Am I hearing things right? Did he say I have an accumulation? No, no surely he was joking. After all, the Grailvine even said that I didn’t have one…
“Stop with the jokes, Vale. I know I don’t have one.”
“Well… you do have one, but you don’t at the same time… It’s something that I haven’t seen before around here…”
“Ok, you’re telling me the Grailvine isn’t always right? That’s impossible. That damn tree has been identifying accumulations since the very beginning of time. Why would some random guy suddenly deny its appraisal?”
“Fine, you don’t have to believe me just yet. I’ll see what I can do to release that strange energy you’ve been storing up.”
Vale took his notes out of his pocket and began to feel them. As he flipped through the pages, he also took Liberus again?
“HEY! GET YOUR MITTS OFF ME! RANKU! HELP-”
“Just bear with me for one second. I’m also sensing this weird energy from you. Ah, here we are. Split Accumulations, page 43.”
“Split accumulations?” I ask. “I’ve never even heard of this before…”
He threw Liberus back into my hands and got up. Vale then called for Grace and whispered a few things in her ear. After what he said reached her ear, she placed her hand on her mask with a rather… shocked expression… After which, she rushed towards the back of the bar again.
“Don’t worry about her, she’s just getting something from my office. It’s to help with drawing out one’s accumulation. Especially with strange ones such as yourself that don’t fit into any class.”
Classes? There are classes of accumulations? The basics that I know of are those that are used in combat and those that are used as support… I wanted to learn more.
“Could you tell me about these classes? Why doesn’t mine fit into any class..?”
Vale took out his notebook once again and flipped to more pages. Looks like he doesn’t have the greatest of memories I suppose…
“Well to start, there are six classes that define an accumulation. Reality, Soul, Darkness, Light, Life and Death. These six are the fundamentals and building blocks for what accumulation gets classified into which.”
Liberus then chimes in. “You’re saying that crazy magical powers such as fire or water would be classified into-”
“Reality class. Those elements have a state of… existence to them. They can be felt, touched and used to a great capacity. I’m considered a Reality class user myself.”
That explains a bit, but I don’t see how my so-called accumulation doesn’t fit into any of these classes…
“So Vale, what class would I be in?” I question, clenching my fists.
Grace walks into the dining room with a strange artifact in her hands. It seems to have a leaf from the Grailvine too… Aren’t those extremely expensive?! Pretty sure one leaf can sell upwards of 10 thousand Kols…
“That’s what this device is for. Me and my sister have been doing a bit of investigating with the Grailvine in our free time. It’s quite inefficient with giving… accurate results…”
He gave the artifact to me. The leaf was in a small little capsule with a small little needle poking out of the front. It was a bit intimidating to be holding an item that’s worth… this much… No. I can’t. Vale would probably catch me anyway…
“Go on. Poke yourself with that needle until at least a drop of blood comes out.”
Ok… Hopefully this needle is clean… I hesitated, but for the greater good, I pricked myself and a small bit of blood puddled on the tip of my finger.
“Perfect.”
Vale opened the capsule and took my hand. He rubbed all of the blood on the leaf and we waited patiently. Very… patiently…
“So, when do you think this’ll be done, Liberus?”
“You literally just did it a few seconds ago…”
“Seconds?”
“Right… I forgot that you’re a bit slow…”
“Yeah, whatever…”
----------------------------------------
“There we go, all finished. Now wait right here until my sister can analyze it for a bit. She will be with you two shortly. This time I’ll know if you two decide to leave.”
A small gust of wind appeared on the side of my shoulder. I’m guessing this is meant to act as an eye of sorts to him. He’s got quite a lot of mastery behind his techniques if he’s able to do that. He left shortly after, probably taking care of the leaf.
“To be honest, I doubted that you went to the bathroom in all honesty. Seeing those expressions of yours is kinda giving it away!” Liberus chuckled as I then gave him a rather mean side-eye.
“Yeah, yeah, keep acting like a smartass, reading through your books and shit. Did you even learn anything from any of them at all?”
“Oh obviously! Ask me a question right now and I’ll be glad to answer it!”
There’s absolutely no chance that he has the memory to even remember a single book. Those things are so damn thick! But what the heck, it’s something to pass the time while I wait.
“Lemme think… Ah, what’s the name of the infamous creature that lurks in the Termena forest-”
“Huntair. Next.”
“Ok… Getting lucky I guess… What about… uh… those fast and crystal-like creatures that show up near the forest as well?”
“Riftwings, if that’s what you’re trying to describe..?”
We exchanged a few more times, using up all of the knowledge of monsters that I learnt from my dad. I dealt out as many questions as I possibly could, yet Liberus kept on answering each question without hesitation.
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“The one that bashes its head?”
“Fruddia. Give me another one.”
“What about that one stone creature with a hand for a tail?”
“Craggler.”
“There’s this one rare creature that even I’m not sure of it’s name, so if you can get this one-”
“Umbrast.”
“DAMN! Hate to say, but you’re honestly quite smart if you remember all of the shit that you just read a few moments ago…”
He levitated to my right side slowly, looking smug as usual. Seems like this ego of his might’ve come from that crazy intelligence.
“Well of course I am! It takes a lot of hard work to get to this point!
“You don’t even remember that hard work of yours…”
“Nope! I don’t! But after watching your curious nature, it almost felt… nostalgic to me, as if I was the same as you one time.”
“Hm? Really now?”
“You two. The leaf has finished its analysis. Come over here to see for yourself.” Vale shouts at us from the back. We both stood up and trekked towards him. For me, I was quite anxious at the time. An accumulation really determines your future as either a potential war-machine, or just some average nobody. The powers really differentiate if I remember correctly.
“Well? Where’s the leaf?” I ask. The capsule was there, but it’s completely gone. Something feels wrong. I don’t like where this is going.
“That’s the point, Ranku. The leaf completely vanished before Grace’s eyes. It seems like the Grailvine doesn’t want to accept what your accumulation is. But I have a somewhat foolproof plan on how to reveal what that might be exactly.”
Now I don’t know if I want to trust myself… On one hand, the complete disappearance of the leaf… I’m not even sure what to make of it… Are they conmen? There’s no way they would simply waste a 10 thousand Kol item simply to make no profit in return, yet I don’t feel anything malicious coming from them… They’re genuine about what they’re doing to help me.
Liberus tugged on the side of my robe, grabbing my attention. “Trust them. Just see where this goes.”
I whispered back. “I can’t trust myself on this. What if they’re using me?! Grailvine leaves just don’t disappear!”
“To be fair, your distrust is reasonable. I've never seen something as odd as it vanishing.” Vale chimes in, with a rather concerned look on his face, approached me and took my wrist.
“HEY! GET OFF ME-”
“Quiet. I’m looking for something.”
“Something?! Whatever it is, you better make it quick!”
That something wasn’t shown to be anything that I could’ve seen, but I felt it. That feeling that I felt pulsing through my arms. Vale was doing some freaky shit with my hands, yet, I didn’t want to make him let go. At this point, he has demonstrated to be someone that’s trustworthy. My hand was in his grasp.
“I’m going to need you to lose your thoughts. Allow me to draw out what lies within.”
“Alright… You’re sure you know what you’re doing, right?”
Vale paused for a second, and continued with his process. He hardly reacted much to my comment, yet I saw this forlorn look on his face. He turned to the right to grab a small paring knife from the countertop of the bar table.
“There were others like you, seeking guidance. I, myself, was also in search of it. Rest assured, I won’t make any of the mistakes I’ve made in the past.”
With that paring knife he took, he drew blood and placed it on a sheet of paper that Grace handed to him earlier from his pocket. Seeing all of this made me really skeptical about this whole ritual, but I needed answers, I don’t have time to play games or continuously doubt everything.
“I’ll be using your blood now, if that’s alright with you.”
“B-bring it.”
“...”
“Alright, it’s finished.”
What the?! Already? As if an insect had simply stung me! Was Vale that fast with weaponry? I jerked towards Liberus, and he seemed just as shocked as I was, eye wide open and all.
“I’ll begin the transmission. In the meantime, feel free to roam as you please. Be back in no more or no less than an hour. I always appreciate punctuality.”
Grace waved to me, while Vale was carefully handling the sheet of paper with both our bloods. Liberus and I were all the more lost on what their deal was. He flew up and hid inside my bag.
“Oi, let’s get out of here for a bit. I’m tired of the smell of alcohol in this joint.”
“Fly out yourself then won’t ya? But, yeah, I’d probably want some fresh air for a bit.”
Stepping out of the doors, it was already beginning to darken. I should’ve taken more consideration about the time, ‘cause I don’t recall there being any clocks inside the drunkard oddly enough. I hope they finish somewhat quickly.
“Those two, don’t they give you crazy weird vibes surrounding them?”
“I wouldn’t say crazy or weird, more like, unknown to some extent I suppose. What do you think?” I ask, glancing down to my bag.
“Oh they’re 100% scheming something alright. I mean just look at them! Do you think someone who was truly blind could know the exact whereabouts of everything in the establishment? What about that lady? She could very well just choose not to talk so that she can observe behavioral patterns and manipulate us later down the line-”
“Liberus.”
“What?” He snaps back.
“You’re way too pessimistic about this shit. They might just be good people by heart.”
“And you’re way too optimistic. I’m trying to save your skin in case something goes wrong here, and you’re too oblivious to even consider all the outcomes.”
“Listen here, I. Don’t. Have. Many. Options. Taking into account all the opportunities that I’ve been given after my so-called resurrection, this is by far the best one I’ve gotten to answer what this Omni Sect has given to me.”
“Whatever… But don’t come crying to me when they rob you of everything you got.”
“That’s not gonna happen, but alright.”
We didn’t share much the rest of the hour. Simply walking around the streets of Inwell was enough to recollect my thoughts, and I will still stand by what I believe.
An hour has passed and we both found ourselves back in the drunkard. Vale was prepared to give us my results. I can’t afford it to simply reveal that I still have no accumulation whatsoever.
“You’re good with your time, Ranku. On the dot as well.”
“What did it show?”
“Well…”
Vale walked towards me and handed the slip. His expression looked much brighter I’d say, which is a good sign. Taking the paper, which should’ve had splotches of both our bloods, came back with an odd symbol.
“It doesn’t fit any of the six symbols given, which means you’re most likely a new class of accumulation.”
I stood there, shooken. I would’ve accepted a Reality class any time, but a NEW ONE? A NEW CLASS? All that I’ve heard of are Reality class mages, and there are sometimes Life classes every now and then…
“A… new class..? Surely you’re lying.” I responded hesitantly.
“Why would I? The talisman doesn’t lie.” As he hands the paper to me to inspect.
Liberus was stunned, even though he had just learnt about this moments earlier. He really absorbed all the information from those books in such a short amount of time.
“He’s right, this pattern is moreso in the shape of a zig-zag… It’s nothing like the other shapes I’ve seen.”
“You sure? If so, this is like, a huge fucking deal y’know. Countries will go to war if they find a Soul class mage or hell even any other class other than Reality.”
I slowly look towards Vale at this time. Is his intuition that strong? Is that why he only charged me a measly 25 Kols? He’s for sure planning on working me to death.
“Relax, I’m not here to expose you or anything. However, I believe it’s of good courtesy to… show you the ropes.”
“By ropes… you mean…”
“To show you how to use your accumulation of course. After all, I still haven’t convinced you that you spent your 25 Kols for a good cause, so…”
He unfurls his sleeves and tightens his gloves as the chair behind him sweeps behind, standing with a cocky expression.
“Allow me to demonstrate how, Ranku Anchria.”