(Written while listening to: "Incandescent" by Aviators on YouTube)
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"Sure?" Laito agreed. 'Don't have much choice anyway.'
He looked over the parchment and started to read.
"Dried tea leaves, flour, eggs, butter, bread, milk, sugar, woolen socks…"
Gandeon raised his hand.
"Alright stop, that's enough…-"
–
"What is this?" Laito asked.
"My groceries list." The Wizard acknowledged.
–
"Okay. Perfectly reasonable." Laito admitted.
–
–
"You have read it." Gandeon pointed out.
–
"Yes?"
"You weren't supposed to be able to read yet…- at least according to Awakened Gastac's reports on your education progress.
–
"Dammit." Laito remembered now that the Spell had some kind of "translation" build-in feature.
–
For the moment they sat in silence, interrupted only by sounds of sipping tea, and them munching biscuits.
–
–
"You wanted to tell me something." The Wizard finally broke the quiet.
Laito pondered for a moment.
It is important to remember that he was currently undergoing a Nightmare Spell's trial and as such all these people are not really "real".
Supposedly.
These trials were very individual things, seemingly crafted by the Nightmare Spell specially for each person.
The official "condition" to complete this trial was to "resolve a conflict present within's trial world".
But as the novel's reader Laito knew a bit more.
The appraisal and what apparently influenced the final "grade" of the Aspirant.
Seemingly, the Spell was looking for people capable of "resisting fate".
Why?
Laito had only some clues, as he didn't read that far into the novel, to get an absolute answer…- but according to the novel's protagonist: Sunless's discoveries, it was related to the creator of the Nightmare Spell: The Daemon of Fate "Weaver" and also the "Unknown" the seventh "forgotten god" whose real identity Laito' dreaded to even think about right now.
Regardless, he HAD to do SOMETHING here.
And it's going to be insanely dangerous, but not impossible.
After all these Trials were not executions as Nightmare Spell always made sure to leave a "way out" from a predicament.
Allegedly.
Whether you find it, or die a miserable death while trying to, depends on you.
These "ways out" could include things like "Sacrificing yourself on the altar of the god of death" or "Burning yourself alive".
And now he was thinking about what could be a conflict in this city that he would be capable of dealing with.
At the first moments of this Trial he is met with a small horde of at least dormant beasts, or even monsters.
And then the frickin' SAINT! And an entire garrison FILLED with knights of at least Ascendant rank. And now he is talking with a damn MASTER.
Quite a roster for your First Trial.
But he reminded himself.
Of his "dream", just when he entered the Nightmare Spell…-
Of Nightmarish, mountain sized, clearly corrupted Tree, that's supposed to appear out of nowhere.
Bringing ruin and death to an entire region.
And so, from the lack of better ideas he tried:
"So…- down below in the catacombs I have had…- a vision…-"
"Oh, did that vision include a giant, black, ugly tree suddenly descending upon us and destroying everything?" Gandeon interrupted him.
–
"Wat."
–
"Accidently, I also act as this outpost Diviner." The Wizard said.
"I am not, by any means, a real Oracle, with their frighteningly precise Visions granted by Fate itself."
"But I consider myself a quite competent Seer. And my Aspect enhanced Sorcery is enough to safely take small, tiny glimpses into the workings of the Tapestry, here and there."
–
"That's also how I know this reality is in fact, an illusion."
"I don't know the precise workings of it, but me, Lady Commander, this entire outpost are not in fact…- "Real". He revealed and then calmly waved his hand in Laito's direction.
–
"Except you. My dear boy."
–
"That's…- quite a lot" Laito admitted.
–
"Really? I don't think so actually." The Wizard disagreed while stretching himself lazily on his chair.
"Quite the opposite, in fact. If all of "this"...-" he waved his hands around.
"Is not really "real" and the outcome is predetermined. We can just focus on the single, unknown variable."
–
"You."
–
"
"There is still quite a lot of time before the "final battle"." The Wizard continued.
–
"And before it, we will make sure to make you as strong as you could possibly be."
–
"But…- why?" Laito asked sceptically.
"Oh, why am I helping you?"
"Yes."
"That's very simple. Please try to go back in your mind to the situation you faced in the catacombs." The Ascendant Wizard explained patiently.
–
"You "woke up" randomly, next to a random girl who was obviously rude towards you, not really caring about your wellbeing, beyond not getting herself into trouble."
"And beyond that, when you two were searching for exit, you smartly tried to move quietly and carefully...-
'Thank you, Lord Miyazaki, for your brutal training.'
...- she completely disregarded you and managed somehow, with her loud behavior, to gather the attention of ALL the dangerous undead within the catacombs."
"When you tried to hold them off with that old iron barred gate and that mysterious key of yours, she just ran away, seemingly abandoning you to your death."
"When you caught up to her, as the undead were closing in on the two of you. She slowed down from the lack of endurance."
"Yet, you grabbed at her and practically carried her with you, while risking your own life, towards the exit where the rescue has arrived."
–
"I can tell you are not "just" an innocent child, your soul is much older than your appearance."
"At any moment, you could have just killed her."
"Silenced her to avoid attracting unwanted attention."
"Make her into a bait to lure out the undead."
"Or just leave her there because "that's what she deserved" for the way she acted."
"It would have been a "smart" thing to do."
"And nobody would know! "The undead got her" you would tell us and that would be the end of it."
"But I would know."
"If you did any one of these things back then…-" He continued while looking directly into Laito's eyes, with a visible twinkling in his deep, bright amber eyes.
–
"I would have executed you myself, even if it would result in the imminent end of this "reality"."
"Yes, she was rude. And obnoxious. And acted unimaginably stupid. You two were there because of her in the first place"
"But."
"At the end of the day, she is just a child. All of "these" actions were mistakes. A huge, critical mistakes. Ones she could be taught to avoid in the future."
"One day when she would grow up, she would look back at the memories of that little "adventure" and realize how many bad things she did."
"But to grow up, a person needs a chance to be alive"
"Even if this is not "the real" world, you have decided against taking away that chance from her, even if you endangered your own life in the process."
–
"And that, is what a true Incandescent would do"
"Praise the Sun. Protect the Weak and Innocent. Destroy the Evil and Unjust."
"It is just simple as that."
That was the way of the Incandescent Order.
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[5 years left until MHA plot beginning]
[Chapter End] The story is not over yet