Everything seems to shift slightly; the beauty mana around me wavers for a split second, as if doing a double-take. Next, I can feel my presence flow throughout the mana around me, carrying with it a feeling I can only describe as ‘authority’. Almost instinctively, I raise my arm, and the mana follows suit; I point to the wall in front of me and the mana shoots off, slightly burning the surface of the wall as if I had used [Beauty Beam].
What else can I do with this?
I focus on the beauty mana around me, ordering it to take a shape, and it complies without effort. I then order it to change from generic beauty to a specific type, and this time there is some reluctance, but it still obeys after a moment.
"...When your Bond answers to your whims," was the Guardian’s answer when I asked when I'll unlock another Class. I am not yet at that point, although I’ve clearly made a proper step on the path there. My Bond now recognizes me, I have earned its attention, but I have to properly tell it what to do, and there are still seemingly some things it deems me unworthy of. Low-tier Bond skills such as [Shape Beauty] and [Beauty Beam] seem to have become innate; I can use them whenever I want, although I’ll need a lot more experimentation to be certain.
I order my Bond to launch a [Fairy Strike], but I feel a strong resistance. Next, I try [Grace of Wholeness], even if I don't have it in my Bond skills, and watch as the minor damage to the wall fades away. Next, I use [Aura of Elegance], finding that beauty listens to my authority.
Authority, command over beauty; [Inquisitive Perfection] whispers a hypothesis to me, one that I have mixed feelings about. There are two things that are commonly held to define what gods are: ‘Creation’ and ‘Authority’. This new ability seems to be half of that. It's just a coincidence, though; we can't create or destroy things; we can only move and transform matter and energy. [Inquisitive Perfection] disagrees, telling me that we can destroy: mana is burned out of existence to fuel magic, as far as I know.
I shake my head in disagreement, ignoring the others giving me sideways looks as I argue with myself. Mana fuels a phenomenon when magic is used, which means the energy is transformed into something else; there should still be equivalent exchange. Regardless, this doesn't mean that the Bond is divine power; it's more akin to [Mana Manipulation].
But the Bond is neither magic nor a function of spells; if it is not divine power, then what is it? I frown at [Inquisitive Perfection's] argument. No matter how I look at it, what the dragons displayed in the fight against the cursed being is nothing short of divine power, and the Guardian said that it was purely from their Bonds.
Then there's the question of Mana Cores. The soul component that seemingly creates mana from nothing; if that's not divine power, then what is it? I need to talk to the Guardian about this.
"I just reached level five hundred in my Bond," I announce to the others. "I should stop here and focus on training my class skills now."
"Five hundred?! That's really impressive!" Uloru compliments me.
"I thought you'd be celebrating more, Aly; no jumping up and down?" Chyzu asks with a grin.
"I have some new things to think about," I reply, not going into detail.
"Now is a good stopping point anyway,” Esofy says firmly. “We've been in the dungeon for almost five days now, and we can all use a bath and relaxation,"
The group works their way back to my real body so we can teleport out, and, after about an hour, we finally meet up.
"Whoa! That’s different!" Chyzu exclaims upon seeing me.
"What do you mean?” I ask.
"There's a sort of presence around you," Kadona explains. "It's hard to say what exactly it is, but it's definitely there."
I guess it's another thing I have to ask the Guardian about.
We teleport to the dungeon entrance and leave, going to the nearby baths to wash the filth, built up over days of fighting, off of us. It always amazes me how much, and how quickly, grime can build up, even on my real body, which is far from the action.
"Ah! Finally clean again!" More than one of us shows enthusiasm at finally washing away the dirt, blood, ichor and other unpleasant things, but I am preoccupied with sorting out my questions for Kayafe and the Guardian. After soaking in the waters for a few hours and decompressing, I fly up to the top of the Temple and place my hand on the Mana Arc, establishing communications with a telepathy spell.
"I need to ask you something; it's very concerning." I’m worried enough to ignore good manners.
"What is it?" Kayafe asks, sounding serious.
"In the dungeon, I found a monster that was somehow able to damage my [Sense Magic]. We killed the monster, but it has not returned to normal." I can't help the worried tremble in my mental voice.
"Ah, those kinds… I forgot abilities like those exist, because they’re very rare. It's fine; they typically only last a few hours to a few days, depending on how strong they are."
"So it's temporary?" I push, making sure I understand correctly.
"Yes, it's impossible to permanently damage a skill."
Relief floods me, and I almost break the connection by falling to my knees.
"I assume you had to fight without your perception?" Kayafe asks.
"Kind of, I used a form of passive sensing," I reply, standing back up.
"How'd you manage that? From our discussions before, it shouldn't be possible to 'feel' mana without... you know... 'feeling' it?"
I explain what I did, using mana radar.
"Interesting, you don't get a lot of information that way, but... it should prevent retaliation. There're still a lot of shortcomings to it, enough to not make it practical outside of certain situations." Kayafe doesn't seem to think too highly of mana radar, but she is right when she says that it has a lot of shortcomings.
For example, to list just a couple, it can bounce off natural phenomena, like a drifting mass of mana, and it can't differentiate between elements and essences.
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"The problem with passive sensing is that it requires the mana to come to you," Kayafe continues. I already know this, but she's just trying to find a workaround. "Mana doesn't produce light like fire does, nor does it produce sound or smells."
On that last part, I'd have to disagree slightly. Yes, it doesn't produce sound waves or give off scents, but that doesn't mean it can't be smelled or heard; I'm living proof after all, although it’s a Racial skill. However, [Inquisitive Perfection] has another example, a much more practical one.
"Hang on!" I almost shout. "It does produce something that we can passively see!"
"What are you thinking..." Kayafe trails off.
"The MM force!" We both say it at the same time.
"We can actively sense the MM force as a breakthrough, so it should be possible to passively sense it!" I say excitedly.
"Not only that, but since each particle has its own MM force, it should be able to give us a lot more information and detail than your mana ‘radar’, and it's perfectly safe to use!" Kayafe clearly shares my excitement.
"I've been wondering something," I say, wanting to ask the question before I forget about it, "You have [Sense Mana]; why can't you use it to see the outside world?"
"I've wondered that for a really long time myself," Kayafe replies, a bit of frustration leaking through her mental voice. "I should be able to use it, but when I do, I can't see anything. My guess is that the Mana Arc is doing something to block my vision."
"You don't know what it is?" I ask.
"I have no idea."
I focus on the Mana Arc with my [Sense Magic]. I never thought to do it until now; I was far more preoccupied with other projects, but this might be important… and even if it’s not, I want to help Kayafe.
The magic framework my sight reveals is… I find myself just staring at it, trying to make sense of the overlapping magic circles, but the more I look at it, the more I am beginning to understand what's going on. Kayafe used herself as part of the construction material, but didn't exclude her soul and the magic frameworks upon it. This means that when the Mana Arc formed, it used her magic frameworks like how we would use a skill, and it continues to do so.
That's where the problem lies, I think: her Classes and Race have other skills, and I can see them, but the Mana Arc can't use them because it was only made to use one skill. The Mana Arc's magic framework is acting like a dam, preventing her skills from going past it to reach the outside world. The skills can still be used – there’s nothing wrong with the water in the dam –, but until the floodgates are opened, water can't flow. Essentially, Kayafe made herself into an intelligent item and botched the process.
Unfortunately, magic items only build upon what is already there, so, to free Kayafe, I will have to destroy the Mana Arc... If the Mana Arc is gone, it won't be able to divert the flood of mana, nor would it continue the pact with the dungeon. In order to free Kayafe, I will have to make an entirely new Mana Arc.
I tell Kayafe the bad news and a silence falls between us for a while as Kayafe digests the information.
"Purposely making magic items is hard to do; it never works the way we intend it to, unless sacrifices are made. Unless you stumble into making a magic item, or never intended to do so in the first place, you can't just make a Mana Arc." Kayafe says. She seems to be taking it rather well, or she just assumed she would always be stuck in the Mana Arc and so isn’t actually disappointed by this.
"We'll figure something out!" I say optimistically. "We have time, and now two mana experts are working on this! Maybe there's another solution that doesn't require a Mana Arc, or maybe we can find one somewhere else!"
"Got anything else you want to ask me?" Kayafe asks, changing the subject.
Hint taken.
"Actually, yeah I do. I got my Bond to level five hundred. Since the Bond doesn't have a magical source, and, if what dragons can do is any indicator, the Bond isn't a purely spellcasting ability, what is it exactly?"
"You're better off asking Safyr; I always thought it was just like a Class. I don't know what it is."
"Then do you know what the 'presence' it gives me is? Or at least if I can dampen it?" I ask. Having an aura that screams, ‘Somebody's here!’ isn't the best for hiding.
"I don't know what it is, but you just need to focus on your Bond to reduce it or even outright suppress it. It has a lot of social aspects elsewhere in the world. A stronger presence, generally, will give you better standing, if only as proof of your strength and a way to intimidate weaker people."
"I see."
I continue to chat with Kayafe until I am out of mana; then, as I walk down the Temple steps, I ponder ways to free her while still examining the complicated magic framework.
It is a mess, but, as I continue staring at it, [Inquisitive Perfection] picks up on something. It was built around Kayafe's magic frameworks, sure, but it still isn’t really her, which means it isn't one whole piece but rather two pieces glued together. What if I can 'slot' Kayafe out of it and replace her with something else? Like swapping out skills?
I will have to find something that can fill her role, though. The Mana Arc itself doesn't have the power to do what we need it to do, which means I need to find something – or someone – with mana manipulation capabilities equal to her, or perhaps a little less. We'll be fine if the amount of background mana rises slightly.
I arrive at Safyr's resting place: she has long since dropped her efforts of looking all royal-like around me, and is just lazing around.
"Congratulations on getting your Bond to level five hundred, Alysara," The Guardian says, not even raising her head.
I guess she figures that I have probably seen her when she is alone, and has decided that she doesn't want to keep up her image all the time just on the off chance I look at her when looking around the Nexus.
"What exactly is the Bond?" I ask.
"I believe you've asked me that before," The Guardian says lazily.
"Yes, but it's not magic and doesn't have a magic framework. If it does not have that, then what is the Bond that we have with the element or essence? And how does it warp reality?" I clarify.
"What do you think it is?" Surprisingly, Safyr asks me a question, something she has not done before like this.
"The best guess I have is that it is divine power, the power of authority over a specific aspect or domain of reality."
"That is the answer to your question." Safyr closes her eyes. "Every being is born with a spark of divinity, Alysara. If you nurture that and grow it, anyone can become a god. It is why Legendary-tier is hard to get, and why it makes you immortal: it is the point at which you become a god. It is why you have to prove your worthiness to the Bond, and why the Bond has unlimited potential. I suspect, though, that Legendary only barely qualifies, something more akin to a lesser god or even just a demi-god."
"But classes can't do what the Bond can; how do they qualify you as a god just by reaching Legendary-tier?" I ask, still a little troubled by this revelation.
"You're right." Safyr sighs. "Magic could be called anti-divinity. It destroys mana, whereas our cores create it. Think about what cursed beings are. They have no soul, no mana core, no divine spark. They are, in a way, an anti-god, a destructive force to our creative force. But that doesn't mean magic is evil or bad. Magic and divinity are two sides of the same coin, creation and destruction."
Safyr opens one eye to look at me.
"I could be wrong about all of this, but I suggest you find out if your mythic point is related to magic or not. If my hunch is right, then it's not a magical thing at all, but rather a divine one. If that is the case, that will explain why Legendary-tier and above work differently."
I have never seen the mythic point in my [Sense Magic], have I? Nor have I seen stat points. This indicates that the system is a combination of both magic and divinity: one provides authority, the other provides… ‘fuel’, I guess. The stat points don't make you faster or stronger, it doesn’t augment you physically; instead, it gives you more authority over that aspect of reality as it applies to yourself. By increasing the strength stat you increase your authority over the concept of strength, assuming this theory is correct.