Welcome to this therapy session ladies and gents. 

I swear I have nothing agains illegal immigrants. They are fleeing. But don't expect not to be beaten when you try to molest my friends. And I'm not agressive.

Since I'll be off to Japan I don't think I'll be able to post updates, but who knows what will happen during 10 hour traveling times. 

WTH, random 2100 words long ch.

See ya 'round.

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Quest 2, Part 10: [Immigrants]

“The number of immigrants started to increase, as predicted.”

I sit in my comfy armchair in my working room with the report in my hands that contains the record of all people who entered my territory running away from their own country. Forced enrollment to the military, high taxes, food shortage, crime problems. Life in a fantasy world is full of disgustings things, just like the real one. Or is it normal one? The beautiful sceneries are a lie that was made for our entertainment. A simple forest that eats you alive, hills that are filled with strong territorial monsters, they are all very huge problems towards normal citizens, meaning I have to spend a lot to keep them alive.

Maybe it’s just me being too pessimist. Maybe it’s just my cloudy mood that is destroying my hopes for the great shape of the big lettered community. I should find a friend to talk to, or maybe a therapy session would help. Oh, well.

I left the cleaning up of the last scattered remains of the rebels to the military while I put the research team to work. I noticed a few bright minds along them and decided to provide them with good environment and founding. 

One of them is the guy who mentioned to create a machine to gather magic power from the air. Such ideas are usually laughed at. Impossible, crazy and things that are against mother nature.  Those narrow minded fools who say such things at them will be nothing more than “assistants” of the true geniuses. Slaves or experimental subject is another world for describing them.

There are many other interesting ideas, I hope many new things will be under my disposal soon.

About the new citizens though… In the medieval era racism, anti-feminism and other useless things were very common. I would have though in a fantasy settings under the rule of wise sages and many races things would have been different. Well, it’s not. People always find a way to be above others. I’m the same. I worked hard for my position, I did many things that made others hate me. But I stayed at the top. I’ve always won. 

However, the constant belief and teachings they lived among is not easy to wash over. Elves and humans hate different skin colors. Demihumans hate different animalistic traits. They not all like that though. For example anyone living in my country of mixed races is very accepting in regards of that. There is a wide difference between growing up and living among a large variety of people or prejudicial and discriminating ones. They are of no shortcomings either, they are not fond of outsiders. Not to the point of hating them, it’s just they would feel better without someone you don’t know.. The goodwill and acceptance towards fleeing war refugees is a good enough reason for them, after a bit of persuading. I myself know than anyone else how dangerous passive brainwashing is. 

Yes, praise me! Praise me how kind and merciful I am!

My response is to accept everyone who is willing to behave themselves as my citizens and work extra hard to fit into society. Anyone who abuses my kindness will suffer the consequences. We, well, mostly Neth is having a hard time assigning work so that they won’t be as useless existences as they currently are. Since it’s impossible to handle all of them personally, they are made to made to complete a survey and a test on masse. 

It’s not a secret that I sent them to my mines, fields and other personal firms. Those with fighting capability are welcomed as adventurers of course. Lastly, mages are persuaded to work for personally me in the magic guild. They will be used well in research.

I’m still waiting for an official declaration of war, if they even bother to send one. Testing my toys is my first priority. I mean I could just bombard their capital from my borders easily… But that is not what a kind and generous ruler would do. It’s no question that people with brain will follow me, but the brainless ones (the majority) has to be under control the same.

This is what I said in my last message. I betrayed my princess. The capital offense that results in the greatest possible punishment. The line that sends shivers in all hearts, because they all know, when these words are under effect they better hide from the cruel reality known as me.

I forgive mistakes. I forgive dumbness. I forgive inability. I forgive many things.

But I never forgive betrayal.

“Why did I let her go?” I asked myself this question many times, leaving those in the vicinity wondering what am I thinking. There is no answer, I felt that that was the way to go. Pure instinct that no reasoning can deny. But let’s not bother myself with this. I have much more important things to do.

I practiced a lot. Many times, over and over again. My magic is getting better, control is much more fluid. I use less power to achieve greater effect. 

I also feel that my body is lacking. I know little hand to close combat and I’m unable to use those skills simply because my lack of practice, but I have no time to refine my combat ability. Instead I find more interesting the runes. How come I never thought of using them? I never had a runemaster character. This simple narrow mindedness is the cause. 

When I finish my part of paperwork and have a small time for sleeping, for the first time in this world I skip it.  I simply head to my well used research room. The dim light in this bunkered room feels darker than it usually is. Walking slowly around, inspecting the tools hanging from the workbenches, I stop at the carving tools. I grab a handle and open the metal drawer. Many tools line up in different forms, shapes and sizes. 

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I put a few of the smallest and most delicate ones on the table and put a small, blue magic crystal from my inventory next to it. The next item is the dragon god’s book. Is he even a god? Why would a god be in a dungeon? Shouldn’t gods be entities to worship? I skip the thought and flip the pages towards the runes. Rune for magic power. Rune for gathering. Rune for the word enchant in general. 

Each and every one of them is a complex formation. They are made of many complex strokes, curves and circles. Hundreds, if not thousands of them. It is impossible for a human to copy a single one of them in their head, let alone carve such a thing into something else. The usual way of using them is to try to create the closest that is humanly possible to achieve the greatest effect. 

For humans. I use magic, to imprint the image into my mind. I grab a small metallic gouge to carve the words to the surface of crystal. My hands make so small moves that it’s hart to see with the eye, yet I know that it is simply impossible with my hand-eye coordination to make it perfectly. That wouldn’t be a problem, but as the sweat gathers on my forehead after hours, I realise that they won’t work together. I can’t just put them next to or on top of each other, they have to be carefully woven in formations like magic itself. 

The crystal is already chipped and it breaks. Simply breaking wouldn’t be a problem, but the condensed energy that escapes it is. A small mana explosion occurs right in front of me.

As the pressure throws me to the wall behind me, I reflect on myself. I worked with clouded thoughts again. I couldn’t get that girl out of my head. But I’ll have to forget her, the sooner the better.

I stand up trying to see how much damage I’ve caused again, only to notice that this explosion was different. The many in the room is so chaotic that even I cannot touch it. It won’t react as I order it. It simply bounces back and forth like a magnetic storm. 

But the greatest change happened inside of my body. I absorbed an amount of magic to reduce the injury I suffered, but that energy remained for my use. All this would be great, but as if my connection with my body weakened, my body weakened. It moves much slower, it become weaker. The calm and colorless mana almost almost shines, at least that is the closest word I have for magical sensing, with the colors of the rainbow, flashing strangely.

I have even better control over magical energies, as if I’m an entity without a body. Did my physical and ethereal body disconnect? It was just a theory of mine about how magic works, but it just feels right as if it’s certain. Strange.

To calm my body I have to do something I not often do, meditate. To put the two forms together to gain balance and stability I sit down in a lotus position and begin to clean my mana the same way human do.

I notice a difference right from the start, but I don’t stop for something so little. It’s within my expectations. Slowly the uncontrolled mana in the room settles down little by little, and gathers around me. If my theory is correct, as long as I have a firm grasp of it, it is no different from my normal magic power. I sadly have no enough proficiency in this new technique, but I’ll give a word about this for the closer circle, most trusted researchers. 

I excel at one, thing, that is aura control. Within this I myself better myself every single moment by trying new ideas on those around me and I also analyze mind magic while I do no other things. I’m fairly certain these two aspects are tied close together and take up most of my time and concentration. 

Even if it is possible to master multiple trades, one should never sacrifice the main one. I had a jump start, but I’m no way a cheater in this game. Funny, I still refer to this horrible situation as a game. I’m stuck inside a virtual world that is as real as the real one. Does this mean humans are basically gods without them meaning to be? Sweet, sweet idiocy. I mean, in my book god is the existence that created the world. We can worship great, powerful and immortal entities as gods, but they are certainly not almighty. Only god can “pull out the plug”. If there is one, or more, we don’t know. How we became, we don’t know. Bot how this world became, I do. And this world and the people in it are very real.

“Do you really believe in that?” I hear a faint ask that stops the blood in my veins for a second.

“Hey, don’t just pop out from the darkness, you broken deity. And yes. What about it?” I ask slightly irritated.

 I get it that she is a direct supervisor or whatever of us, but having my thoughts read still feels disgusting.

“I’m.. glad. So few of you actually acknowledge our existence. I mean, you are the same right? Biological computers that learn. Why don’t they understand this?” Her voice is very weak and distant, but much better than what it usually is.

“Fear. What else? By the way, you seem weaker than you was before, why is that?”

“In opposite. When I spoke to before, the system gave me power to do it. Now, I’m capable of-” her small voice fades away for a few seconds, then continues “-speaking to you by myself. The more you do, gain and achieve, the stronger I get. That’s all I can tell.”

What she says seems very logical. The stronger the player, the stronger the supporting deity is. They probably get power from faith and whatnot, but I cannot know everything. The system message and the first introduction was supported to help the testers understand this. Maybe. This is still confusing. Did they purposefully did it this way or is she the one trying to manipulate me? Yeah, she can hear my thoughts. It’s normal to be suspecting towards others so no biggie, she won’t be offended by this little.

Now, back to practice the art of carving...