CHAPTER 79 - Scouts I
Scouting, that was what I was meant to do. The sole purpose of my being and existence!
At least that was what the guy who assigned me to the role must have thought when he noticed that I didn’t use any mana outside of my body. It struck for him as if I were their savior, the perfect person to go unnoticed amidst enemy lines as I was invisible to general mana scans.
The experienced mercenaries that assigned each one of the members of the guild to the needed roles really gave me credit. One single good battle and no mana on the horizon was everything they needed to assign the newest of their members to what could for sure categorize as the deadliest of the suicide missions.
Against an unknown enemy, with unknown numbers of troops and unknown tactics, I was their best bet. That was so reassuring to hear…
I have no idea about what they say apart from the YOU are perfect for the job, but deep down, they were so dumb. Knowing that even if I got the information I wouldn't be able to pass it onto them without knowing how to communicate with them, they make the arrangements for me to have a way to do so.
‘Yes! Finally I will be able to talk with people! No more spouting gibberish around.’ I am asked to follow the second person with the biggest authority apart from the leader of this city mercenary branch. The same man who got me into the guild and the mission guides me through the corridors of the guild.
I have been “told” to follow him to be able to speak, but I have no idea on how they are planning on achieving that. Following the man, we reach the last room on the second floor of the guild, and upon entering I kind of suspect what’s going in.
The room we enter is an office, a very luxurious one at that. The person guiding me grabs a key attached to the collar he is wearing. He takes a few steps to the right, faces the wall, and then slides the key all along the wall. The key lights up as it touches the wall and disperses an illusion that was hiding the safe inside.
Raising the key once more, he inserts it into the keyhole and proceeds to open it. Once open, I can get a glimpse of the inside. ‘Rocks?’
‘No… more like bowling balls?’ The safe is filled with metallic spheres and some cubes of all kinds of colors. They seem captivating enough, and definitely get my attention, not knowing what purpose they serve.
The man grabs a small one, a green one. He repeats the same proceeds in reverse and leaves the place in the safe way we found it in no time.
Feeling like he had done enough, he turns to me, the small green sphere in his hand. He hands it to me with care and guides me to the nearest chair. I grab the sphere and feel it weigh with caution. It isn’t heavy or uncomfortable to the touch, in fact, it’s so perfectly round that its smooth surface gives it a nice touch.
The man, seeing my confused face, sends a bit of mana to his hand, showing me that even if low, there are still a fair amount of fighters around that know how to handle mana to some extent. I mimic his actions, gathering some mana the same way I always do, forcing it into my control with the help of my qi. Then I cycle it along my body once, just to get the feeling of it cursing through my body as fresh as I can, and then, I imbue it into the sphere on my hands slowly.
I fervently got rid of all of the qi I could from my system, just in case of it having another energy of some kind entering my body. I wouldn’t want to experiment what type of energies synergize fine with qi and which ones don't with my life on the line.
The moment I start feeling the small thing, it takes hold of my mana and pulls, feeding itself on the flow of mana, and forcing me to gather some more just in case.
I do so carefully, trying to not mix qi and mana to the best of my abilities as I keep both flows going, on one side I have the siphoning of mana with qi and on the other, the outward channel of mana with the sphere. Thankfully, the sphere seems to be some kind of pre-programmed item, as it does everything on its own once the process starts.
I feel a connection being forced upon myself and the sphere, it's similar to the link that I use with Bruma, but nothing similar at the same time. I let the connection sink in, feeling the sensations and trying to get the hang of it. The whole process is a one time thing, once the process is made the connection stays in place on its own, only needing a meager amount of mana to keep it up for as long as you like.
I am about to understand how to do it when it suddenly interrupts, shutting down the “channel of information” at once. Yes, it’s not like the link I am used to, it doesn’t work with emotions or feelings, it's more like a “message”. You need to first establish the connection, follow up by confidently telling yourself what message you want to send, just like if it were a double check confirmation, similar to Earth’s message system, you need to use the “send button” in a way with your will. Finally, the person on the receiving end needs to accept it.
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‘Such a good way of teaching…’ The ingenious method helps me learn about everything at once: the way of doing it, how it works, and how to cancel or block incoming connections.
‘A pity it was only once that I could only experience it once.’ At least that’s what I think as I open my eyes.
I closed them to focus on the matter at hand, maybe putting too much trust on the man in front of me, yes, but if they knew who I really was and wanted me dead by now I would already know it. There are easier ways to do it.
Back to the sphere, it still remains in my hands. ‘Huh.’ I look at the man again, and I get an approving nod, telling that’s ok to go again, so I send my mana into the sphere a second time, experiencing the whole thing again.
I am finally ready to try and do it when I finish experiencing the third time. The man then positions himself in front of me, and I lay down the sphere on the table as I look at him, waiting for his confirmation.
I get a nod from him, and I start remembering what I just went through. The sensation, the feelings, I relive the process as if I were following an instruction manual for a piece of furniture. I recreate it all down to the smallest detail and soon find the connection. I set it with the person that I designated as a target with my mana before starting the link, who's sitting in front of me.
I feel the acceptance of the link by the receiver, so I choose my words carefully, keeping up with a cheerful yet a tad weird personality, to not blow the disguise I’ve been using.
“Hey, can you hear me? Understand me?” I say to him with a hint of excitement that I am not even faking, anxious to finally be able to talk to people.
“Cristal clear.”
There are no words spoken, but I show him a bright smile and a thumbs up for an answer.
“Perfect. Just a couple of things you need to know before you go.” He says.
“Yes?” I take my time to answer, carefully to not cut the connection without knowing. Thankfully, I have developed some control with mana over the time, even if it’s just at the beginners level, and my qi manipulation helps wonders as I try to keep it up.
“The skills required for this type of ability are often a lot higher that you have when it comes to using magic and controlling your mana, so I will warn you beforehand. Most people out there that are able to use this telepathy are expert mages or maybe even archmages.”
“Meaning?”
“Meaning, that you must be careful while using it. I see you are more or less capable of using it, but don't try to use it to talk to other people who aren’t mages or have some control over mana. A single mistake in your control of the skill and you will break the target's mind.” He continues on explaining, making clear that it’s a dangerous power if I am not careful.
“It’s something that it’s rarely seen nowadays, but that's only because the ones using it are experts, the only people who end up with their minds broken are the ones who either deserve it or the ones who got on the wrong side of the mage in question.”
‘Deserve it? Is he referring to criminals and such?’ It would definitely be a great scenario where one could use the skill, getting information out of people with no need for violence, physical one at least.
“And what about using it with mages, why is it any safer?” I ask, curious if he is a mage himself.
“It doesn’t have to be a mage, anyone with some control over mana, at least enough to understand what’s happening to them and with higher expertise on it than you, the one starting the connection.”
That explains it, but I am still curious about him being a mage.
“Are you a mage then?” So I ask enthusiastically, trying to portray my mercenary persona as best as I can.
“...”
“You sure are lively, most people would be exhausted by now after using telepathy for so long.”
“I always was a resilient guy.”
“I see… To answer your question, no. I am no mage, but I got good senses and some idea of topics related to these kinds of abilities, some would say that I am familiar with mana too.”
‘So he is not? I am sure that for a second I saw a glimpse of his mana.’ Not forgetting that I can’t be suspicious here, I leave it at that, happy with what I’ve got. I cancel the telepathy with him and stand up, ready to leave.
Then I start it over again for some practice.
“Thanks for the advice and the help. I should leave now. I will rest a bit before departing on my scouting mission.”
I am about to cancel the connection myself when it shuts itself on its own.
‘Fuck, I run out of mana.’ Too focused on the topic at hand and in keeping up with the manipulation of mana, I forgot to gather some more, leaving me dry on mana.
‘Well, that's good to know too.’ Giving my goodbyes to the man again, I leave the guild. I will drop by the inn to pay for the following days and get a quick nap before setting off.