It's been about two months since the Drifter were dropped into Lios—a new world where a great many new laws hold sway, including a kind of magic that may never have existed anywhere in humanity's long history on Earth.
But alongside that, this world is also full of disasters and natural phenomena that leave me wondering—how does anyone here manage to survive at all?
There are many races here, with the Czanktian being the closest in resemblance to humans. But then again, perhaps everyone here could be considered human in the broadest sense. Once again, I've been shown a remarkable truth—humanity truly holds potential that defies logic.
The ability to adapt, and to survive; these are blessings granted to every living creature, and humanity is fortunate enough to have made the most of them.
But at the same time, I can't help but shudder at another fact—that life in this world is nothing more than a game to the gods, who roll their dice while stifling a bored yawn.
We—the Drifter—are nothing more than a factor brought in to enhance their playing experience.
Setting all of that aside, it's true that we Drifter could become the factor that reshapes their entire game board. Whatever happens next, only time will tell.
To meddle in that game; to show Schesile a truly spectacular performance—to teach him a lesson—and for myself, I keep pursuing my own ambition; a goal I'd long since forgotten, buried beneath an ocean of facts insisting I was capable of nothing at all.
For that same reason, the first foundation must be built. But for that too, I still need to learn far more, and unravel the mysteries of this world. For now, I've come to know a few things, though their accuracy still needs further verification, since I've drawn these conclusions from what I've read and heard—not witnessed with my own eyes.
- Black Tide:
Plenty of books and sources record information on this topic, but none of them have truly cracked its mystery wide open. In the end, what knowledge I hold is limited to whatever information is already circulating.
This is a substance shrouded in mystery, its true origin unknown. I agree with this world's classification of it as a liquid, given its thick, viscous nature and its ability to merge with other liquids such as water. However, this substance also carries a number of dangerous properties, one of them producing an effect resembling corrosion, acting as a 'poison' to every living organism. Beyond that, it remains unproven, but many theories claim Black Tide can also create 'life'—evidenced by its ability to spawn a wide variety of monsters.
Though its origin remains a mystery, at the very least we know Black Tide is certain to appear inside a Denied Space, whenever a Deas Rift occurs, or even when Dead Piles come falling. So, could it be concluded that Black Tide is a substance born as a byproduct of every anomalous disaster in this world?
- Denied Space:
From what I understand, this bears some resemblance to the 'dungeon' concept that was once popular on Earth. I was never a fan of modern fantasy fiction, so I never looked too deeply into it, but what I can confirm is that the concept is indeed similar, even if not entirely identical.
Denied Space is the name given to a mysterious structure, one of the deadliest and most enigmatic anomalous phenomena in Lios. No one can predict when a new Denied Space will form, and no one knows what history it carries either. As far as I know, no two Denied Spaces are ever alike; each one carries its own distinct characteristics, and even the way to clear it can differ entirely. Every Denied Space is always born with a Tyrant ruling over it; its form, strength, and intelligence all varying, and according to available information, a Denied Space's characteristics depend entirely on the Tyrant that governs it.
There are countless such mysterious structures scattered across the world, some of them massive in scale and even connected to other Denied Spaces. Where they appear varies wildly and can't be predicted. The most interesting piece of information I found on this subject concerns one of the most famous Denied Spaces—located at the peak of the northern mountains—the one belonging to Humpty Dumpty, a Tyrant defeated and destroyed by the Pillar Heroes during the Great Tyrant War, hundreds of years ago.
I haven't looked further into that war yet, but given that it's a well-documented historical event, there should be plenty of valid records on it.
- Tyrant:
Believed to be born alongside the Denied Space that becomes their 'home,' a Tyrant is said to be the manifestation of that Denied Space's intelligence and power—though this still remains unproven to this day. Each Tyrant's form, strength, and intelligence are said to vary, much like with Denied Spaces themselves. One of the most well-known Tyrants to date is the Tyrant Humpty Dumpty, said to possess strength and intelligence so absurd it managed to sow massive chaos for years on end.
According to the history I know, Humpty Dumpty was both the trigger and the primary target of resistance during the Great Tyrant War.
- Apocrypt:
Out of everything, I think this is the one that frustrates me the most. Apocrypt is a disease with a 100% mortality rate, one that's certain to kill its victims sooner or later. It's caused by direct contact or prolonged exposure to Black Tide, or to materials and elements already contaminated by it—one of those being another Apocrypt sufferer. For simplicity's sake, from here on I'll refer to those afflicted with Apocrypt as the 'Infected.'
The Infected can be clearly identified by the purplish-black crystal that grows from whichever part of their body made contact with Black Tide or its byproducts. This crystallization process moves at a different pace for each person, but it always begins at the point of first contact, gradually spreading across the entire body until the sufferer turns fully into 'crystal.'
When an Infected dies while their crystal is still active, it breaks down into dust and can infect any biological matter nearby. But even before the sufferer dies, crystal growth left uncovered on the body can independently release dust particles capable of spreading infection as well, which makes total quarantine of the afflicted the best procedure for halting Apocrypt's spread.
Beyond the fatal infection itself, it's still unclear whether Apocrypt spreads through mere physical contact with a sufferer, or if it can even be passed down to offspring. Even so, people naturally believe that anyone infected is a dangerous presence that must be gotten rid of as quickly as possible.
I haven't witnessed it firsthand, but information gathered from various sources does confirm that the Infected often become targets of people's hatred and fear. Much as I hate to admit it, their fear is understandable; it's the basic response to facing a fatal 'disease.' If they didn't act on that instinct, who knows what fate would have befallen everyone by now.
Unfortunately, medical technology or research addressing Apocrypt is exceedingly scarce, because once again, people are frightened even by the thought of approaching an Infected, let alone the Black Tide that spawned it. The biggest exception to this seems to apply only to Adepts, who are already accustomed to facing danger.
I've already decided to begin research related to Apocrypt, and I already have a concrete plan for how to move forward. But how it turns out, or how long it takes me to get there, all depends on myself. For now, all I can do is give my absolute best toward making at least some progress in Apocrypt research. That way, perhaps, people can finally break free of the vicious cycle that's kept them trapped in stagnation all this time.
That said, additional information I've gathered from Humarc and Vierra—along with books I've read in my spare time—suggests that despite being fatal, Apocrypt can also produce effects that might be considered positive.
It's genuinely hard to believe, but beyond the crystal growth on an Infected's body, Apocrypt also appears capable of 'transforming a person,' whether for better or worse. In the worst cases, an Infected might end up with a permanent physical or mental disability, or be saddled with some other negative effect that becomes a form of torment. In the best cases, Apocrypt seems to grant an improvement to the sufferer's physical and mental faculties. But what I find most remarkable is the fact that Apocrypt can sometimes grant the sufferer an entirely new ability. I've taken to calling this 'rebirth through infection.' It would help a great deal if I could gather samples from a range of these cases.
Perhaps interviewing an Infected is one of the best courses of action available to me right now.
- Deas Rift:
Another anomaly whose appearance can't be predicted. That said, every occurrence of a Deas Rift typically signals the formation of a new Denied Space at that location—though there's no solid proof of this yet, since some observed Deas Rifts have failed to produce a Denied Space at all.
Despite the word 'rift' in its name, a Deas Rift itself isn't a crack or a tear—rather, it's a name referring to a cluster of highly varied, unavoidable catastrophic natural disasters that can occur during a Deas Rift event; including, but not limited to, massive storms, acid rain, earthquakes, meteor showers, and so on. But no matter what disaster it brings, a Deas Rift is always marked by a thick black cloud that ceaselessly discharges lightning, alongside giant black needles that plunge down and drive into the earth from within it. These needles are what people call 'Dead Piles.'
A region struck by a Deas Rift is said to take an extremely long time to recover and become usable again.
Note: I originally assumed the word 'Deas' in this phenomenon's name carried some specific meaning, but it turns out to simply be the first name of the researcher who first mapped out the concept of this anomalous disaster.
- Dead Piles:
The official name used to refer to the giant black needles that fall whenever a Deas Rift occurs. Just like the Deas Rift, Denied Space, and Black Tide, no one knows how Dead Piles come into existence, let alone how they end up falling during a Deas Rift.
Every Dead Pile that falls doesn't just destroy whatever it lands on, but also gradually crumbles into dust, or melts down into Black Tide at a certain concentration.
In some of the literature I've read, this phenomenon is also often referred to as the 'spears of heaven,' though that name is probably no longer relevant to the discussion at hand.
- Aether:
A magical element that can be found absolutely anywhere—just like oxygen, carbon dioxide, and other natural elements. Aether is what allows people to use magic, and it stands as one of the most vital elements in the history of Lios's people, right up to the present day.
One ancient text I once studied claims that Aether exists to 'manifest the desires' of its user. That very idea is what has come to define 'magic' as it exists today. But regardless, Aether remains an element steeped in mystery, since no one truly understands how it works. At least, not yet.
Humans are able to use Aether for magic because of a magical organ they possess—a magic circuit—that spreads throughout the entire body and centers on the heart, much like a blood vessel. Everyone, regardless of race, is born with a magic circuit, though not everyone can actually make use of it. This holds more or less true, or differs in certain ways, for monsters as well. Monsters possess magic circuits too, but theirs don't root at the heart, which means their circuits form an entirely new pathway to center themselves around instead—ultimately giving rise to a new object altogether: a magic crystal.
I'm still trying to figure out how this mechanism works, though I've made no real progress on that front for now. But thanks to Kanon's ability, I at least know from the start that Aether moves in 'currents,' or waves, running through everything.
Perhaps someday I'll take up this subject for deeper research, but for now, I still need to keep my focus on the task directly in front of me.
Note: The purity level of one's Aether also determines how efficiently it can be used, but at the same time, the purer the Aether, the longer it takes to recover. My own Aether, already at its highest possible purity, takes roughly two to three hours to recover from being fully depleted.
- Gift:
There isn't much valid documentation I could find on this topic. All the information circulating out there is built on nothing more than speculation, so I can't treat it as a reliable foundation for these notes.
That said, a few explanations do hold up; such as sorting Gift into various categories based on their effects and how they're used. Some Gift must be consciously activated, like my own Gift, Accel, while others remain passively active, like Felix's Light Way. Based on that, and my own experience using a Gift so far, I can conclude that Gift differs fundamentally from magic—especially since using a Gift requires no Aether whatsoever. Though, some Gift may still carry side effects on the user's body, like how Accel keeps draining my mind and energy.
There's no valid record of where Gift actually comes from, or why some people have one while others don't have any at all. The most widely believed speculation claims that Gift is a 'blessing' from the gods. Honestly, that's the most sensible explanation out there, but I refuse to accept it.
Because if it truly were a blessing, why would Kanon's Gift—Everlasting Once More—require her to kill herself?
This is everything I've managed to gather so far, mixed in with my own understanding. There's still more information about the various races living in this world that I want to record, but I'll save that for another time.
This note was written on June 20th, year 428 of Lios's calendar—penned after Kanon had fallen asleep.
P.S: So far, I've observed quite a bit of the continent's geography, and taken stock of its overall political situation, but the main thing now is that I'll start mapping out the regions we've already passed through, along with the ones we're likely to visit.