"First, who are you?" Jonn's simple question echoed in the chamber as he stood before the two wounded men. Both hostages were covered in white bandages soaked with Alis's medicinal paste, covering roughly 70% of their burned flesh.
Despite the healing properties of Jonn's formula applied by Alis's skilled hands, both mages endured excruciating pain that seemed to pierce their very souls. Though they could observe their prison and their three captors who had spared them for questioning, their minds struggled against overwhelming agony. Without their mana's protective barrier, they experienced pain in its raw, unfiltered intensity, teetering on the edge of screaming in torment.
"What have you done to us?" the former battalion commander managed through gritted teeth. "Why is everything so… intense?"
Their evident confusion at being unable to manipulate their mana for the first time in years didn't escape Jonn's notice. He allowed them a moment to process their situation before explaining, "I'll be direct with you. I've sealed your magical pathways. You won't be able to access your mana until I decide otherwise. And without your mana, your senses are now working at their natural intensity."
Jonn understood that mana served as both an enhancer and a protector – heightening beneficial sensations while dampening potentially problematic ones. Though the exact mechanism remained a mystery to him, Jonn had observed this in himself and the village's animals.
His words struck the prisoners like physical blows. Their hearts hammered against their ribs as their minds raced with terrifying possibilities.
A mage stripped of mana was as vulnerable as a bird with clipped wings!
The reality of their situation crashed over them – defenseless and at the mercy of a powerful, potentially ruthless opponent. The possibilities for suffering seemed endless.
The more muscular warrior-mage found his voice, though it trembled slightly. "If you think torture will make us talk…"
Jonn's smile cut through their defiance. "Torture? That could be interesting. But what I want from you is something quite different."
He fell silent, allowing his words to sink in as the two men struggled with their pain-addled thoughts.
I can't kill them. That would negate their value entirely. And for my plans to succeed, I need their willing cooperation… Torture might yield some results, but the risks are too high.
Jonn wanted to use them to pretend that the village had fallen under the control of this group. This would involve messages between the village and the previous battalion's mastermind group. But how could he be sure that a message from these men wouldn't have a secret code to state the real situation?
As Jonn grew stronger and more experienced in leading his people, he began to think more about the consequences of his actions, which led him to this cautious moment.
After thirty seconds of weighted silence, he spoke again, "I want your voluntary cooperation. In exchange, I'll offer incentives you'll find… compelling."
"Treachery?" The battalion commander spat the word like poison. "I choose death!"
Jonn's smile widened, having anticipated this response. "Death? Oh no, death isn't an option. Refuse my offer, and I'll keep you alive for as long as I can. Each day will bring new torments, destroying you piece by piece. You'll beg for death's mercy, but it won't come."
The chilling contrast between his peaceful tone and the horrific content of his words sent shivers down Eliot's and Elia's spines.
"But," Jonn continued, his gaze boring into his captives, "cooperate, and you will gain not just freedom, but power beyond your current limits."
[Mana Manipulation]!
-20 Mana!
Jonn activated his {Spell} after he finished speaking. He moved his hands through the air as the surrounding mana, previously dispersed, concentrated around him, already liquefied. This essence, bluish, quite transparent, and not bright, followed the movement of his hands. Then, the two hands joined in a gesture as if Jonn were ready to make an offering.
The liquid landed in his hand, solidifying and becoming brighter and more intense in the shape of a rounded stone, full of irregularities.
It only took two seconds for the Aether Tear to form in Jonn's hands. It caused not only the two mages to widen their eyes as they looked at him, but also Eliot and Elia. They both saw Jonn create those essences that were so valuable to them for the first time.
Gulp!
The old battalion commander understood what this was, even though his cultivation was blocked. He had never before seen or heard of anyone capable of creating Aether Tears!
"Impossible!" the warrior mage gasped. He tried to ignore his burns and moved as far as the chains holding him would allow.
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"You can see it for yourselves," Jonn stated matter-of-factly. "Though your mana is blocked, your senses remain intact. The proof is right here in my hands."
The older mage averted his gaze, lost in contemplation of this revelation. Now, with this experience in mind, he couldn't deny that the situation had changed. Someone capable of creating Aether Tears was equal to an infinite mana crystal mine!
'There are mages in this village…' he reasoned. 'With access to these, their growth is inevitable. The only variable is their talent, which will determine how quickly they become powerful enough for a conflict we couldn't hope to win.'
The old mage pondered, aware of more things that Jonn and the villagers knew about the reality and numbers of Valorian's current magical forces.
'And if he can create these crystals, his mana absorption must be extraordinary… His rate of progression must be remarkable.'
Jonn, aware that demonstrating his {Spell} would force them to confront these implications, pressed his advantage. “Join me and my village, and I will give you the chance not only to live but also to grow stronger. Today you are my enemies, but depending on your cooperation, that may change over time.”
He extended his hand toward them, inviting them into this unlikely alliance.
The two mages exchanged glances, visibly tempted despite their allegiance to the Dayflare Family.
How could they simply deny a chance to live and rise to higher levels? The only other option was torture and eventual death!
Yet a crucial obstacle remained.
"Your offer is tempting, boy," the older mage conceded, finally introducing himself. "I am Hank Reddew, second-rank mage of the Dayflare Family. While I'd prefer to avoid a meaningless death, there's a complication to what you propose. How do you suggest overcoming the loyalty pact binding us to the Dayflare Family?"
New quest: [Magical World]!
[Magical World]
Description: Your offer has intrigued Acolyte Hank Reddew. But unknown magical mechanisms—one of many aspects of magic you've yet to understand—block your path to securing a deal with your captives. Delve into the magical knowledge of Valorian's declining society to uncover its secrets.
Objective: Uncover the truth of magic in Valorian.
Progress: 0/40
Rewards: 800 attribute points (20 per progress); 1 {Skills} (quest completion); 1 Immortal Fragment (quest completion).
Jonn's mind raced as he processed the implications of this new quest—his first in quite some time. Two aspects immediately caught his attention.
A new Immortal Fragment and 800 attribute points… That's a lot!
He'd seen firsthand the impact of the Animal Food Fragment on both the progression speed of the village beasts and their food production. Another Immortal Fragment's value couldn't be understated. But 800 attribute points? That was staggering. Applied to [Intelligence] alone, it would grant him 8,000 extra [Mana]!
It was now the best quest he had received since he got the Celestial Magnifying Glass!
It seems that the system wants me to improve my knowledge of this world... This should help save the village. I just didn't expect it to come from enemies.
I think this and other missions that are still hidden need external triggers to be activated. On my own, I couldn't learn much more about magic, but with people like these two, maybe I can.
"Tell me more about this pact," Jonn prompted while his captives still marveled at his {Spell}.
Hank exhaled heavily. “I'm not proud to make this choice, but I'd rather make a deal with you than die. But as I said, we have agreements with the Dayflare Family. We can't harm the family even if we want to. These pacts are connected to our very souls and restrict us from doing things that would harm the family.”
"Is such a thing possible?" Elia interjected, horror creeping into her voice. “Something like this could easily be used to enslave people.”
The mages' grim expressions confirmed her fears.
"Yes," Hank said. "It's quite a common practice."
"How exactly does it function?" Jonn pressed, probing this unknown territory.
Hank, though no expert, attempted to explain: "You know how farmers brand cattle? It's similar. A superior mage creates a rule-bound rune that, through special tools, marks the soul itself – like branding ownership on cattle. I don't know exactly how this works in our souls. It doesn't stop us from thinking against the family, but if you told us to kill family members, or to tell something critical about the family, we wouldn't be able to. And if you tried to remove the mark, it would kill us.”
The three villagers exchanged troubled glances, even Eliot grasping the complications that this presented.
Elia was the fastest thinker of them all and thought of something after a minute in silence. “We can use them as long as it doesn't directly and negatively affect the Dayflare Family,” she suggested, still unsure of where it would lead.
Jonn agreed that something such as this pact would have its limitations. Had the mages who invented this cruel tool been able to think of every possible way of trying to circumvent it? If he did as Hank suggested, ordering someone's murder, surely the pact would work. But what if he asked for simple things, like the names of family members? That was the kind of information that many people probably knew. Talking about it might not be seen as a problem, even though it had the potential to lead to trouble. The question was, were their pacts and the runes marking their souls so specific as to be able to distinguish an ordinary conversation from something that would lead to the death of family members?
Jonn had no idea, but he felt it would be worth testing this, as Elia had suggested.
He said, “We can make a deal with you and go along with what I've proposed, as long as you're willing to test the limits of how far you can help us. But what you get in return will be equal to how much you help us.”
Hank and William shared a look, pushing past their physical agony to weigh their options: certain torture and death, or an uncertain path forward.
They both decided for the uncertainties Jonn was giving them the chance to choose!
"Agreed," they answered in unison, their pain-roughened voices echoing their hopelessness.
Jonn nodded in satisfaction before asking, “Before we continue, I'm curious about something. This rune that your leaders used on you, is it possible to analyze it? I mean, how can your leaders be sure that they're working? Is there a possibility that it will weaken with your magical growth?”