“See, that was not too hard, was it?” Cecilia said, looking at him with a grin. She was sitting about three boulders away from him, a distance enough for the darkness to make it impossible to clearly see the features of her face, but in his Spirit State, everything was crystal clear to him. “You sure did take your time though.”
“…I would have been done much sooner, if someone would have told me what to actually look for, rather than just asking me to find a boulder that I feel familiar with.”
“It worked out in the end, did it not?”
“…You two should never try to take in disciples when you become successful in your Wanderings.”
While Cecilia was laughing at his grumblings, Alnea turned his attention to his other friend, Yuri. Just like Cecilia, she too was sitting on top of a boulder roughly the same size as his, but was only one boulder away from him. She was so close, that he did not even need the senses of his Spirit to be able to see her. Especially since the soft light of the canyon, as always, was naturally gathering around her face, lighting up her smile. A smile that was genuinely happy for him gaining the right to experience the good fortune hidden in the boulders.
“I can understand about Cecilia, but I am not that bad of a teacher, right?” Yuri said to him through the rings, in a voice that made it seem like she was offended by what he was saying, but she failed to hide her giggles from him. Or maybe, she deliberately added them to tease him.
“…A teacher who sends in her student to complete a task, without actually telling him how to do it.”
“I believed that you would be able to figure things out by yourself. And see, you did it, did you not? Besides, I would have warned you in case you would have been about to make a wrong, or hasty choice.”
“…Excuses.”
“Don’t you trust me?” Yuri said, in a hurt, disappointed voice, while withdrawing the smile on her face, replacing it with pitiful expression that matched her voice. If Alnea had not known her better, he might even have thought that she was genuinely hurt by his words. However, it was also because he knew her that he knew that she was telling the truth.
Chuckling to himself, and to his mischievous friend, who had somehow managed to keep her mischievous side hidden from most of the world, Alnea shook his head, and said, “Fine, fine. I trust you. Now, stop making that face, or Cecilia will start pouting again.”
Yuri grumbled a little at that, but she did as he had asked, replacing the sad expression on her face with a more normal, and calm expression. Not her usual smile, but a calm, and serene face that she often had when she was complaining, or upset with him. He did not know whether she was really upset or not, but her voice did carry a sour tone.
“…You surely do take care of Cecilia a lot.”
“Of course,” Alnea said. “She is precious to me, and I also made a promise to big sis Serena. It is only natural that I will take care of her.”
“…You, and your stupid Oaths.”
“…I took an Oath to take care of you as well, you know.”
“And how have you been taking care of me, exactly?”
“…I am working on that,” Alnea said, letting out an awkward smile. “At the moment, I may only be adding to your burdens, but don’t worry. Before long, I will be able to help you with everything that you have to carry. Both your burdens, and your responsibilities. Even if it means dealing with other Orthodoxies… No matter what kind of fate, or great changes might be waiting for us, we will save your clan. Together.”
“…You surely know how to talk,” Yuri said, still in her grumbling tone, but with a smile on her face. He still did not know whether she had truly been upset with him, or was just acting. Still, he had to accept, Yuri really did look a lot better, and prettier with a smile. Especially when the smile was meant for him. It often sent cool, and refreshing waves in his chest. Maybe that was a Mystery as well… The Mystery of Yuri’s smile…
While Alnea was grinning at his thoughts, Yuri glanced towards Cecilia, and said, “Since we are ready, then there is no need for us to wait anymore. Let us experience what this Fortune Spring, and its hidden Good Fortune is all about.”
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Alnea lost his smile the moment he heard what Yuri said. Putting on a solemn face, he said, “Shouldn’t one of us stay as guard while the others experience the Fortune Spring?”
“That is not necessary,” Yuri said, shaking her head. “This place is in the Dark Wind Wolf’s territory, so the other Oren Beasts should not be coming here. Unless, of course, they come to challenge the wolf. But in that case, once they find the wolf’s dead body, with no signs of other Beast’s injuries, they will think that a stronger Oren Beast has taken the wolf’s territory, and will stay away from this place for a while.”
“…What if they think that they are strong enough to take down whatever it is that has killed the wolf? Or what if some Beast just stumbles upon us? Would we not be left completely defenceless in those cases?”
“You underestimate Fortune Springs,” Yuri said, shaking her head. “Fortune Springs are called Fortune Springs for a reason. Even in the cases that you mentioned, once Oren Beasts, or even other Wanderers for that matter, come barging to this place, then the process of us experiencing the Good Fortune hidden in the boulders would be halted, and we would immediately regain our senses, ready to fight the uninvited visitors. There is nothing for you to worry about. Just relax, and meditate. And of course, do not forget to maintain your Spirit’s connection with the boulder.”
Alnea was still not convinced by Yuri’s words. Leaving his defences up to chance, and fate was not an idea that he was very fond of. Especially fate. His fate… His master may not have told him explicitly, but he was not dumb. From the things he had heard, and the things he knew, he could guess that the reason for the Heterodox Wanderers to come after him must be the curse of his fate.
Even the Whitebud patriarch becoming Enthralled, and subsequent destruction of Anneve’s core city, was all because of his fate. So many Wanderers, so many innocent people… Even the reason his mother was suffering at the moment, worrying whether he was even alive or not, must be because of the curse. His fate… it was not too reliable. If he gave up all his defences as Yuri had asked of him, then he was not sure what might happen. And with Yuri, and Cecilia by his side…
“Trust me, Alnea. Nothing will happen.”
“…It is not fair to use your smile like that,” Alnea grumbled, but gave in to Yuri’s persuasion. Since even Cecilia was not saying anything, then things might be as Yuri had described. Even if his fate really did flare up, bringing them trouble, his master would still be able to save them in time. She would just scold them a little. A little scolding, in exchange for Yuri’s smile… That was not too bad of a deal.
“Fine,” Alnea said. “Let’s see what this Fortune Spring is all about.”
“…May Goddess Ilea’s blessings be with you.”
“May Goddess Ilea’s blessings be with you.”
Saying so, all three of them closed their eyes, and began meditating, while keeping their Spirits connected with the boulders they were sitting on. In literal sense, it meant keeping all the senses of their Spirits focussed on the boulders, and observing their changes. That was trick Alnea had learned when he still a Seed. Concentrating all the senses of his Spirit to a point. Or just simply manipulating the senses of his Spirit. And as he reached the False Rank, his manipulation had only kept improving.
Once he had concentrated his senses on the boulder he was sitting on, he stopped sensing everything around himself. Cecilia, Yuri, and even the world around him, everything was gone. Only he, and the boulder remained. And in a sense, they had truly become one. Not physically, or in any other plane of existence for that matter. It was just that since the boulder was the only thing he could sense, he felt as if he was, ever so slowly, melding into the boulder.
Starting from his heartbeats, slowing down to match the breaths of the boulder—breaths. The boulder had breaths. It was as if it was alive, and trying to reach out to him, to communicate with him, to understand him, and to be understood. He had not felt that before. Was this the Good Fortune? No, this was just the beginning. A Fortune Spring…
His master had specially emphasised to him about Fortune Springs, implicitly asking him to search for them. They were beneficial for his growth, she had said. So, the Good Fortune hidden in the Spring could not be something as simple as just a breathing rock. Or else, how could it have helped the wolf advance to the intermediate phase so quickly, that its own body was not able to keep up with its growth?
“…places where the Origin Sea’s power has spilled over, creating special areas, which can bring all sorts of good fortune…”
Special areas. That was what Yuri had said. The cluster of boulders was one such special area. A place hiding a Good Fortune. Yet what sort of Good Fortune could a boulder hide? It just sat there, silently, doing nothing, but breathing. Slow, and deep rhythmic breathing, like his Heart... When did his Heart begin to beat? No, before that, since when did Hearts gain the ability to beat? Or rather, when did Hearts gain such a substantial form, that he could even feel its beats?
“…Origin Sea’s power…”
Was this the work of a Mystery then? If so, then what kind of Mystery was it? And did that mean that the Good Fortune he was going to experience was a Mystery? That was not too bad of an option. Another Mystery… he could use it to increase his repertoire of Arcanas. But… was that really what was happening to him?
Most probably not. He had been to the Origin Sea. He knew what the manifestation of a Mystery felt like. Besides, he could not even feel the presence of Oren. How could Mysteries manifest without Oren? The boulder… it was definitely not manifesting a Mystery. But then, what exactly was happening? Why was he, ever so slowly, merging into the rock he was sitting on? Being one with the rock… with Earth. He had rejected all those temptations, only to end up doing the exact same thing. What was even happening to him?
Him? Who him? There was no him. There was only it. The rock that had existed for time immemorial.