Chapter 11 : Mistress of Mysteries

In the dark mansion-like structure, Anira didn't care much about anything else. Her eyes focused solely on one human in the place—her master, Conrad Valor.

He was a handsome fellow with ocean-blue eyes and dark hair bearing chestnut patterns. People often praised his beautiful face.

Anira didn't care much about the physical aspects of human beings. She had lived long enough to see all kinds of faces and structures. No combination possible could spark any feeling inside her. Only a handful of people could see her thoughts passing through eras.

She didn't know her origin; the only thing she understood was that she had been alone throughout the ages. Even when some people could see her, none could understand the deep loneliness inside her. Her heart was frozen in time itself, covered by mist that couldn't be seen through.

Her beauty had appeared in countless wars throughout world history and cultures, but none had truly appreciated her. Frankly, she didn't care. As time passed, she slowly accepted her unique being through madness, pain, and dark loneliness. She wandered through places and continents, witnessing the rise and fall of empires. Monarchy, theocracy, democracy, the rise of people's greed, lust, and evil inside everyone. The radiance of good seen in every corner of history. Hidden betrayals in every epoch. She had seen it all with her own eyes. There were times she wanted to interfere, but she never could.

The ever-changing history of the world passed through seven whole epochs, yet not a single moment had she felt any touch on her pale snow-white skin.

But something kept her from going insane. It was a vision of something calling to destiny. Some people might immediately refuse to obey the course set by fate itself, like some hero fighting against greater powers, but Anira had nothing. She didn't want to fight. She just wanted something, anything, maybe just to keep her sane. She found her greatest joy whenever she dreamed of certain blue eyes looking at her throughout all these years; only those visions and dreams were her sole companions.

When she first met the boy she had seen countless times in her vision, she couldn't hold back her tears. She felt her life had met its destination. What was her purpose? She didn't know. What did this meeting, that had waited histories to happen, have in store for her? She didn't know. But she made an oath to never be left alone. She knew she had someone in this world who shared her destiny—her lord. Her sole purpose was to protect him even if the world came crumbling down.

Standing alone in the darkness, she watched the young man. He suddenly had sharp eyes as he summoned a bright light at the tip of his fingers. Brahman manipulation could do that, but it usually took at least a year of practice for any average practitioner with guidance.

She couldn't help but feel proud of her master. Suddenly her senses triggered—as tier 7: minor space-time manipulator, she already had very high sensitivity to the space around her. But before she could react, a tall figure appeared. It was made of pure corrections stemming from natural disorder. She hadn't fought many battles herself as she never needed to, but she knew what this entity represented very well: a dangerous Oddity. Every fiber of her being gave her a danger signal. A chill ran through her spine. She shouted with all her might; she had never shouted in her life.

"My lor—" Before she completed her call, her voice was cut off.

Huh ? A Space distortion—a space-oriented ability?

Ability: Mist Teleportation

Didn't work? What is the rule set here?

She started to analyze her own script of the ability itself and came to a quick conclusion.

Dimension separation or maybe new dimension altogether. What should I do? My lord is in trouble. No, I can't let it happen. Even if it costs me my life.

Anira's mind raced as it never had before. She tried all the combinations of abilities in her head. Despair fell upon her. In just a few seconds, the veteran Essentia Anira went from calm to losing her composure.

What should I do? I need to protect my lord...

What should I do? I need to protect my lord...

What should I do? I need to protect him at any cost...

Suddenly a thought came to her like a tiny light in eternal darkness.

My lord's gift. But I don't know if it will work in a separate space. Even my teleportation is being blocked. But I have to try it... otherwise...

Anira calmed herself down and without hesitation began to recite:

"By mine lord's will,

A world that none should ken.

A world cloaked in nameless mist,

A world governed by The Eye,

A world yclept Arcane Veil."

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Conrad found himself in a familiar place. His mind instantly calmed. In a place where origin seemed to lose its meaning, where infinity and eternity seemed small, a place that held secrets unknown to the world—Anira stood there alone.

Conrad looked into her crimson eyes. There was a numbness in those eyes colored by the blood of some unknown being. Maybe there was something like a tear, but Conrad wasn't sure.

"Ani—" Before he finished, Anira disappeared from his sight and appeared in his arms. Conrad was surprised but didn't say anything. They stayed quiet for some unknown time.

Conrad's hand rested on Anira's head. She wasn't much shorter than Conrad himself, but for some reason, he felt like she was much smaller.

Anira's eyes were closed, her head resting against the man she called 'Lord,' for reasons unknown even to her. After a while, they separated.

"Anira, are you alright?" Conrad asked hesitantly, surprised by her sudden behavior.

"Yes, my lord..." she paused. "Are you hurt? Is your mind alright? Can you feel your Brahman?..." she continued.

"Anira... calm down..." Conrad held her shoulders and looked directly at her. "I am fine."

Conrad took a deep breath. "Let's analyze the situation at hand."

Unauthorized duplication: this narrative has been taken without consent. Report sightings.

"Anira, do you have any idea what that was and how we should deal with it?"

"That was definitely an Oddity, it felt like some woman's separated corruption. My Primary Domain isn't specialized on logical thinking; I can't discern much, but that's my best hypothesis..."

Hypothesis... in this world even a veteran like Anira is unsure of certain things... I need to be a little stronger to protect her...

Protect...? But why should I...?

Conrad's thoughts went in multiple directions. Looking at Anira, he got this odd feeling inside that he should protect her at any cost.

"Anira, do we really have to fight it? Can't it just disappear with time? As the principle of Brahman is Conservation, nothing should be permanent, right?"

Anira looked at Conrad with confusion.

"My lord, it's not always the case... you can take mine and your case. It just doesn't obey the law known by research."

Conrad became more confused. "Our cases? What do you mean?"

"My lord, you are immortal like me. We age but will remain in our youth forever. Age itself has no meaning for us..."

Conrad was shocked to his core. His fear reached its maximum.

What are you saying? Are you lying to me? Wait, why didn't you say so before? It's impossible?

Conrad's mind was in turmoil, as if he would collapse from this new revelation. It felt like some divine punishment.

Wait, let me calm down.

Breathe... yes... let's think it through...

"Anira, are you sure?"

"Yes, my lord. I can feel it—you are the same as me. I cannot prove it, but I am sure of it."

Maybe she is wrong; that is a possibility. Let's not focus on this.

"But my lord, we can die. We are not invincible. It's just that we don't die by old age, and that's it."

Conrad rubbed his temple slightly. Then he crossed his arms and started to tap his fingers.

"Let's focus on the Oddity. So you're saying we can't be sure if it can die naturally or not?"

"Yes, my lord."

Anira hesitated for a moment then asked, "My lord, may I request something from you?"

Well, that's new.

"Go ahead..." Conrad hesitated but said it anyway.

"May I have my sword back?"

"Oh, I forgot about the sword. Yes, take it. I think it's better if you have it. Honestly, I'm not a swordsman, and I was even unable to react while the Oddity..."

As Conrad spoke, Anira's mind focused on other thoughts:

I am going to kill you. Your existence will be erased by my hands. How dare you lay your filthy sight on my lord. I am going to rip you apart.

"Anira, are you listening...?" Conrad frowned slightly at her unfocused eyes.

"Yes...? Yes, my lord. Thank you."

"We pretty much don't have any clues on how to fight it. So let's just go there and fight that thing."

"My lord, while fighting Oddities, it's good to fight with strategy, but overly complicated plans can fail as they take time and there are many more variables involved. Oddities don't follow any logical approach to stay alive as their survival instinct doesn't exist; they act purely on instinct," she continued.

"Remember, my lord, 'figure out as you go' is the best approach."

Thank you for the lessons, Sensei Anira.

Conrad made a joke inwardly. He glanced at Anira but noticed his partner's eyes were unusually focused.

As Anira released her powers, they returned to the physical world. But strangely, there was no Oddity in sight. Not even a hint of its presence.

"Huh... so it's playing mind games with us?" Conrad said half-jokingly. But he remained on guard, his Brahman on full alert, sensing any energy sign or supernatural phenomena around him. His eyes were much sharper now. As a martial artist, he took a low guard and high offense stance. He was a great fighter with the ability to switch between Southpaw and Orthodox. He didn't care much about the position; he switched with each turn of his surroundings.

As they looked around in the dark room, Conrad's eyes fell on a door numbered 312. He didn't sense anything, but there was a vague intuition inside him that told him to go there.

"Anira... let's check that room."

"My lord, please hold onto my hands..."

What? What are you saying? I know it's not what you meant, but still, it's embarrassing. I don't have a girlfriend, you know... well, it was the same in my previous life also.

Conrad made jokes inwardly but didn't say anything out loud.

"..."

He held Anira's soft, slender hands.

You really are soft. Well, it's hard to control myself when you're being this defenseless. But I know better. You can slice my head off without me blinking. Hahaha.

Anira looked at Conrad as if she heard his thoughts. Conrad gave her an awkward laugh.

As they entered room 312, they were both on high alert. The Mist sword Yoru circled around them, floating in midair as if it were a sentient being. Each round left a mist-like line around them.

Creak!

With a sound usually heard in dilapidated houses, the door opened. A closed window that had some cracks on it, a gray wall that felt like it didn't belong to the manor-like house and a mundane table was placed in the corner. Overall, the room was minimalist with a small table, a wooden chair, a small bed, and an old fridge that was still functional. It gave Conrad and Anira no sense of danger. What really caught their attention was a single red notebook of some kind on the table.

The duo approached the table with caution. Opening the book, Conrad read:

Kendrick Feud's Personal Diary:

"January 5th—

I will definitely propose to her. She is just too perfect for me. I can't live without her. I want her as my wife. I have prepared a ring. I know she is busy with her writing work; she might not notice, but I love her more than anyone in this world. I don't want anyone to take her from me."

[...]

"February 1st—

We got married. I am so happy I could die right now. She said she wanted to visit some islands for their local cuisine. Well, honestly, she loves to eat new things. I feel like she may love eating new things more than me. That's fine by me as long as she is focused on food and work. I don't care. I can love her as much as I want."

[...]

“March 2nd—

It was the happiest moment of my life—our honeymoon. The night was pure passion, a memory I'll cherish forever…”

[...]

"March 6th—

I feel like this island is a little weird. These people are too quiet. I don't like their eyes that keep staring at me. Anna seems happy though. So I am happy for her."

[...]

"March 12th—

I can't believe Anna hurt herself like that. There were some cuts on her hands, but I put some medicine on them."

[...]

"July 5th—

She has been acting very suspicious. Honestly, I am a little afraid of her. At night she sneaks around the house without turning on the lights. Sometimes she just sits there beside me without waking me up. I am getting really worried. I should call some doctor to check on her."

There were no more entries. July 5th was the last one.

As Conrad finished reading the entries, he heard an ethereal voice that put him on alert.

"My lord, stay behind me!"

Ability: Mist Barrier (Coordinate)