It is difficult to accurately measure the economic impact of the newly created financial schemes of the 5th century. Many lost house and home to unscrupulous swindlers, and the only ones who came out ahead seemed to be those with the most cunning.
To that end, it seemed that a certain country in the east did far better during that period than one would anticipate.
Besti. As always curious land filled with strange warriors, but beginning in this age… also closely guarded financial secrets.
* - A Brief History of Placeholder, Volume 6. Chapter 7
-------
I took off running to the east with two disembodied liches in tow. One hovering to my right and the other screaming and pounding against the walls of the mental cage I put him in.
I was starting to wonder if maybe I should be concerned about that second one, but Tim distracted me with a question.
“Why are you traveling eastward?” he asked. Several zombies stood in my way, but Tim waved them aside, and they parted for me.
“Levels,” I replied.
“Levels? Haven’t you already achieved the pinnacle?”
I barked a laugh. “Do I look like I’m level 25?”
Tim hesitated. “No. That much is apparent. How is that even conceivable? Surely negative leveling is non-existent in Placeholder?”
I shook my head. “I’m a special case. Every time I die, I get put right back to level 1.”
“That is alarming news,” Tim replied. “If the skill levels you have obtained are reset as well, I do not believe-“
“They aren’t,” I said. “Just level. I keep all my skills and spells.”
“Ah. That should have been self-evident when looking at your recent battle,” Tim said. There was a brief lapse, with the only sound being my boots on the ruined cobble, before he continued again. “So, what are you hoping to challenge in the far east?” he asked. “Should you not be challenging dungeons if you wished to level? Or travel to the north where there are higher-level enemies?”
“The area near the volcanoes has the highest-level enemies that I can defeat comfortably,” I stated.
“Meaning that there exist higher level enemies somewhere you are not confident of success against?”
I snorted. “Yes. Dragons. I killed most of the fire ones, but I suppose I could spend several months tracking down a different type just so I could die to them.”
I thought that fire dragons were just a myth. Cameron said from inside my mind.
Part of me was surprised that he was listening to the conversation. The other part of me was just glad that he wasn’t screaming anymore.
A third part was annoyed at the interruption.
“And I’m the reason they’re a myth,” I stated flatly. “Just another thing I’ll fix when I finally cast the ritual.”
Why would you-
“Why would you endeavor to revitalize fire dragons?” Tim asked. “Were they not flying catastrophes? They were the cause of many casualties, including the loss of-“
He shut up before finishing that sentence as he realized he was about to stick his ghostly foot in his mouth, but I didn’t mind. I just sighed.
“The dragon that came to this side of the portal was basically a baby… or I guess, a toddler maybe. Frickin’ stupid, but it barely even knew what it was doing.” I unconsciously felt for Megan’s necklace. “While I don’t regret killing the first one, genociding their entire species was a bit much… especially since once they’re adults, they’re capable of holding conversations and are basically just giant, scaly, winged people.”
That finally left both of them quiet, so I continued. “Now, if you would both shut up and just let me run, I would appreciate it.”
Mercifully, that lasted for enough time for me to dial in my running so that I could “rest” in between strides and keep my stamina level. Since I still had my staff out while running, my mana also came back very slowly, and I was eventually ready to expedite my travels even more.
“Is that [Spatius] magic you are casting?” Tim asked.
“Yeah, no time to waste, so I’ll be casting [Teleport] whenever it’s off cooldown,” I stated. Then I paused for a moment. “Though, I’m not sure how I’ll be able to take you along for the ride.”
“Assuming, on principle, that particular manner of traversing doesn’t dislodge the specter already in you…” Tim began. “Perhaps, I must do likewise?”
I stopped running, and almost fumbled my cast. “You’re saying that you’re going to possess me too?”
He shook his head. “It would hardly seem fit to call his methods possession, but I would endeavor to join with you similarly.”
I shook my head in bewilderment. “This is quickly becoming the weirdest life yet,” I muttered. “Okay,” I said to Tim. “I guess you can just go ahead and hop in when I give you the nod, and then we’ll all [Teleport] together.”
Approximately 10 minutes later, since I still didn’t have a way to cut down on [Teleport’s] cast time without jacking up the mana price, I was ready. I nodded to Tim. He entered my body and then was put in a “room” similar to Cameron, and we [Teleported] away.
It was, all things told, a mildly uncomfortable experience. Which honestly meant that I was getting off pretty light for what I was doing… since I was stuffing three souls into a one-soul meat sack.
I reappeared a couple dozen miles away, just like normal, and thought I would get back to running immediately. However, my passengers weren’t feeling quite so well.
Tim immediately fell out of my body, and his spirit dropped to all fours.
Cameron was making retching noises in the corner of my mind that I had him stuck in.
And I was just standing there confused.
“You guys okay?” I asked.
What do you think? Cameron asked angrily. What in Vir’s name was that?
“Just the typical backlash from a [Spatius] spell of that magnitude,” Tim replied dryly as he regained his feet… or whatever it is that you call it when a floating spirit gets up. “I did not correctly gauge the level of mana expenditure being used, or I might have provided some forewarning.” He looked over at me. “However, it does not escape my notice that Titus remains entirely unscathed by the experience. Is that assessment correct?”
With both spirits at least somewhat recovered, I continued on with my running while I answered.
“Yeah, I don’t feel a thing when I [Teleport],” I replied.
“Irregardless of distance?” Tim asked.
I shook my head. “Yeah, distance doesn’t matter. I’ve been yoinked long distances by fairies before, and I-“
“Fairies!?” Tim interrupted as he flew directly in front of my face. “Is it true that such beings of unadulterated magic exist?”
“Yes?” I replied with a raised eyebrow.
Tim laughed in joy. “Then we need simply ask them! The myths said that they were the pinnacle of spellcasting. Surely they will be able to aid us with the ritual and-“
I shook my head. “No dice. It’s against their laws to use temporal magic,” I stated.
Tim frowned. “Were my ears mistaken, or did you not say they teleported you?”
“Yeah, I said that,” I replied. “But that’s [Spatius] magic, not [Temporus]. They don’t have any laws against that.”
Tim scoffed. “Seems like a fine hair to split. Any class of [Impermissus] magic is as dangerous to the wielder as any other.”
“[Impermissus]?” I started to ask. “Is that a spell school or-“
I highly doubt that. Cameron interrupted. Show me a spell school that will cause your body to waste away due to age like [Temporus], and then I’ll let you claim they’re as dangerous.
“Very well,” Tim replied. “I shall provide instruction to answer both of your queries.” He cleared his throat, which was a feat since it was already transparent, and then continued.
“I take it that both of you are aware of the three-tiered structure of magic for this world?” Tim asked.
I raised an eyebrow, and Cameron stayed quiet.
Tim sighed. “You understand this. I am certain of it. For example, what schools of magic does a [Fireball] fall under?”
That made the light bulb go off.
“Oh, you mean like [Ignis] for the first tier, [Temperis] for the second tier, which houses both it and [Frigis], and then… the third one,” I replied.
“[Elementalis],” Tim provided. “Very good. [Elementalis] is the third tier of elemental magic in the same way that [Impermissus] is the third tier of magic that has been forbidden by this world.” He snorted. “Or not so much forbidden, as set up in such a way that casting it has a great cost to those foolish enough to seek after it.”
He shook his head and continued. “Regardless, the second layer of spell schools underneath [Impermissus] are the oh-so-cleverly named [SpatialTemporus] and [ElectroMagnus] schools, which are just lazy portmaneaus of the schools they contain beneath them. And now, to answer the inferior undead’s question, what is the drawback to the other spell schools?”
“[Electricus] damages the person casting it,” I offered before realizing that his question had been rhetorical.
And [Temporus] magic alters the time of the person casting it. Cameron added with a scoff. A little self damage or a bit of nausea hardly compares.
“That depends entirely upon one key factor you have not investigated,” Tim replied. “What level of mana expenditure did the [Temporus] spells you cast require?”
The cheapest was 100. Cameron replied. [Foresight].
“And what was the expenditure for the most recent spell?” Tim asked.
“You mean the cost for [Teleport]?” I asked. “500 mana.”
“500?” Tim paused in mid-air.
I continued for a few more steps before turning around and looking at him.
“Tim?” I asked.
“Titus, I would request that you not employ that spell with us present again,” Tim said in all seriousness.
I frowned. “It will slow us down quite a bit if I don’t [Teleport],” I replied. “Is the nausea really that bad?”
“The nausea is not the issue. It is the disorientation,” Tim replied. “As specters, we possess more resistance to it than most. However, that does not make us invulnerable. [Spatius] magic, perhaps since it is a sibling of [Temporus] magic, shares the same malady.”
I cocked my head. “You mean that it will rapidly age you?”
Tim shook his head. “No. My claim lacked clarity. Allow me to rectify that… let me think…” he trailed off as he thought but finally snapped his fingers. “The problem is this. Use of [Temporus] magic causes one’s body to become unmoored in the flow of time. Each use erodes that anchor a little bit more.”
I nodded along, and I could feel Cameron do the same.
“The same holds true for [Spatius],” Tim continued. “Every use erodes our sense of where we are located, not in time as [Temporus] did, but in space. So, if you continue to cast that spell with us in tow, it is inevitable that we will completely lose our ability to orient ourselves in space.”
I frowned. That would make my travels a lot slower unless I decided to stuff the two of them somewhere out of sight and then come back for them.
I had huge misgivings about letting Cameron out of his cage, though.
“Regrettably, that means that you will have to seek separate means for your plans of training [Spatius] magic,” Tim finished. “I understand that may set us back, but I will endeavor to assist you with a replacement immediately.”
I realized we were still standing/floating there and that I would not be [Teleporting] anytime soon. So, I started back to running, even as I tried to puzzle out what Tim had said.
“But why would I keep training [Spatius]?” I asked.
“Were you not endeavoring to achieve the fifth level of [Spatius], unlock [SpatialTemporus] with the combined levels, and then devote your skill points from leveling in the east to it?” Tim asked.
I coughed. “Uhh… yeah, of course,” I replied unconvincingly. I didn’t want to own up to the fact that I had just been practicing [Spatius] magic because it was convenient, and not because it would help with casting the ritual in a roundabout way.
Unfortunately, Tim seemed to catch on.
“Indeed,” he said dryly.
“By the way, what’s the downside of the magnus spell school?” I asked, desperately trying to change the subject.
“[Magnetismus],” Tim corrected. “And you will find yourself attracting or repelling things you did not wish to.”
I shrugged. “Well, that doesn’t sound too bad in comparison. Though, I can’t help but wonder why you would want to use [Magnetismus] anyway. Yeah, magnets are neat and all, but not exactly worth an entire spell school.”
Tim shook his head. “You misunderstand the capabilities of [Magnetismus],” he stated. “The spells in that school can attract or repel anything that one can make a spell for. Wood, monsters, in fact, it is my conjecture that a talented enough caster could attract even something so esoteric as fate or fortune. Magnets are not limited to the scope of ferrous metals like they were in our homeland.”
I frowned at that one. “And how the heck do you know what ferrous metals are?”
Tim shrugged. “My father gifted me a science kit… on more than one occasion. It is a difficult matter keeping a wheelchair-bound juvenile occupied.”
We lapsed into silence for a bit before I finally spoke up again.
“So, you recommend going for [SpatialTemporus]?” I asked.
Tim nodded. “Indeed. Each layer of spell school acts as a multiplier on the previous, so it will be much more performant than having simply [Temporus] alone. Were the side effects not… infeasible to deal with, and if we had more than half a century, I would even urge you to aim for the pinnacle school of [Impermissus] to ensure the success of the casting.”
“I mean, I shouldn’t be that far away,” I replied. “[Electricus] and [Temporus] are at 5, and [Spatius] is at 4, so I’m already pretty close to-“
“Your efforts have not placed you even half of the way to [Impermissus],” Tim replied. “To unlock it, you would need several levels in [SpatialTemporus] and [ElectroMagnus]. Specifically, a total of 15 or more.”
“That many?” I asked. “That’s weird. Shouldn’t it only be 5 levels in each like the tier 2 schools?”
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Tim shook his head. “Close. You merely need a total of 10 levels between both tier 1 schools. While that is usually most feasible to achieve by claiming level 5 in both tier 1 schools, it could be done theoretically with only a single school if the caster utterly mastered it.”
We looked at each other for a moment, and then I coughed.
Tim, finally realizing that he didn’t answer my first question, continued. “Ah yes, as I stated, the sum total of tier 2 school levels must be 15 for one to obtain the tier 3 school. I theorize that this restriction is in place due to the existence of a third tier 2 school, but I regrettably did not obtain that information while I was still… sane.”
I remembered everything I had read in his journal and couldn’t help but agree with that assessment.
“So, how did you figure all of that out anyway?” I asked. “I didn’t see you slinging around [Elementalis] magic in our fight, and I’m sure there’s no way that anyone could master all that magic within a normal lifespan.”
Tim laughed. “That’s because I cheated. I questioned the System itself.”
My only response was a raised eyebrow, so he elaborated.
“When my father died, I threw everything into my research. As a [Magic Researcher], I knew there had to be some way to save him. That road led to [Temporus], but my body couldn’t withstand the strain, and I knew it. So… I looked elsewhere.” He looked away, and we traveled in silence for a moment.
“[Animae] to restore him and bring him back from the dead. [Mortae] to bind his soul here, even if he had to inhabit a husk. Neither of them held the answer, so I scoured the rest of [Vitae] in the hopes of finding something,” he said. With a shake of his head, he continued. “I did not. I grew desperate. I searched through [Eruditio] in the hope that I could at least contact my father once again, and then [Elementalis] on the outside chance that there was a misplaced spell there that could do what I needed.”
He laughed. “Not that I even knew what the names of those schools were at the time. And how could I? With the System being so opaque and feeding me only crumbs of knowledge at a time.” He sighed. “Eventually, I was right back to [Impermissus]. I was ready to stumble through that fourth pillar of magic, even should it cost me everything. And that… was when I achieved level 10 as a [Magic Researcher]. I was granted the skill that would be my salvation… and my doom. [System Query - Magic Related Only].”
That sounded completely broken just from the name, but I held my tongue.
That was the right decision. He chuckled again, but I could tell it had no mirth.
“Once per day, I could ask something of the System. Anything, so long as it pertained to magic, and the answer to my query would be bestowed directly to my brain,” Tim stated softly. “Little did I know that it also began my descent to madness… or at the very least, it accelerated it greatly.”
He looked at me. “You are aware of what happened next. I studied [Mortae] to create a body that would withstand the immense pressure of time travel. I succeeded, lost sight of my goals, and then was murdered by you.”
I winced. “Yeah… sorry about that.”
Tim shook his head. “You were in the right. Had my ambitions succeeded, I would have destroyed any chance whatsoever of seeing my father again. Just like I ruined our relationship and drove him to an early grave.”
We traveled in silence for a bit before Tim finally continued.
“Pardon me for a moment.”
He flew off behind me, and I wondered what he was up to… for all of a few seconds. Given the blasts of magic I heard and the roar of zombies tearing into each other, I figured it out pretty quickly.
That’s one heck of a coping mechanism. I thought. However, it didn’t take very long for me to pull up memories of punching wolves to work through things, so I couldn’t exactly call him out on it.
Join the insane magic users club. I thought. Maybe I should make us some jackets.
Tim rejoined me an hour later and was already back to business.
“For a non-[Teleport] [Spatius] spell, I have concluded that we could teleport an object instead. That would negate the strain on the inferior undead you have housed inside you and allow-“
“You mean like this?” I asked. “[Port].” I cast, and my staff reappeared a few feet in front of me, and I barely caught it.
“I suppose that is satisfactory,” Tim replied. In truth, I could tell that he was a bit deflated that he didn’t get to problem-solve anymore. “That will have to suffice for a practical spell. Employ all your mana with that as we traverse this continent, and with additional practice, you should achieve level 5.”
I nodded along and cast [Port] several times. However, at 10 mana a pop, and with an inconsequential cooldown, I was soon done with my training.
Tim caught on to that fact quickly.
“Mana depleted?” he asked. I nodded, and he continued. “Though I conjecture that it has a much worse return per hour spent, might I suggest you continue your repetitions within your mind?”
I scrunched my eyebrows. “You mean, just cast the spell over and over again inside my head?”
Tim nodded. “Precisely. And since mana should not be a constraint, nor should you face backlash, you could instead train by casting [Teleport].”
I shrugged. “Alright, worth a shot.” And so, I distracted myself for a while by trying to cast [Teleport] in my head.
That was a lot more difficult than I imagined.
I tripped over my own two feet on at least three separate occasions, I’m pretty sure that I misaligned the [Teleport] in most of my reps, and I ended the entire thing feeling more frustrated than when I’d started.
“It’s like trying to play chess without the chessboard,” I complained to Tim. “When I don’t have the mana actually there, it’s much harder to visualize.”
Tim scowled. “You are more than capable of this. You need simply focus more and make fewer excuses.”
“I can’t focus more because I need to keep running simultaneously!” I shot back. “I only have the one brain, you know!”
And that sparked an idea.
I looked at him.
He looked at me.
I looked at him.
“No. What you are considering is the height of foolishness,” he stated.
“Come on!” I wheedled. “It’s just running! You can handle it! Easy!”
“You are tempting me with possession of a body,” Tim stated gravely. “I am not sure that I will be willing to relinquish it when you request. I have maintained sanity in this ethereal state for now, but I cannot be certain it will remain if I am given a host.”
I frowned. It looked like operation “have a ghost pilot my body so I can practice magic in my head” was going to be a no-go.
Then, I had another idea.
“What if you swore an oath?” I asked.
“An oath?”
“Yes. If you swear a [System-Bound Oath], then the System would hold you to your word.” I paused. “By force. It’s kinda a dirk about it.”
“The System is not nearly as infallible as you would expect,” Tim replied.
“The oaths seemed to work pretty well to me,” I answered. “I can speak from experience.”
Tim didn’t reply, so I stopped running and nudged his ethereal form.
“Eh? Eh?” I cajoled. “Come on! It would be a big help. And with you taking care of that, I could really focus.”
Tim sighed. “Very well. How does one make a [System-Bound Oath]?”
I had to talk him through that, and I nearly made one myself by accident, but we both caught that before I did something stupid. Then, Tim made an oath. It was even more restrictive than I expected, but I had to admit I was happy with it.
“I solemnly swear by the System that I will do everything in my power to assist with the casting of the [Restart] ritual,” he started. “Should I possess a body of Titus, or one of his subordinates, I will relinquish it upon either of their requests. Furthermore, I shall not lie to Titus unless I believe it necessary for the ritual’s completion.”
“Wow,” I stated as he finished. “That was… quite an oath.”
Tim laughed dryly. “You’ve been far too trusting of me this entire time, so it seemed an appropriate measure to ensure you that I was not being duplicitous.”
I shrugged. “Eh, I’ve got a pretty good idea of what you’re about. And you wouldn’t have shared half the stuff you did if you were still bent on world domination.” I paused. “Also, you’re not exactly a threat.”
“Oh?” Tim scoffed. “The specter of the greatest [Necromancer] this world could ever envision, and I don’t rank as a threat, do I?”
I shook my head. “Nope. You don’t have the [Hero] class, so I’m not the least bit afraid of you. The track record is currently 5 kills by [Heroes], 1 kill by myself, and 0 from everyone else.”
Tim paused. “That is… quite the record. Though, I still think you underestimate me too much.”
I waved him off. “Yeah, probably. I’ve also grown way stronger since we fought. Now, let’s stop stalling. Go ahead and possess me.”
Mentally putting that on the top of my list of “weirdest things I’ve said,” we put the plan into motion.
… It took Tim a while to get used to my body, and I basically had to coach him to run without losing stamina over the course of the next two hours.
However, it eventually worked. Tim was piloting my body, and I got to focus entirely on casting spells inside of my head… except for one thing that concerned me.
Cameron’s been awfully quiet. I thought. I decided I would check in on him, and somehow, managed to pop myself into his prison.
It was basically just a blank white room, with the only discernible feature being a solid-iron door. More specifically, a solid-iron door that a physical-in-appearance-Cameron was battering and sawing at with death magic.
“Oh, so that’s what you’ve been up to,” I stated.
He swiveled around. “You’re going to regret coming here!” he shouted.
An oversized [Death Bolt] shot my way.
Unfortunately for him, it turned out that I was practically omnipotent in that particular space... since it was basically just a prison in my mind and limited only by my imagination. The bolt vanished without a trace, and chains shot out of nowhere and bound the former-lich up.
“What should I do with you,” I muttered as I circled around him. He managed to free a hand and shoot another [Death Bolt] at me, but I simply reappeared on the other side of him with a thought.
“I could make this place a terrible prison. Bind you in chains that you could never escape from, and make you wish that you had never been born,” I stated. There was a hint of fear in his eyes at that, but I sighed. The chains loosed and dumped him on the floor.
“Or you could help me fix this mess,” I stated as I offered him a hand.
“I hate you,” he muttered as he ignored me.
“Feeling’s mutual, but that doesn’t mean I won’t work with you if you swear a couple of oaths.”
I reached down even lower. “So, what do you say?” I asked.
There was a pause for several long seconds.
“What are you even trying to do with the ritual?” he asked.
“Stop myself,” I replied without hesitation. “I was tricked my first life, so if I go back and fix that, Besti will never fall. There will never be a true [Demon Lord], and-“ I forced him into a standing position with a simple thought. “-there will never be a Titus the Tyrant.”
“Swear it,” he replied through grit teeth.
“Swear what?”
“Swear that you’ll use the ritual to stop Titus the Tyrant from ever existing, and I’ll help you with your insane quest.”
“Fair enough,” I replied as we shook hands.
-------
Honestly, my oath to Cameron was nothing that I hadn’t already sworn. I had given the Besti people my oath that I would do everything in my power to stop the fall of Besti from happening, and then when they revoked that, I made that oath to the System itself.
Tacking on another condition or two for that seemed like it shouldn’t do that much.
In turn, I got Cameron’s oath that he would help with the ritual… but that was about it.
So, it seemed best to both Tim and me that we keep him locked away for the foreseeable future… though I did make sure to stop by occasionally and give him some more furnishings for his mind prison.
Speaking of the mind prison, that came to be just one piece in a part of myself that I took to calling The Mindscape. It was basically just my imagination, but I retreated there in a way that felt… almost like I was there in person.
I would never have figured it out without Cameron trying and failing to possess me, and I would never have been willing to waste time there if I didn’t have Tim watching over my physical body to warn me of any trouble.
I managed to get a lot of practice for [Teleport] in while safe in the confines of my mind, and I even co-opted Cameron’s prison cell to try to do some dry runs of the entire [Restart] ritual.
… It turned out that the latter was too much for my mind to hold at that point, unfortunately.
And so, the intrepid trio, a [Demon Lord] and the ghosts of two liches, made our way across the deathlands and into the desert of Besti where I would find myself having even more oath-related troubles…
-------
Titus. Tim, who was currently in control of my body, said to my mind.
“Yeah, yeah,” I replied as I struggled to keep a section of the [Restart] ritual aligned. “I’m kinda busy. If it’s a sand wolf, just [Air Strike] it. If it’s a scorpion, go around it or bowl a dave at it.”
I almost had the section complete.
Just a bit more… I thought.
It is neither. Tim said. It appears to be a beastborn approaching us… and claiming we are trespassing.
“Well, frick,” I stated. “Lie low because those guys know [Elemental Strike], and I don’t want you dying on me.”
Understood.
I came back to myself in the desert, in the middle of the day, with my cloak on, and with someone shouting behind me.
“Halt, traveler! Halt, traveler! Halt…”
Initially, I wondered why the frick he was repeating himself in the same tone, but I belatedly caught that he was repeating himself in each of the known languages, and my translation perk was just picking it up as the same thing.
I stopped where I was and called back without turning around. “Do you need something?”
There was a brief pause, and I could tell I confused the man for some reason.
“You speak fluent Bestian, but no bestian would wear such a cloak in the heat of the day,” he said in confusion. “Who are you?”
“Just a traveler,” I replied.
“In that case, please present your papers, or you will be under arrest for violating our borders,” he called back.
For frick’s sake, since when is this a thing? I thought.
I could hear that the man wasn’t alone, and I figured things were about to get ugly.
I didn’t expect another voice to join the mix.
“Stand down. I believe we have an honored guest on our hands,” the voice stated. The man cleared his throat. “I am Ren Besti, [Prince] of this nation. Welcome to our lands, Titus-dono.”
That was finally enough for me to turn around, and I was greeted by the sight of a heavily ornamented man riding a camel and giving me a slight besti-style bow. If I had any doubt about his claims about being a [Prince], they were mostly dispelled by the crown sitting atop his head… and the bunny ears poking through it.
He also had a retinue following him around that was also on camels, but since camels weren’t really a thing the last time I was in Besti, I wasn’t sure if that was a status symbol as well or not.
I gave him a slight Bestian bow in return and spoke while I was still trying to figure out what the frick was going on. “The pleasure is mine… Ren…kun.”
And that last delay was me rubbing every brain cell at my disposal together to figure out how to deal with the fact that the Bestian language apparently contained honorifics. And said honorifics were being pushed through in the only honorific-filled language that I had a passing understanding of.
Japanese.
Since I had watched a lot of anime back on Earth, allegedly.
Anyway, I had a few moments to come up with what I wanted to respond with because honorifics were usually a big deal in a culture, and I had only 5 Japanese ones I could think of.
Dono, the one that he used, which was kinda old fashioned but meant something like “lord.”
Sama, an even more respectful form of address than dono.
San, basically a gender-neutral form of Mr.
Chan, used primarily for girls or cute people/things.
And then the one I went with. Kun. The honorific for men, male children, or (the one I was thinking of) someone of senior status talking to someone of junior status. I was basically planning on using that for everyone since I was a several-century-old [Demon Lord] and figured I could get away with it.
… Yes, that meant that I essentially went through thousands of mental hoops in a few seconds just to pick what could very well have ended up being fightin’ words.
Fortunately, Ren didn’t think so.
“Kun!” he laughed and slapped his leg. “Kun, he says!” He turned to one of his subordinates, who nervously laughed with him. “Well, I suppose that in the art of the nations, you would indeed be my senior, wouldn’t you? Shall I call you Titus-senpai?”
Senpai. I realized that I had to bump up my earlier count to 6. As he alluded, it basically meant senior or mentor, but it also carried a ton of other baggage in my anime-riddled mind.
I didn’t hesitate. “Please don’t.”
He laughed again. “Very well, Titus-dono. We have much to discuss. Come! Come!”
“I mean, I would love to,” I lied. “But, I’m kind of busy with something.”
“Ah! Do not be like that!” he replied. “It has been centuries since a friendly [Demon Lord] has graced us with his presence. We should give you the welcome that you deserve!”
I was really not liking where this was going, and I tried to think of a way to escape, but he cut that off.
“After all… The Bestian people are requesting your aid,” he finished with a grin.
Ah, frick. I thought as I could no longer turn away, and I could feel my age-old oath to the people of Besti take effect.
Titus? Tim asked from inside my mind. What’s wrong?
I made a poorly worded oath centuries ago to a much more honorable group of people. I thought with a grimace. And it looks like I’m paying for it now.
I started walking jerkily toward Ren. I stopped that with a deep breath.
I’ll help them, but I’ll do it my own way. I decided. That was enough to get the oath off my back.
“Very well,” I stated. “What aid do the people of Besti need?”
“I knew you would come around!” Ren said with a laugh. “But this is no place to discuss such matters! Come! Come! Mount up and come back to paradise with us!”
I did as instructed… which was much more complicated than expected. Apparently, both horses and camels shared a deep disdain and distrust of me when it came to being ridden. I ended up having to scare the poor camel into submission with my aura before it stopped trying to dump me off.
From there, we rode back toward Besti.
I was in position at the head of the group, next to our resident [Prince].
“I get the feeling this wasn’t a chance meeting,” I muttered to him as we went our way.
“Truly?” he asked. “Whatever would give you that idea?”
As he said that, he pulled out a hand mirror, adjusted his crown and fixed his hair, and then stowed it back in his inventory.
Well, that explains how he found me. I grumbled internally. It also meant that the gesture hadn’t been a simple case of vanity either but contained a subtle threat.
How does a hand mirror provide an explanation for locating a single person in this vast desert? a second resident of my mind I had briefly forgotten about, replied.
I managed to avoid showing the jump scare outwardly… and inwardly… I think. Either way, I answered Tim levelly.
The mirror had a magicite gem embedded in the handle. The only reason you would do something like that would be to power a magic item. I replied.
How would that assist him in determining your location when you can’t be [Scried]? Tim asked.
I can be… if you know my real last name.
But how does… Ah. I understand. Tim replied after a moment. And that was the purpose of the oath.
I shook my head slightly and kept the next thought to myself. Tim was always too smart for his own good.
Then, I directed the next thought at the former lich. Anyway, depending on what he asks me to do, this could get dicey really quick. Worst case scenario, I can interrupt the oath for a few minutes. During that time I’ll get him to rescind the oath by force or…
By possession. Tim finished. I am not sure if the System will count the oath as relinquished under such extenuating circumstances, so let us endeavor not to perform a practical examination of it.
“A gold for your thoughts, Titus-dono?” Ren asked.
“My apologies,” I replied, [Getting into Character] and flashing him my best false smile. “I am afraid that I am not the best of travel companions. I spend most of my travels alone and tend to become contemplative when journeying.”
“Well, then, that is a habit that we simply must break!” Ren replied. “Tell me, Titus-dono. Surely you have many a story that you could share?” as he asked that he turned partially toward the rest of the caravan and raised his voice.
It had all the subtlety of a brick to the face, but at least that meant I didn’t miss the social cue.
He’s trying to… have me get on the good side of his followers? Make me appear non-threatening? I half-thought, half-asked Tim. Meanwhile, I outwardly took a contemplative look. “Hmm, let me think…”
Is there a reason not to acquiesce? Tim asked.
I… guess not. I just need something that will keep a bunch of [Martial Artists] entertained…
“I’ve got it!” I snapped my fingers. “Let me tell you a tale that stretches all the way back to the first century of the Age of Adventurers,” I projected to our audience. “A tale of your great fore founder, before the years of her prime. A tale of Lindsey Noble… and the time she put the [Demon Lord] into the dirt 50 duels in a row.”
-----
Eventually, after several tales of Lindsey being the greatest [Martial Artist] and of me getting my butt kicked, we came to the oasis. Things became much more cloak and dagger from there, and I was snuck into the palace.
Said palace definitely wasn’t there the last time I was, and it was full of things that told me that Ren and his parents were probably loaded. However, we didn’t get long to appreciate it before I was squirreled away to a secret room.
Ren dismissed his guards, and then we both dropped our facades.
“That was well played, Titus,” Ren said.
“Oh, done with the honorifics?” I asked. “Does that perhaps have something to do with the fact that you swore your men to secrecy and that we had to sneak into this palace of yours?”
“By my measure, you seem like a man who would prefer the blunt truth to the pageantry of earlier,” he replied. “You have my thanks for playing along.” Then, with a shake of his head, he continued. “As for the… surreptitious entrance to the palace, we are in violation of the [Demon Lord] accords simply by speaking together. And should my father catch wind of this, he will be required by his oaths to turn both of us in.”
I frowned and stood up to leave.
“Wait,” Ren said as he held up a hand to stop me. “I have not yet taken that oath, so you need not fear me. And that danger doesn’t excuse you from your oath either.”
“It doesn’t,” I replied. Then, amping up my aura, I loomed over him as best as I could with my short frame. “But know that if I find a need to, you can be dead before the oaths are even able to stop me.”
Ren paled. “T-t-that won’t be necessary,” he replied. “I’m sure that what I’m going to propose will be of great financial benefit to us both.”
It may have been that I knew how much money the ritual would take, or it may have simply been the greed talking, but I answered after only a short pause.
“Alright,” I grinned. “I’m listening.”