Lurona city [southern shores of Fuminao Legacy Kingdom], local time [1794.01.27]

It took him a few moments to gather himself. It seemed that overstimulating his brain while numbing the rest of his body wasn’t the best idea.

Alana helped him to his chair as his muscles calmed down and started cramping instead. As he rested, Alex packed up the carpet and the parcel.

“You good?” he asked, walking to his desk.

“I will live,” Zeph said, grimacing at his aching body. “So, what is the diagnosis, doctor?” he asked wryly.

Alex sat on his chair, his posture as rigid as before. “The internal structure of the area doesn’t seem to be compromised. But the context necessary to read anything from within—assuming any coherent information is written there—is lost. I was able to track the area by following the vestiges of traces left by the passing of your Will. You were right – your Will is evidently linking your physical memories with the area. Which means, it had to be a legit Soul memory at some point.”

Zeph wasn’t sure if he liked where this was going.

“On the other hand, the area is still stable and not because of your Will,” he continued, his tone getting a little uncertain. “Which means that it has to be somehow grounded in your… being, as a whole. Some part of you is preventing assimilation or overwriting despite the lack of context. The area is being recognized as an immutable part of you. I would expect your newly acquired flavor of Will to be the culprit, but—again, you were right—I have felt firsthand how it was diminishing when trying to interact with it. So…” he made a pause to take a slightly deeper breath. “I have bad news and good news.”

“Out with it,” Zeph said impatiently. “Just tell me how certain you are.”

Alex studied him with his unmoving gaze for a moment before shrugging. “The only thing I can do that the System couldn’t is to interact with your Will to a degree. As so, at least that part should be informative. The good news is – you can probably rediscover what part of your being, your past is linked to that area. The bad news is – it looks eerily similar to a traumatic experience. I had seen those in the past. Chances are, all you are going to uncover is a memory of impossible pain, crippling fear, or a nightmarish cluster of negative experiences… It’s actually quite big of an area, and it’s well structured, so I expect something more than simple, raw emotions… Which isn’t exactly encouraging.”

Zeph sighed tiredly, grimacing slightly. The problem was that his Will was clearly pushing him to study those… ‘memories’.

“If that’s how it is, why is it so… different from the rest of my Soul? And what does this have to do with being in my core Soul?”

Alex shrugged. “The geometry is different. Soul memories created in extremely different states of mind are always like this. It’s one of the reasons why Will can so accurately break and dismiss a fragment of the Soul in the process of Soul fragmentation. Or, as some call it, Soul Wounding. Although the latter isn’t describing the whole process and isn’t the most correct of terms – seeing that extraordinarily fond memories can also be ejected towards bonded individuals at death… But I am digressing,” he waved his hand dismissively. “Your core Soul is the fundament on which all other Soul fragments you are gaining are structured. Those structures are an expansion of it. Soul fragmentation is a permanent disfiguration of your core Soul. It cannot be cured – the lost part can only be replaced. And let me tell you, it isn’t an easy task. Moreover, if your Soul were to be wounded in that attack to its very core, you would lose much more than just a part of your memories,” he explained slowly, in a very serious tone.

A cold shiver ran down Zeph’s spine. It reminded him of Yula, the Soul-crippled Head of Leilucia’s orphanage. It seemed that his fear of being Soul-wounded was very much justified.

“There is a silver lining here,” Alex continued, leaning back on his chair. “That area is stable independently of your Will, so your Soul fragmentation shouldn’t develop any further without a very strong stimulus. Of course, until you rediscover the meaning of that area, it will negatively influence some of your Skills and their development, but the difference shouldn’t be noticeable – the System would have informed you otherwise.”

Zeph nodded, much happier now that he knew he wasn’t on a slippery slope. He worried that depleting that new ‘flavor’ of Will would have much worse consequences.

“Can you write that and all the details down for me? I am aware that you are oversimplifying a lot…”

This time, Alana started speaking before Alex could even open his mouth. “We will leave you a longer note at the Library, along with literature recommendations. You should learn the known basics and official terminology first.”

Alex frowned, glancing at her. “Is that what you want to do?” he asked suddenly in a cold tone.

Alana turned to him, her face a mask of determination. “Yes. Even if you think his Guild isn’t to be trusted, I don’t see any reason we can’t exchange information directly with Zeph.”

His frown deepened. “He will be watched. He is a high-ranking official now.”

“The horde will be here in a few months. Some would think that having a trusted contact within groups most inclined to fight with Netherbeings would be a boon,” she spat back with a fire in her eyes.

“So, you really think Netherbeings are behind the horde?” Zeph interjected before the argument could flare up even more. It was clear as day that they were very close to each other – Alana didn’t have any trouble guessing what Alex thought about his proposition to cooperate. Disagreements between people like that could turn truly ugly and he wasn’t keen on witnessing one happening between his colleagues.

Alex waved his hand irritably. “With the number of Nether-related incidents in the last few months—yours included—it’s almost certain. That, or they are making use of the chaos, which comes down to the same thing.”

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“Then I would rather see you share your information in that regard with other organizations,” Zeph said seriously, looking into Alex’s eyes.

There was a minute of silence as they stared into each other’s eyes. Alex was weighing his options, but Zeph wasn’t going to step back easily. He knew from experience how dangerous these creatures could be. He didn’t want the city to miscalculate the issue. Infighting between different factions was acceptable only if they understood what their actions could cause on a bigger scale. For that, they needed to communicate. In the grand scale of things the Gibbons may not represent much, but their information and actions could be crucial in a few aspects.

In the first place, the fact that people previously connected with the Temple of Pure Souls were compromised—what’s with attaining a Nether-related artifact—was a blazing warning light. If he understood correctly, that Temple would never tolerate Nether in any form – especially because of how zealous those people were. Maybe it was a new sub-faction surfacing, maybe something more sinister, but the Gibbons had the front-row seats in that regard. Their focus was narrow, but very much important.

“If you plan to become an informant working in our name, I cannot agree to that,” Alex finally said, slowly and deliberately. “That kind of communication is a weak point. It will be discovered, sooner or later…”

Zeph and Alana frowned, but Alex wasn’t done speaking yet. “But if you want it so badly,” he turned to Alana, “Then you can play the role of independent intermediary.”

His words were cold, the decision calculated. He was offering her to leave their group and work as a safety measure. In case of being discovered, Alana would be first to suffer the consequences, without the support of their group, limiting the damage to minimum.

She simply harrumphed, crossing her arms. “So be it. It’s the highest time I regain some private space. You have forsaken almost all contact with the mundane world; the future looks bleak if this continues.”

Alex shook his head, his face showing tiredness. “We had this discussion too many times. If you want to risk your life, risk only yours and no one else’s. Our enemies are deadly serious, just as we always were.”

She huffed with irritation but didn’t comment. Actually, a small smile started playing in the corners of her lips, making him believe that she quite liked this arrangement.

They are behaving a bit like an old couple… One on the verge of divorce, that is, Zeph thought while observing the exchange. “I suppose, it’s time to hammer down some details,” he said. “But first, I have a few questions about the Temple of Pure Souls and your Skills…”

~~~

They talked for a few more hours. Initially, they were exchanging information and setting lines between topics that could be discussed openly, and those that were to be left alone.

The duo have learned a lot about the Sepia Familia Guild and, in exchange, they shared less-impactful parts of the knowledge provided by their Onjis, as well as information about their mutual enemies.

Alex was more distant, though. Zeph knew he wouldn’t see the man for a long time after this visit. He wasn’t sure if his old commander required him to gain more of his trust, or if he would allow him to become closer only after he joined their group in full capacity. He expected that he would learn about that in the future.

He and Alana set up a communication line through the Library to minimize the chances of discovery. She seemed eager to do more, but the time she had spent on Corora truly granted her more wisdom and patience. Even then, she shared that the time may come when she would be able to ‘meet him for the first time’ in public.

Either way, that was also the channel through which they would inform Zeph about their findings regarding the artifact. It seemed that Landlord Jaekandu wasn’t going to have an easy death, but Zeph couldn’t spare much pity for the man. Especially because he knew Jaekandu wasn’t going to be outright tortured. Greater Willpower or not, it would be still risky and, more importantly, unnecessary. More compelling methods existed on Corora.

The last hour or two was spent catching up. The atmosphere warmed up as Alex and Alana recollected their humble beginnings and misadventures. Zeph also had a few stories to tell but it paled in comparison. The two of them truly walked a long way to be where they were.

He was even able to estimate their levels. It seemed they were progressing fast in comparison to the locals and he suspected they started preparing for level 100 evolution, which meant they were way past level 66 – the second Class’s sub-specialization. It was left unsaid, but such information wasn’t to be exchanged between them openly and their guesses not to be discussed.

He left the building with feelings of relief and satisfaction. Things could have gone way worse. Alex was going to distance himself, but knowing he was alive was enough for now. His personality shifted so much that Zeph had doubts if he could work with him closely again.

Maybe in the future… We have long lives before us, he mused, leaving the building.

Looking around and illuminating the place with his lamp, he tried to orient himself. He was on a small backstreet between two dark buildings, near a crossroads leading deeper into the maze of relatively low buildings.

He left through another exit, with instructions on how to find the closest cleaned terrace entrance.

The wind was gaining power again – he could hear it wheezing loudly above the rooftops. The falling snow started changing from the fluffy, spherical snowflakes to the smaller fragments ground down by the winds. The weather was worsening, promising yet another dangerous snowstorm.

He tightened his yellow overcoat around himself before disappearing into the night.

It was a surprisingly long and arduous day, and it was time for him to return home.

~~~

Zeph woke up the next day feeling refreshed.

A huge chunk of worries was removed from his chest and the results were immediate. He hadn’t felt this alive in months.

With vigor, he jumped out of his bed to prepare for the day.

The plan for today was simple – first chores, and then some training. After a fast breakfast in the canteen, he sat down in his internal office—using it as intended for the first time ever—and started preparing reports. The information from Gibbons regarding Nether and Temple of Pure Souls to be delivered to Aisha, along with the notice that he had gained an informant. The corrections of his travel plans that he consulted with the Mapmakers for Kwan to approve and put into motion. He also checked his income from the gadgets and inventions he made her sell, but nothing was standing out. He still needed around a year to pay Ghrughah back fully, if he was optimistic.

Other than that, he scribbled a few notes to Pavail, P’pvel, Ghrughah, and Irra. It was time to produce another invention for Kwan to sell in his name, so he wanted to see what they managed to do with the knowledge he gave them. If he could, he would rather focus on his training, so if they produced anything interesting that he could sell, he would take that.

Also, he wanted to organize a sort of regular meeting for the ‘crafters’ to update each other on their findings and synchronize their efforts.

Then, he started reading the reports, instructions, as well as a financial summary of his Department. He would have to focus on that for a few weeks to make sure everything was working smoothly before he set off on his journey.

After finishing, he stretched his back and checked a wadokei affixed to the pipes near the ceiling. Noticing that it was time for lunch, he sighed with relief and started sorting the papers out.

On his way to the canteen, he visited a security station. Kwan’s people could take care of delivering them. The documents were encrypted, of course, so he wasn’t worried about anyone reading them.

Entering the canteen, he immediately noticed Makani sitting in one corner with a grumpy look on his face.

Smiling widely, he started walking up to him.

Perfect timing. It’s the highest time for some Mana training! he thought to himself, rubbing his imaginary hands with glee. I have sooo much to improve it’s not even funny anymore~!