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“How much do you know about spirits?”

The impression of an entity solely existing thanks to the consideration of a tribe’s adoration, a basic chimera born from old and twisted tales, but nourished by traditions to let their existence be known even nowadays where most of the world’s mysteries could be solved and explained. This was the picture which traversed my mind whenever I was asked about the spirits.

What are they? A semi-lie to convince people that mana was supervised by greater and incomprehensible entities, to put a veil of illusions over the many desires to conquer the vast arrays of possibilities we could obtain from it. Guardians guarding those valuable secrets, enforcers ensuring some ancient and forgotten laws were still applied to us mortals.

Some old images to picture what is good and what is wrong.

To put it shortly: they were myths originating from the ancient yume tribes; their guardian deities or something. Myths on the same level as griffons and dragons from our own history.

That was the general idea anyone had when you thought about spirits. The common knowledge, as you would say. And that is where my own draws its line, as I was ignorant of any more details about them. After all, my studies were more focused on the structure and machination of the soul, not its origins or whatever correlation one may invent between it and the spirits.

However, his question was asked too suddenly in our conversation for it to simply be a random query. You wouldn’t normally link together the soul and the spirits. Why? It would be like finding a relation between architecture and agriculture; maybe there is one, but what would both side gain from it? It was a terrifyingly easy answer: we only lacked a keyword to link them two.

The soul was actually granted by those spirits.

“Not a lot, am I right?”

I’ve embarrassingly been caught daydreaming. I faked a couple of cough to help me clear my mind before answering to Keraza’s ironic inquiry.

“No, I don’t. There has never been any mention of the soul and the spirits sharing some sort of history.

… You believe the spirits were the one who gifted us knowledge about magic?”

The soul acts as a recipient for mana, and mana is consumed to cast various spells. As one was closely related to the other, it wouldn’t be wrong to admit the spiritual body and the summoning of magic went in pair, bound by an undeniable chain of reactions. If you knew about soul, you would eventually learn about magic and reciprocally.

If Keraza’s claim about the spirits being the one teaching us about the soul proved to be true, then… Wait. What would change after knowing that fact? Even if you knew which blacksmith melted a screw, would your view on the world change at all? That doesn’t change anything. Be it the spirits, gods or an old man, a soul was a soul.

… What am I missing?

“I believe the spirits did way more than merely teaching us such trivial matters. Magic is a second nature to their existence, a concept as primal as battling one’s eye.

Let’s rewind history; everytime a spirit made an appearance among us, a miracle occurred. What kind of miracle? All sort of miracles: mass cure, earthquake halted… There is even a theory that we won the Black War thanks to the intervention of a spirit.

By the way, do you know the names of the spirits?”

“I’ve only heard about it.”

“They aren’t that numerous, but a few does stand out from the lot.

The first and most renowned is Haliaetus, although he is more famous under the name of ‘The Protector’. He is the one who’s supposed to prevent our world from collapsing.

Ah, and the spirit who greatly helped us during the Great War is named ‘The White Rainbow’, she was the one who led the three Golden Crusades against the hordes of demons, but somehow she vanished in the end and never appeared again. She characterizes charisma or leadership, and haughtiness.

There is also Aseraath ‘The Furious Thunder’, who represents justice and indifference.

Aederinilitium ‘The Forgiver’, for quietude and cowardice.

Ukolonaetus ‘The-

-Hold on. I am not here to receive a lesson on the spirits. Just tell us how the soul and the spirits are linked, so we can continue.”

“You’re right, my apologies for digressing. Then, allow me to show you something…”

Keraza picked an item from his inner pocket and exhibited it in front of Brine and me. At first glance, it appeared to be a dark stone with some glittering and red marks covering its surface, but as a scholar from the Academy I could quickly tell the stone was enchanted.

“Is it an artefact?”

“It is… And it is also more than that. Here, take a closer look.”

After being handed the stone, I shifted its position between my fingers to get a better view on its shape. On the physical realm, I noticed nothing special apart the blushing parts which seemed kind of odd… And somehow warm. But after prying on the spiritual realm, the truth came like a rock hitting my face.

Through the immaterial veil I sensed a heart pulsating, lungs breathing in and out an afflux of mana through the stone as if it acted like a catalyst, or… No, this was far different from everything I felt. This thing was true.

“It’s… Alive?”

I couldn’t believe it. No matter how many times I tried to look for a faulty imitation, the stone validated every requirements to be spiritually labelled as ‘alive’. It would be no lie to say I was holding a living being in the palm of my hands, albeit the entity being a dull and inert rock.

“How is it possible?”

“This is a subject that people seems to quickly forget because they went extinct, but there was a time a certain… Thing lived on the surface by our side. They even fought with us during the Black War, don’t you remember?”

“Yes… Giants made of stone.”

“They are also called ‘Nyrh’, but that’s another matter on its own. Without them, the Black War wouldn’t have flowed as smoothly as it did. But this victory against the Black God came at a cost, and the last known Nyrh was stricken down before the portals were closed.”

“But wait! They were merely gears of war developed in a hurry to fight against the hordes of demons! So why can this stone possess such a sophisticated artificial soul?”

Keraza answered my question with a smile: “This is another mystery for us to solve.”

I glanced once more at the stone in my hands, gently rubbing my thumbs against its surface. Its spiritual body seemed to react to my action, but it didn’t show any hostile or repulsive behaviour, instead it gave off the impression of… Purring?

“The how and the why are still unanswered to this day. However, we can still deduce who crafted this masterpiece you’re holding.”

“… The spirits did this?”

It was absurd to believe ancient technologies could surpass the science we were using today, unless said technology was part of an ancient race lost in History. Normally, those Nyrhs really were trusted as non-sentient golems, animated weapons with just enough consciousness to understand orders from the Generals at times of war. And now, I am holding a soul crafted by someone’s hands. If not for a fantasy civilisation way more advanced than us, then anyone would gladly be convinced the stone was a product of the spirits.

I think I began to understand where this discussion was being led. I have difficulties constructing a soul out of mana, but it seemed to me the spirits showed no trouble in perfectly assembling one.

… The idea of meeting a spirit did cross my mind, however, I immediately dismissed this absurd thought. Even if they do exist, how would I meet one?

“This is merely a fragment from an old Nyrh, however, as you can see, it retained its integrity even after being smashed to pieces and gathering dust for many decades.

This can become excellent research material, don’t you think?”

I cautiously glanced at Keraza before starring back at the Nyrh’s fragment. I don’t know how this man knew about my field of studies -perhaps the director told him earlier- nor why would he chose to explain to me about the origin of the soul. I gained little from it, but still enough to allow me to progress a little bit.

Before our meeting, I always thought the soul was a by-product naturally produced when we were born, something akin to our physical body which slowly grew inside our mother’s womb. Trees, animals, mortals, even families and cities shared this tendency to expand over time, either through natural growth or artificial expansion thanks to everyone’s efforts. It was a simple spiral which occupied more and more space, which its origin was located at one’s beginning. We were born with a physical body, along with our spiritual one.

But what if that wasn’t entirely correct?

What if the spiritual body wasn’t a proper second body, but in reality an implant engrafted to our ancestors with the ability to multiply itself through each descendants? We could think of it like a hereditary sickness –or rather blessing- indiscriminately gifted to every next generation. A gift from the spirit for us to practice magic.

However, a threatening unknown remained in this discussion.

“Why are you telling us this much?”

I interjected all of a sudden after halting myself from being preoccupied with the living stone. Honestly, I was fine on my side for as long as I could receive any form of assistance to help me improve and reflect on my studies. But at the same time, an unease about this whole situation was slowly crawling on my back, and I simply couldn’t keep myself silent any longer about this.

Who could blame me in my position? I was quite curious about the intention hidden behind all those words from Keraza. There was after all this lingering feeling I couldn’t quite put my finger on, an otherworldly sensation flavouring his theories, a strange taste stuffed inside each of his ideas. This man was either a pioneer in his field for discovering such novel facts, or a madman who plunged head-first in the ruthless abyss of untellable science.

“Because…”

Keraza leisurely sat on the couch without a care in the world, his dazzling smile displaying the mischievous deed of someone who knows better than others.

“… It will all soon become common knowledge around the Academy, and I will gain enough money from it to enjoy myself after this is over.

I just felt like you could need my research in your studies. Do make use of it.”

… It truly was a hard feeling, for I both appreciated his consideration towards the lack of knowledge I struggled with, yet couldn’t help but dislike his condescending attitude whenever he spoke to me.

Again, I couldn’t help but be surprised by his words. Every sorcerers both dreamed and were reluctant to publish their work, even to the private libraries of the Academy. Everyone wished for fame and wealth, and at the same time feared their own value would diminish or simply vanish once their personal questions were asked after decades of studies and experiments.

Was this man only enticed by gold or by reputation?

But I didn’t stop here.

“That wasn’t what I asked. Why are you telling us about it here and now?”

I was perplexed because the other party shared such precious knowledge at such a convenient timing. Even Brine grew quite sceptical when putting more thought in this ordeal, smelling more and more a sense of a farce cloaked behind smooth wording. “Spirits were the artisans of the soul? What a joke. Then prove it!” I wanted to shoot at his face, alas the stone hanging in my hands was the absolute proof that he told me the truth. That, or he is the only man I know in this world who can sublime by himself a soul with such precision and quality.

Either a liar running after fame and wealth, or a genius in the domain of mana. Or worst case: he was both.

I expected a unique answer from Keraza, as I was more-or-less used to his habit of surprising me. He smiled first, then gently leaned to bring his face closer as if he was about to spill a secret worth killing for.

“Julie Prolite. Second daughter of your house, but so far away from the idea of inheriting your just due because of a misfortune afflicting your soul. A broken doll to decorate the mansion, a mere toy with no value because your parent fear your curse can be transmitted to your children. You cannot be sold, yet cannot be replaced either. A noblewoman in name and appearance only-“

“How dare you insult Julie?!”

It was Brine whose anger couldn’t be put under control anymore.

It hurts, really. It hurts a lot to be told so much about myself. Although that is despicable, those facts were still true. But what hurts me even more was the dread from learning this man, this stranger I met today, already knew so much about me, my defect and my past.

“I would have turned this into an insult if the lady herself had accepted her fate. But she didn’t, did she?

Of course not. How could she accept being a useless nuisance? An additional mouth to feed, an asset to maintain and entertain even though nobody would gain anything from it. But they still did take care of you because they love you, your parents. Being loved, despite knowing the child could not be used. What a tragedy…

But one day, you’ve heard of something interesting. You’ve heard mana can manipulate the world, alter its properties and change its laws, and you’ve also heard mana can manipulate the soul. That is where everything started, where the first spark ignited your first and cute ambition: to cure your condition.

Alas, it wasn’t that easy. The soul is a complicated structure, and understanding its many mechanisms would be equivalent to understand how the whole world functioned. But that didn’t stop you. You pursued your dream, grabbed every opportunities to push your research forward. You even took advice from a Black God’s believer, lured your friend to act as a crutch, bought slaves to crush and rebuild their soul until you were satisfied.

But you never were satisfied. Do you know why?”

I nodded. That was all I could do to answer his question, for I felt my throat throbbing from listening and my mind plagued with my years of studies spent in the Academy.

Of course I know why I was never satisfied, which would have irritated me if I was in a normal state of mind but, my complexion surfaced and clouded my capacity to think clearly. I did nothing wrong, I was sure of that. It was selfish, egoist, but it was all to free myself from this curse. Yet, I did feel like something was missing along the way. What did I miss again?

Maybe…

“… Because I know there will be consequences in the end?”

Rituals brewed by cultists weren’t exactly forbidden, however, anyone could easily guess what would happen if they caught someone practicing some rites dedicated to the Black God. It wasn’t a crime, but at the same time it was obviously not welcomed in society. I can’t imagine what force the director employed to keep me and Torne safe, the price for keeping such excellent students alive. And yet here I am, still clueless about how the soul worked.

But not only that. I also involved Brine in my plans and troubles. I was sure she wanted to enjoy life at the Academy with a bit more freedom, and here she is: stuck with me until I understood how the soul worked. But I was ready for it, I was prepared to pay any price for my salvation.

… Was I?

“Oh~no, no. Not at all.” Keraza laughed it off, untouched by my answer, “No no. You don’t care at all about the consequences, otherwise you wouldn’t have thrown away those corpses as demon food. You wouldn’t have the mindset to do such a deed.”

… He even knows that part of me. How much of my individuality was already known to this man who I knew nothing of? But Keraza didn’t stop there, he still had much more to say.

“The answer is actually… You switched your ambition.”

“… Did I?”

“Of course you did. After all, once you’ve understood how complicated the soul is, you could already imagine the immensity of possibilities lying in front of you, am I right?”

… He wasn’t wrong. He wasn’t entirely right, for I still wished to be cured, but he still wasn’t wrong either. I mean, what can’t you accomplish with magic? However, he just exposed a critical weakness in his eloquence. If I knew what could be done by manipulating the soul, then how many more options did he elaborate on his side if he had more time than me to think about it?

“So. Much. More.” Keraza suddenly answered as if he could read the question lingering in my mind, “You couldn’t even grasp the arrays of possibilities available to you once you know how to tinker the soul. But for now… Just think a bit about it after resting, you must be tired after staying up for so long.”

Right. I didn’t care anymore anyway. I just wanted to get away from this room where this man existed. I stood up from the couch after excusing myself, and walked toward the door to leave this place.

“And don’t worry, you can keep the Nyrh’s fragment as a souvenir.”

I didn’t respond, and quickly closed the door behind me. Tired? Me? What a joke. I will show him what I can really do.

“Julie, are you alright?”

…

“… Yes, I am. Let’s go to the Laboratory, we have science to do.”

We left in a hurry, walking toward the Academy’s underground to further my experimentations. It wasn’t over, not with an example of an artificial soul in my hand to study all night long. I knew I could pull it off, I just needed a bit more time and determination. And more importantly to drown myself in my research, so I wouldn’t have to listen to Brine’s worries anymore.

---

“Was it really fine to disclose that much to her?”

“It cannot be helped. Time is short, and I need the pieces to be ready and sticking to their spot when it commences.”

“Still, I find it hard to believe it would really happen…”

“Just think of this prediction like a… Proof. A proof that our little machine is still perfectly working and capable of calculating such an absurd situation with high precision.”

“So what should we do now? The Fallen will arrive here in the next hour and every other dalenhs are on the move.”

“We stick to the plan. But at all cost Haliaetus must meet Qalendra AFTER meeting everyone else on the way.”

“Sure, sure. Everyone except those two.”

“Right. After all, they already collude with the Black God to get rid of Haliaetus. What a waste…”