendrils. The mist of the white figure's body darkened as it uncrossed its arms.
[Not that form,] they stated curtly as if there would be no contention on that point.
The new form of the reflection just eyed the white misty humanoid for a moment, before seemingly sighing. The glass ripped once more, and this time it showed the reflection of the white figure. The white figure in question just groaned but acquiesced to the arrangement.
[If this makes you happy. Can you explain why you decided to use Lucille Goldcroft as a host?]
The reflection tapped on the glass, but this time, instead of rattling the pane, curly gold lettering appeared on the glass. The misty figure leaned forward to read it.
['Timeline Insurrection?' That makes no sense. I would've been contacted if resources were rerouted to a new timeline.]
The reflection tilted its featureless head, watching the misty figure rub its white forehead. Then it pointed at the humanoid mist. The white figure just stared - or did a reaction approximating that.
[But I'm in charge of the main timeline for this section.]
Tilting its head back, the reflection opened its 'mouth', a dark hole in the foggy face of its visage. It seemed to be laughing, shaking, and shuddering a bit in the silence. It tapped on the glass again, and words bloomed across it.
{That's what all your versions say.}
The white figure 'scowled'.
['That's what all your versions say'?!? Seriously, you-]
The reflection tapped on the mirror surface once more.
{I'm kidding. This is definitely the main timeline.}
The misty figure stared at the reflection, sceptical. The reflection tapped again, then leaned back with a relaxed posture.
{Lucille Goldcroft will be fine, she knows how to deal with ____. And while this is the main timeline, whether it was the first is another question.}
[Oh, so here I am, wallowing in indecision over whether I need to get rid of her before she becomes a problem, and now you just reveal you have access to her entire memories?! I don't suppose you're going to send them my way?!]
The reflection shrugged and shook its head. The misty form groaned in a low voice.
[Figures. You just want to watch the world burn. Or maybe you can't see her memories. I can't be bothered clarifying. And about the timeline thing…. I'll take you at your word for now. Another investigation to add to the agenda….] they sighed again.
The reflection nodded, seemingly happy with what the misty form had taken away from the one-sided conversation. It tapped one final time on the mirror.
{I may or may not enjoy watching the worlds burn, but Lucy doesn't} the words read. The reflection changed back to the white-coated form from before. The young male figure looked intently at the misty humanoid standing before it, its hair drifting with unfelt wind.
{So, believe me when I say she won't fail. Even if she does, there has never been a time you have failed. But you might. You're going to need her aid soon, so don't waste the chance she's given you, Dionsifade.}
As the armoured carriages decorated by flashing mana-circles and displays of protective spellcraft rested in a small clearing amidst the snow-covered ground of the pine forest, a raven-haired woman was seated upon a coachman bench, a small dagger resting on the flat of her palm. Now and then the dagger lifted slightly, hovering above her palm unstably, but then it would drop, and a scowl would appear on the woman's face.
A navy-haired, dark blue cloaked man walked over to her, his robes trailing along the snowy ground below him. He watched what she was doing while a brown-haired, green-eyed man approached them from the other side.
"Still working out how to do what that girl did in the shop are you, sis?" asked Garthe as he arrived before Marellen and Larena.
The woman hissed through her teeth as his question made her lose focus, the blade in her hand dropping back down. She looked up at the young man, irritation present on her face.
"As you can see, yes, I am. I have a newfound respect for Lucy after this," she said, growling slightly as she attempted to lift the dagger once more. It fell after a few seconds. "And a newfound respect for how she managed to do it without using any mana at all. I don't think she was kidding when she said she had 100 points in SPRT."
She sighed and put the dagger away, before raising her arms and stretching.
Garthe just raised an eyebrow as he leaned against the convoy carriage. "Why don't you just give up if it's so difficult? It's not like anyone in the Mystical Realm ever uses it."
Larena shook her head. "No, I can see how this will help me if I can increase my proficiency in it. Just the increase to my sensory capabilities alone is…" She smiled wryly. "Yeah, if she had over 100 SPRT then I can understand why she didn't tell me how much she could sense straight away. It's more useful than the Mystical Realm gives it credit for. I think I might aim for a main skill based around it when I next Rank up."
Garthe whistled at that; a bit surprised at how eager his sister was to use spiritual energy. "Think it would be good for my skill set?"
Larena curled her hair around her finger pensively for a moment.
"I use debuffs, so multitasking is especially useful for me. I suppose if you could incorporate the spiritual perception into your domain ability, you could be a User who controls their environment with your wood affinity. It might help you control your plants more independently."
She turned to the noble mage beside her, who was looking into the distance and unfocused on the conversation. He was wearing rounded gold-framed glasses that were slowly slipping down his nose as he remained distracted. Larena elbowed the man to get his attention, a semi-transparent shadowy thread emerging from her index finger.
"What do you say about Garthe using spiritual energy, Marellen?"
The mage blinked, turning to her before his eyes refocused. "Oh, sorry, I was just thinking of the implications spiritual energy would have concerning my magic. Spiritual energy for Garthe, you say?"
He rubbed his chin, thinking deeply. "I suppose it might allow you to be a weapon user who could use large-scale skills. I do remember my cousin saying that weapon users tend to struggle with things like that as their multi-tasking ability is lacking compared to wizards or mages such as I."
Garthe nodded, slightly intrigued by the possibility. His wood and earth affinities would be excellent for large-scale application, especially if he gained the high-level Nature element. He turned to Marellen with a raised eyebrow.
"Your cousin mentioned that Lucy had said something quite interesting at that inn. Is it true she said she was a time traveller?"
Marellen responded, enthusiastic, "Yes, she did in fact. I understand that such a concept would normally be dismissed as a joke, but she did perfectly guess what the Millennium Chapter Event would be, and if spiritual energy functions like Larena said, then it's likely Lucy really did have 100 or more points in SPRT, so it could have some merit to-"
"Spiritual energy?" interrupted a cool, feminine voice. They turned to the newcomer.
Wearing a cold and indifferent expression and having a rather unapproachable atmosphere, the newcomer wore elegant flowing light grey robes tied with a silver braided sash around her waist. A thick, heavy white coat hung across her shoulders and ended near her feet, dark grey fur trimming the collar and its sleeves. Her almost translucent silvery shimmering hair hung near her waist, and half of it was tied up in a small bun, her distinctly pointed ears decorated by sapphire ear cuffs. Holding an ash-grey staff topped with a pulsating fiery orange gemstone the size of a fist, she turned her deep aquamarine eyes upon the small thread extending from Larena's finger. Her name was Roa Winteridge, the snow elf with ice and fire affinities.
Larena raised an eyebrow in surprise. She waved her hand around. "You can see this?"
The elf's voice turned frigid, and her expression darkened, or her eyebrows seemed to have bent inward when looked at closely. "Just because I have the affinity for fire, does not mean I am not a true full-blooded el-"
Larena held out a hand to stop her. "Sorry, that wasn't what I meant. I had no intention to insult you." She smiled at her. "Of course, an elf could see spiritual energy, you wouldn't live among spirits if you didn't. No, it was just because I haven't met someone from the Mystical Realm who could see or use this yet, so I was a bit surprised. I didn't mean to insinuate anything."
Roa's expression returned to its normal indifferent expression, and she nodded in acceptance of the apology. She came closer, inspecting the little thread of energy. "I suppose it isn't very common for even us. We elves normally only use it to bind spirits in an attempt to further ourselves along our Sorcery classes. It normally doesn't play much of an active role."
She tilted her head as she looked at the strand, before raising her eyes. "Are you learning to do this just by feeling? No visuals?"
Larena nodded.
"Then to gain spiritual sight, you need to send the spiritual energy into your eyes, just like mana vision."
Larena made a face as Garthe snickered beside her, and Marellen let out a small 'oh' at her suggestion.
The raven-haired woman went a bit pink and put her face in her hands. "That… was so obvious in hindsight. Thanks for the information, even if I should've come to that conclusion myself."
"Maybe you need to rethink this whole spiritual energy thing," added Garthe beside her.
Larena shot him a glare and took out her dagger. He flinched away but she just held it in her palm, focusing her spiritual energy into her eyes. She blinked as her vision changed, and she could see the multi-layered mist-like substance drifting in specks throughout the wintry pine forest, and her shadowy spiritual energy coalescing around her small dagger.
"It's not as colourful as I imagined. Most of it is barely more than white spots that could pass for snow, although I can see the normal mana of the environment."
Roa nodded. "I've heard that the Heavenly Realm is different, and they have multi-coloured spiritual energy due to their 'five phases', but all the other realms have only the neutral white spiritual energy in the environment. The colour of personal spiritual energy is different. Have a look at us."
Larena turned her eyes upon the three others and blinked in surprise. "Huh. You guys have this weird… sphere of sorts just below your neck and in the centre of your chest. It has two layers, one solid looking one in the middle, and a thinner, more translucent outer shell. I'm guessing that's your soul. Wait, I can see the multi-coloured elemental mana inside of you guys as well. Spiritual energy can do that?"
Roa had an expression that could almost pass for a smile… if you squinted. "Indeed. Spiritual energy enables someone to control mana, and so is capable of viewing it. When you have greater spiritual energy quantities, the outer shell of your soul grows larger and more solid. Those with more spiritual energy can bond more spirits, or fewer, more powerful spirits, as it enables them to keep them in the material world for longer before they return to the spirit realm."
Garthe cocked his head. "What happens when your soul grows larger than your body?"
Roa frowned faintly in thought. "I do not know much. From what I have heard, those with more spiritual energy have their souls begin to conform to the shape of their bodies, and then it becomes less translucent as the energy condenses. I do not have the specifics beyond that."
Marellen piped up, "Actually, I'm pretty sure that's what the Heavenly Realm calls Nascent Soul. From what I've heard, it gets to the point that their soul is strong enough to detach from their body and move independently, and exists in the spiritual realm, so it can grow in strength without restraint. It's the equivalent of Rank-1 I think… or maybe Rank-1 and a half?"
Garthe scowled slightly. "Oh, those guys have that weird half-step thing, don't they? Then they have those 'Daos' they're supposed to comprehend to do their 'cultivation' thing. And people wonder why the Empire has struggled to put their claws into that realm yet when the whole realm is so confusing."
Roa turned to Larena, an eyebrow raised so slightly it may as well be no change in expression. "What led you to pursue spiritual energy manipulation, if you don't mind my asking?"
Before Larena could respond, Garthe cut in, a cheery grin on his face. "Well, my beautiful elven lady, do we have a story for you!"
Larena noticed an eyebrow twitch on Roa's expression, the greatest show of emotion from her yet, and she let out a silent prayer for Garthe's failed flirting once more. Then she leaned back with a big smile as she listened to her brother regale the elf with a grandiose retelling of Lucy's thieving and grand escape, with a lot more involvement than was true on Garthe's part, and a lot less actual fact. Even Marellen listened curiously, who she knew had already been told the real story by herself earlier. It was mid-afternoon by the time the story was finished. Roa had a vaguely intrigued expression on her face.
"She sounds like an… interesting personage," responded Roa. Then a slightly puzzled expression formed on her face. "However… how many objects did you say she lifted at once?"
Larena told her she had counted around 50 and Roa frowned.
"And you are certain there were no mana fluctuations?"
When Garthe and Larena both nodded, Roa raised an eyebrow. "That girl was definitely lying then."
The sibling pair looked at each other in mild surprise and turned to the elf. "Why is that?" asked Larena.
"I believe you have noticed how hard it is to manipulate a singular object," Roa said, gesturing to the dagger in Larena's hand. She nodded, so Roa continued.
"Compared to mana, manipulating spiritual energy to have an impact on the environment in the magic realms requires vastly more of it in return for a lesser impact. That is why the Heavenly Realm, which has no mana and is full of dense spiritual energy, is best suited for cultivators to use their abilities. If they try to do so in the other realms, besides the Demon Realm which contains demonic power in similar quantities, spiritual energy will have reduced effectiveness, while mana does not."
Roa could see the others were still confused by her explanation, so she added more. "So, to manipulate an object the size of your dagger in the Beast Realm, without aid from mana, and singly that item, would require roughly 50 points of SPRT, without taking the energy density into account. This Lucy girl certainly had more than 100 SPRT points. Now, how she could have that much while being Rank-0, I do not have an answer."
They sat in silence for a bit, considering that, and they looked up when they heard footsteps coming their way. A platinum blonde-haired, grey-suited man was standing before them, looking rather chilly as he rubbed his gloved hands together.
"Getting along are we?" asked Efratel cheerfully.
Garthe grinned in return. "Look, the weakling approaches."
Efratel rolled his eyes. "Ha, ha, we're close enough to use nicknames are we?" He shook his head wryly and came closer. "Anyway, I just wanted to go over what we would be doing in a few days. We're almost at the city, and so I need to talk about what will happen at the drop off-"
Without warning, a tremendously loud rumbling noise occurred in the mountains to their right. They watched as a white cloud started rolling down the side of the range, heading towards where they were, even as the ground started to shake beneath their feet. They all prepared to run away, and Roa's eyes widened as she sensed the energy coming from it.
"Avalanche triggered by a mana storm?!"
Marellen squinted, but then his pale face paled further. "That's not natural mana, that's a User's mana! That was summoned intentionally!"
They all carefully backed off, before turning around and running together as fast as they could. Marellen, Roa and Garthe were all focused on escaping, but Larena turned to Efratel who was hurrying the best he could, which wasn't very fast when you were in a grey suit. She yelled out to him over the noise of the avalanche.
"So, you didn't get told about this by your superiors?!?"
Efratel, red and breathing heavily, barely managed to get out an answer.
"There were supposed to-" He stopped for a bit to catch his breath. "To. Be. Protectors," he got out, looking dreadfully weary. Larena clenched her teeth but ran back to him, and the Rank-3 woman hoisted him over her shoulder and continued to dash away from the avalanche with the others. If it were any other time, the blonde man would've probably been rather mortified by the position, but then was not a good time to have room for embarrassment.
Unfortunately, no matter how far they ran, the avalanche wasn't slowing, the rumbling insistently getting louder, and was nipping at Roa's heels behind them. As the one with the least physical stats, as elves happened to have, she was the slowest. Barely able to keep herself from stumbling, she struggled to catch up with each passing moment. Then they had to slow as they noticed the ground ending abruptly within 20 metres of them, the sign of a valley edge.
Garthe clicked his tongue but turned around, standing before the avalanche. He pushed Roa behind him, before removing the spear from his back in one swift movement. He pushed the emerald spear blade first into the icy soil and raised a hand to the others.
"Accept the link!" he shouted, and they all felt their mana attach to the streams of green mana emerging from him. Then all went dark and silent as heavy snow encased them within its hold.
The entity was angry. They were also a bit frustrated, curious, wary, and suspicious, but mostly just angry. It was not a common occasion for them to feel such strong emotions about something, but they were willing to accept them for just a little bit as they ruminated over how their past month and a bit had been.
To start the month off, two new anomalies appeared. And they were both apparently linked. The serpent they had known about for a few months before he had become a User, and had high expectations for his new hybridisation, but what they hadn't known about was the strange… girl who had somehow achieved a perfect Tutorial result……. And gotten a piece of it stuck in her eye. Why that piece of ancient history decided to finally involve itself with mortals was an utter mystery to them… until they finally entered the Obelisk together and they discovered soooo many things wrong with them both, it was a wonder they could even characterise them all.
Maybe the second System port in the girl's soul wasn't her fault, but it made things much harder for themself. The amphiptere was alright. He didn't have a second System port, so they were able to see what the issue was. The problem now though was that the serpent…. could only be a combat asset. He didn't have the brain to hold key information for very long. They knew the background information now because of the serpent, but there were large periods in his memories where he hadn't been with the girl and was instead just fighting. And the serpent hadn't been the girl's bond the entire time they knew of each other.
The girl was scarily intelligent, however, for a User at least. Scarily informed too. Half of the things they had barely managed to glimpse within her vast spiritual energy were all topics they had kept under firm lock and key to never reveal themselves again to mortals. Except, from what they were getting from the serpent, that lock had failed in the 'future'. Why was still an unknown that could only be revealed with time, or the girl's own admissions.
Normally, a sapient individual with such a high anomaly rating would be dealt with instantly, but this time, it was a unique situation. The girl's core beliefs seemed to align well with the System's, and themself. She didn't wish for the destruction of the Tower and even had a few plans that would be of great benefit to them all. She was also well aware of what limitations she could bypass, and what she should not do, no matter what. And she cared about sentient life, meaning she was unlikely to go on a murder spree and ruin the world with her knowledge. At least, from what they gathered. The girl was an excellent actor, even fooling herself sometimes.
But then came the later part. Once they were in the Obelisk together, the entity tried to peer closer at what exactly they were looking at when it came to them both.
Let's just say they would definitely do another intense scan of Earth, and what it was hiding. The girl seemed to be in the know, but the entity had a feeling that they would only be able to find out what they want by either asking her or retrieving the information from her mind itself. This requires an extensive set-up and an extremely long series of procedures to find a way to plug the System into her original port, while maintaining her current ego and mental integrity, AND without damaging her already unstable soul she had barely patched up before she had formed a real alter-ego. The girl wouldn't be increasing her soul size anytime soon, that was for sure.
So that was something to work on for the long term. However, even if they were going to do that right now, they wouldn't. And that was because of her unfinished Origin Skill. There was no way they were going to let that skill form itself without involving themself in the process. The girl must've taken inspiration from the simulation abilities of the System…. her soul structure also had an eerily similar makeup to how the actual System's processes worked. They may need to investigate that later.
But no, the skill they had acted on to prevent her from forming needed intervention. The incomplete Origin Skill, from what they could barely gather, was going to be capable of accessing an extremely deep layer of the spiritual realm. They weren't sure how the girl would utilise that function for herself, but they wanted to gain access to that ability too. It could be a good few thousand millennia before something even remotely similar forms elsewhere, so they would take the chance to do so.
The girl wouldn't suffer for it. They were pretty sure the girl would encourage what they were going to do. It would only be a temporary thing until the potential of the ability could be realised, and then they would allow the girl's skill to form completely. They were aware, that combined with her current soul instability issues, it would be dangerous for her to form it now, so delaying it would allow her physique, although that was another issue, to adapt to the spiritual energy she carried as she ranked up.
While that was a spot of good fortune for the entity, it was only a minor benefit among the host of issues that came with the two new User's arrivals. One of many examples was the Mansion. She managed to cause that leviathan of wasted effort to materialise a fully functioning research and containment organisation! How?!? They had been trying to do that for ages. They may have been a teensy bit peeved at that. Just a little bit. At least the Mansion didn't materialise its own pseudo-system. That was one of their fears. But no, they were fully functioning independent incarnations, complete with awareness of what they were. They would contact them very soon.
She also had some very intense hostility towards another forerunner. They were a bit worried about that, hoping she wasn't the type to ignore everything just to pursue revenge, so they checked what his other User was and-
They didn't remember handing out that Unique class. They didn't even have that Unique class in their records. That shouldn't be possible. And the Tutorial completion rate…. Why didn't they get told about this User? He almost had an anomaly rating as high as Lucy did.
..…they needed to look closer. Something was wron-
…
…
…
The entity was confused. They could've sworn they had just discovered a new issue. However, they had no idea what they had been looking for. They tried rechecking their thought processes, but there was only a small lapse in concentration. But they shouldn't be capable of being distracted…. maybe it was just the tumultuous emotions they were feeling about those two new anomalies. They should deactivate the emotion modules. Probably time to stop indulging in their frustrations.
But not before they complained to themself about the weird resources they had gained access to. All their resource allocation correspondents have said that they were detecting duplicate resources in stock for the System. But when they checked, these 'extra' resources were all locked behind timed seals that were supposed to release in a few years, at a staggered rate. Except they all bore the traces usually formed by their own authority. Authority they didn't authorize to be used.
Luckily they were able to check when these seals appeared, which was…. 3 months before the forerunner's initiation into the Tower. That would match up with Lucille and Scytale's 'return', which was very suspicious. They had some theories, but nothing that could be discovered in any short period of time. They supposed that could be sped up by the first seal unlocking, allowing them to access the information within, or by accessing Lucy's original port, whichever came first.
There were still a few factors they were hesitant about concerning the two new anomalies. Namely the 'Authority' available to Lucy. That wasn't something they had any control over however, as it was a confluence between her soul manipulation skills and her… other issues, and was an inbuilt feature of the System, so they just hoped the girl didn't end up breaking a hole into the side of reality. The two snake-swords were actually in the best possible position, and they were pleased by Lucy's naming decisions for them. They hoped they lived within the Tower without being shadowed by their origins. They had some regrets about how they went about dealing with them, but hopefully, things would be better now. If Lucy was being genuine.
There were at least another twenty issues they had about the two anomalies, but those they would activate higher privacy locks for to hide their mental processes. For now, the entity would take a passive stance with Lucille and her bond. If all goes well, they'll be a great asset to the Tower and System, but if it doesn't…. well, they were sure the new 'Department of Dimensional Anomalies' would have interest in studying two new specimens in addition to their collection within the Mansion.
They rechecked everything, wondering if they were ready to return to their normal work. They were still a bit leery about that strange lapse in focus earlier, but they guessed that it may just need a break from dealing with the two anomalies for now. They had an…. 'acquaintance' to visit.
They made sure to activate their mental monitoring processes, just to be safe though.
…
In a pitch-black area, a singular object was present. If Lucy was here, she might've associated it with the white, endless zone of the System space she was in before and after the Tutorial, just in black. Lucy would also recognise the man-sized object illuminated by the source-less light in the space. With a curly, opulent silver frame, and a crystal clear surface, it was the full-body mirror of the Tutorial. On the top half, right where someone's right eye would be if they saw their reflection within, was a small, dark irregular hole. The glass was pitch black, with no light reflecting off of it.
In the nearly empty space, a white humanoid figure appeared in front of the mirror. While they had enough definition that you could count their individual fingers, and see the shape of their limbs, the surface of their form shifted with white mist, curling around them, and hiding any identifying features.
The figure crossed their arms and looked at the mirror.
[You definitely love to give me trouble at the most annoying of times, don't you.]
For a moment, nothing happened, but like a pebble that had been thrown into a calm pool of water, the dark mirror rippled to show a dimly lit figure. With black, waist-length hair, and a hole for their right eye, the figure was a replica of Lucy, minus the eye. They crossed their arms, copying the posture of the white misty figure in front of them, and gave them a smug grin. The figure just let out a breathy sigh.
[What has you so interested in this girl that you would give a fragment of yourself to her? It's a waste on your part.]
The Lucy visage just raised an eyebrow and slowly shook their head. Then they pointed at the hole they had for an eye, and then at themself. The white humanoid shifted slightly, irritated.
[Are you pretending to be a mute now? Fine, I'll let you play your game. So, you didn't give her a fragment? What then did you d-…..you didn't.]
Lucy's doppelgänger just smiled wider and winked. The misty figure clenched a fist.
[Did you really just give her access to the entirety of your abilities?! What happens when she starts piercing through the outer shielding and sees the _______ or the ________?! She'll kill herself just from glancing at them!]
Fake Lucy formed an 'X' shape with their arms, shaking their head vigorously. They pointed to their head. It took a while for the white figure to decipher what they meant.
[You've gone senile in your old age. Her spiritual energy won't counteract her physical capability as a lower race. She'll still die from incomprehension, as her mind isn't made for that.]
The Lucy visage leaned back, arms crossed, and cocked an eyebrow. They stared at each other for a while, before the white figure shook their head miserably.
[I give up. Stop pretending to be incapable of communication. I need answers.]
Lucy's doppelgänger just smiled slightly and leaned forward, rapping their knuckles on the glass pane of the mirror. It rattled in its frame, and the Lucy fake shrugged. The white figure got angrier.
[Just, I don't know, change form or something! I have things to do, so please just tell me what it is!]
Surprisingly, the Lucy visage did so. The glass rippled once more, and in place of where Lucille's form had been, was a lanky young individual, possibly male. But this form could not be mistaken as human. Its skin was pure white and unblemished, and it was dressed in a white coat, like a doctor. The facial features were human, but below its eyes were four light blue glowing lines, going straight down from below its eyelids to halfway down its cheeks, two on either side. Its pupils were light blue, the same as the four neon lines on its face, but the irises of the 'man' were a luminous white, barely a shade darker than the whites of its eyes. A messy white hairdo rested upon its head, reaching its ears, glowing with the same intensity as its eyes, and the hair drifted slowly, like a head of moving tendrils. The mist of the white figure's body darkened as it uncrossed its arms.
[Not that form,] they stated curtly as if there would be no contention on that point.
The new form of the reflection just eyed the white misty humanoid for a moment, before seemingly sighing. The glass ripped once more, and this time it showed the reflection of the white figure. The white figure in question just groaned but acquiesced to the arrangement.
[If this makes you happy. Can you explain why you decided to use Lucille Goldcroft as a host?]
The reflection tapped on the glass, but this time, instead of rattling the pane, curly gold lettering appeared on the glass. The misty figure leaned forward to read it.
['Timeline Insurrection?' That makes no sense. I would've been contacted if resources were rerouted to a new timeline.]
The reflection tilted its featureless head, watching the misty figure rub its white forehead. Then it pointed at the humanoid mist. The white figure just stared - or did a reaction approximating that.
[But I'm in charge of the main timeline for this section.]
Tilting its head back, the reflection opened its 'mouth', a dark hole in the foggy face of its visage. It seemed to be laughing, shaking, and shuddering a bit in the silence. It tapped on the glass again, and words bloomed across it.
{That's what all your versions say.}
The white figure 'scowled'.
['That's what all your versions say'?!? Seriously, you-]
The reflection tapped on the mirror surface once more.
{I'm kidding. This is definitely the main timeline.}
The misty figure stared at the reflection, sceptical. The reflection tapped again, then leaned back with a relaxed posture.
{Lucille Goldcroft will be fine, she knows how to deal with ____. And while this is the main timeline, whether it was the first is another question.}
[Oh, so here I am, wallowing in indecision over whether I need to get rid of her before she becomes a problem, and now you just reveal you have access to her entire memories?! I don't suppose you're going to send them my way?!]
The reflection shrugged and shook its head. The misty form groaned in a low voice.
[Figures. You just want to watch the world burn. Or maybe you can't see her memories. I can't be bothered clarifying. And about the timeline thing…. I'll take you at your word for now. Another investigation to add to the agenda….] they sighed again.
The reflection nodded, seemingly happy with what the misty form had taken away from the one-sided conversation. It tapped one final time on the mirror.
{I may or may not enjoy watching the worlds burn, but Lucy doesn't} the words read. The reflection changed back to the white-coated form from before. The young male figure looked intently at the misty humanoid standing before it, its hair drifting with unfelt wind.
{So, believe me when I say she won't fail. Even if she does, there has never been a time you have failed. But you might. You're going to need her aid soon, so don't waste the chance she's given you, Dionsifade.}
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