Novels2Search

Chapter 31

-31-

[https://i.imgur.com/LoYByv0.png]

An awkward pressure weighing down on my body woke me up. When I opened my eyes, two orange glows stared down at me, an alabaster fox was sitting on my chest.

The negligent Goddess returns.

I shifted my weight in bed and rolled to my side, as Capricorn gracefully side-stepped with my turning body to maintain her position lording over top me.

As I rolled, Akari squirmed around to re-establish her hold around my waist.

Capricorn glanced down at the wriggling mass and narrowed her eyes, “I meant to ask before, but we were so rudely whisked away and I lost my temper—what’s with the girl with horns?”

Ahh—so she isn’t one of yours then. I figured.

“I know that she most certainly is not… But it does feel like it. Her magick is on the same wavelength as my children, though with something else mixed there.”

A complex grouping of sigils formed around Capricorn’s tiny body. Then abruptly fizzled out, leaving her with an annoyed look.

“Hmmm. What an interesting subject.”

Don’t do anything to her.

The fox shot me a dirty look and jumped off my side.

“Couldn’t even if I wanted to. Some powerful force is blocking me from inspecting her. I don’t sense any ties to the Void, but she’s definitely under the protection of another Celestial. You humans certainly like to keep possible enemies close in your ranks.”

If you’re referring to the incident yesterday—

“I’m referring to your family’s history and a general running record as a species. Though, yes, I did happen to witness the excitement upon your return to your precious ruined city. Quite a blood bath you ordered up with no hesitation.”

I slowly sat up, gently patting Akari on the head and tucking her under the sheets as I got out of bed. My gaze lingered on the emptiness left behind from my usual sleeping partner’s spot and wondered where Hailey ended up resting tonight.

What am I gonna do about that, I wonder…

I shook my head and headed for the bedroom door.

“Your mate will get over it with time. The strong have always had to make tough decisions that those with weaker constitutions dread to accept.”

Ignoring the Goddess’ annoyingly phrased comment, I continued out of the room after a quiet yawn and stretch.

I walked down the hall towards the kitchen. The guards at the door looked questioningly at Capricorn as she followed me out the room, but remained at their posts.

It seems the sight of a strange beast following after their leader has become common place enough for the guards to not ask even the simplest of questions.

Silently musing to myself, I grabbed a small snack from the pantry and sat at the table. My throat was dry, and my voice came out extra raspy.

“Well, I assume you didn’t stop by to apologize for attacking and abandoning me. At least Vita was nice enough to send me home. And since your fleeting interest with Akari has already passed, this isn’t about her either. So, to what do I owe your visit? Further micro-management over me?”

“Think of my presence as a warning, and my intent to give to aid you in your coming battle.”

“My mind has worn thin from surprises. What kind of crisis is heading my way that warrants your personal attention?”

“The wayward daughter of mine I spoke of before. It seems her impatience has won out and nothing I say will hold her back any longer. Sooo, to make up for the sudden disturbance that will no doubt soon be upon your life, I brought a gift.”

Capricorn’s forehead illuminated under the glow of a runic symbol, and an orange stone fell onto the table without a sound.

Leering at the object that had manifested, I had an obscure thought.

“Is it possible, that you’ve got a thing for rocks?”

Capricorn turned her snout away indignantly.

“I’ve no such predilection. Crystals just make for suitable containers when imbuing magicka. Most non-organic things can store magicka in them, but the lattice-like structure of crystals can’t be beat.”

I sighed, “Ehhh? Well, what does this one do then? Trap your daughter in a binding spell and teleport her back home?”

“Huh? No, though maybe that could’ve been a better idea… Use it on that gloomy looking sword of yours. Nothing wrong with a little borrowed power here and there. You don’t have to use it but if my daughter breaks your sword because you didn’t, I refuse to accept blame.”

Why would she break my sword…?

I shook my head at the thought of what kind of barbaric personality this girl might have to warrant the concern for my blade—

“Wait! If you’re so worried about her shattering my sword, what about me? I’m not some brutish woman who’s impervious to damage, ya’ know!”

“Virgo and I can always resurrect you if you die, but you seem the sentimental type that if that weapon of yours was busted I’d never hear the end of it.”

Slack-jawed, I quickly lifted the rock in my hand to move past her rather accurate but unsettling response.

I’d expected it to be much heavier than it was—though it was the size of a small melon, it was seemingly weightless.

LOOTABLES

ITEM

ATTRIBUTES

DESCRIPTION

FRAGMENT OF CHAOS

Relic

A sliver of condensed magick. Chaotic energy courses through the gemstone.

I eyed the floating panel with suspicion.

“I’m sure I know the answer already, but I’ll ask anyway. Aren’t you Gods and Goddesses responsible for classifying the details for items for when they’re appraised?”

“Most things, I suppose. Generic things in the world like rocks and dirt pull from preexisting sources, keeping the properties stable. Some objects will be defined by their shape or material used to make them. It’s only if something never seen before or an item worthy of our intervention is made, that we’d step in to intervene—like those shards your artificers mucked-about with.”

“Well, I don’t know if this seems like a generic object to you. But the description on this stone doesn’t build a lot of confidence in my use of it.”

“That’s because you’re looking at it from an underdeveloped point of view. A small animal may look at one of your magi-tools and see the description, ‘This metallic device makes light’. You lack a base knowledge of the inner workings of magick. Sure, you may have powered up that appraisal spell of yours with some chaotic tinkering but it still pales in comparison to what you could be able to do with it.”

Capricorn raised her nose in the air in a grand gesture that oozed a smug attitude.

I could hear an audible ‘Hmph!’ that came with it.

I slouched down in my seat, perturbed that I’d been so offhandedly insulted, as Capricorn rambled on.

“A second-rate sorcerer with a dozen spells under their belt couldn’t dream of unraveling the fabric of this world. So why would you, a third-rate paladin with less than a dozen spells of your own, think you could peer into that which is unattainable?”

“Fine, fine. I get it. I’m a third-rate paladin and you’re too lazy to make everything make sense for the regular folk down here on Terae. Tell me, what does the rock do? I can’t imagine this fragment is going to make my sword indestructible.”

I held the stone in both hands, looking down at the fox with in exasperation.

“Be obstinate if you wish. It is a boon and nothing more. You are still weak, and the majority your equipment even weaker. Your blade is the only properly enchanted piece of the lot, but on the grand scale it’s still unimpressive. If you were to battle a mage with tactical-class spells, you would be turned to a pile of ash within seconds. Soooo, I’m providing a small boost to you. Use it on your blade, or don’t, I’m not your actual mother.”

“You make a point. Just, don’t say any of that out loud. If Dori ever heard you talk down her creations. I’m sure it wouldn’t end well for any of us.”

My mind wandered and images of my armor appeared forefront. That the exquisite gear made of rare alloy that had been at the peak of quality before the war, was considered weak to Capricorn… Just what was the standard for Celestials and their kin?

“A thousand years before your kind even walked this realm, my Alaetüs had been serving us for millennia. They’ve held the power of higher planes longer than any living mortal blood, be it a human, elf, or otherwise.”

“Yes, I get it. Super powerful beings and I’m just a child. Moreover, you know I don’t like it when you read my mind. Let me have my idle thoughts. I’ll accept your aid with thanks. Now, quit hassling me.”

Capricorn followed me back to my room where I grabbed my weapon.

Without a sure-fire way to prevent the blade from erupting in flame any time I unsheathed it, I opted to infuse the blade outside the manor.

We passed through the eastern wing to the study and pushed the double-doors open, revealing a poorly kept courtyard—and its lifeless garden.

The hour was still early and the morning light had yet to break the horizon.

I glanced back at the spot where a certain woman had left an ominous warning and my body shuddered.

The ground illuminated as flames seethed once I’d woken the dark-steel blade. I swung the weapon playfully, cutting into the air with a sharp thrust.

“How does this process work, am I to channel my inner self and capriciously will the blade to accept the fragment or is there some sort of refined magickal element to it?”

I questioned the foxen Goddess, but she had wandered off out of view.

It took me a moment to find her, sniffing around a damaged planter. When I did she just looked at me in confusion.

“I forget you humans have such basic understandings of magick. The power in the crystal is already keyed to infuse with a weapon. Simply bring the two together and cut a groove into the crystal to release the energy.”

Huh. An actual straightforward approach to the usually vague and subjective practices of the Goddess’ magick.

I did as instructed, strenuously slicing into the crystal as if trying to cut wood with rope. A small indenture finally formed, then a jagged split zigzagged down the length of the stone. A pressure wave was released in a flash of light, and then the crystal was gone.

My blade’s appearance hadn’t changed in the slightest —worrying me the imbuement process had failed. However, my concern was, in a way, both dispelled and elevated in an instant once I brought up the appraisal window.

INSPECTION

ITEM

ATTRIBUTES

DETAILS

DÁINSLEIF

THE CRIMSON BLADE

125-200 Damage

+10 Sanity

+5 Divinity

An exquisite tempered steel blade imbued with demonic fire.

When wielded, it ignites in SOULFIRE.

Bound.

Chaotic.

» CLASS: ARTIFACT

» STATUS: CURSED

» FANG OF AVER’TERIA

» MATERIAL: IMBUED STEEL [DEMONIC FANG]

» ATTUNEMENT: CHAOTIC

“It’s cursed!? What in the Aether did that stone do? Can it just decide on a name on its own… How do I even pronounce that? Why’s there a line over the ‘A’?”

Capricorn focused her gaze upon the empowered blade, her eyes glowing briefly and an interface appeared before us.

INSPECTION

SPELL

SCHOOL

DETAILS

FANG OF AVER’TERIA

Chaos

Lingering damned souls haunt the blade they call, Dáinsleif.

Once drawn, this blade cannot be sheathed until it draws fresh blood.

» SPELL STATUS: UNDISPELLABLE

“The fragment had nothing to do with this curse, nor the blade gaining a name. If I had to guess, I’d say it’s due to your own guilt over some recently deceased soul. Your unintentional will was exerted over the blade.”

“Haaah.” I huffed.

Great. My best piece of equipment is a sword which catches fire once drawn yet can’t be sheathed till it cuts someone…

…Am I a villain?

I let out a quiet sigh and focused back on the weapon’s upgraded stats.

The damage had increased by almost fifty percent on the low end and about twenty-five percent on the high-end. Considering the weapon was already on the higher class of damage ratings, that amount of growth seemed a little like cheating. A fleeting moment passed where I did worry my weapon would be too overpowered, only for that thought to be scattered away by recalling the irksome observations of a Goddess.

Apparently my equipment was weak. I don’t know what they were wielding all those millennia ago, if this weapon is weak I truly dread to see what’s in store for me.

It had also gained a bonus to DIVINITY. A unique attribute I’d gained when taking on chaos magick, though it was seemingly linked with the title bestowed on me by the Goddess Virgo.

“And with that, I wish you luck. Try not to die. And please don’t be too rude to my daughter, she sees you as a little sister.”

Capricorn summoned a portal and leapt through it, leaving me alone in the garden looking like a crazy woman staring at dead plants.

I raised my weapon and gave it a few test swings to see if it felt any different—and to my surprise it actually felt more… comfortable?

An idle thought ran through my mind.

Right here, in my hands, is where this blade belongs.

I wondered if the attunement listed on the inspection window had something to do with that feeling. I quickly penned a mental note to ask Julius to hold it later and see how it felt to him.

I turned to head back inside, and a guard rounded the corner just as I was.

We nearly slammed into each other.

“Ah!—My apologies, Your Majesty, but Paladin Vynn has just arrived with an urgent matter that requires your immediate attention.”

I asked the guard to gather my armor from my room, requesting they be careful not to wake any of the girls still sleeping, and to bring it to the common room while I met with Hanna.

With a crisp salute, the guard zipped down the hall.

I followed down the hall and arrived to find Hanna sitting on one of the large couches nervously playing with her pale-white hair.

As I came into view, she scuttled towards me. She eyed my still drawn—and flaming—sword, but paid it little mind.

“Morning, Commander. It feels like all we’ve got for you is problems now that you’re back, but I’ve got a bit of a strange one today.”

“Serious enough to warrant such an early morning visit no less. Whatcha’ got for me, Hanna?”

“A patrol spotted an armored woman walking around the streets in the western district. We’re still on guard since that encounter with that rose assassin, so they moved to detain her as a suspicious person.”

“So now we’ve got some stranger locked up in the Citadel?”

“Ah, no. The woman seemingly had some sort of incredible power and raced off faster than the guards could even register—but then another patrol ran into her, and another… Eventually she was steered to the Citadel but, once she’d been properly cornered, a massive greatsword appeared in her hands.”

Halfway through her explanation two guards arrived lugging my armor in their arms.

Hanna assisted me with my breastplate and I handed my weapon to one of the guards, asking them to find me something to strap the thing to myself until I could figure out how to sheathe the damnable thing.

I finished gearing up and questioned Hanna, “Has anyone been injured? Should we wake Julius as well? If it’s another assassin from Renault I don’t want to take any chances.”

Hanna shook her head, “I don’t think that’s the case. Once she’d been surrounded, the woman cast some sort of barrier and hasn’t moved since. The only demand we’ve gotten out of her, is that she wants to see you.”

“Wants to see me? Ah—by the Goddesses…”

My voice trailed off as I hung my head.

“Commander? Should we have been expecting someone?”

“Haaah,” I sighed dryly, “Yes and no. I’m pretty certain I know what’s going on. It’s something I’ll have to handle myself. Do you recall the angelic beings I encountered with the Goddesses?”

----------------------------------------

Hanna and I rode through the city as quickly as we could. My sword jostled around in a metallic, quiver-like, container meant to store specialty arrows.

Curse you for cursing my sword, Capricorn.

I explained the recent warning from the problematic Goddess and her previously issued notice that one of her daughters was interested in seeing me.

With the early morning wake up call paired with our surprise guest, it seemed more than likely that the suspected intruder and wayward angel were one in the same.

We approached the Citadel to find a figure encased within a massive golden barrier.

A youthful girl with short wavy hair was sitting with an enormous sword laid across her lap.

As I crossed into the courtyard a jolt ran down my spine and, simultaneously, the girl leapt to her feet while the barrier dissipated completely.

The golden sheen in the air washed away, revealing the true colors of the girl’s outfit and features. Her hair was a brilliant blue the same as the sky, and her armor was almost the same crimson-red hue as the battalion of guardsmen that readied weapons around her.

I called out to the guards to disengage and fall back.

Hanna left my side, hurriedly crossing the square to gather the soldiers and get them out of the way.

With a quick swipe across my wrist, I pulled up an inspection window on the mystery girl. I’d hoped that it would grant me insight on what to expect. At the very least, I’d like to know if she was as strong as Hanna made her out to be.

ᛏᚪᚱᚷᛖᛏ ᛋᛏᚪᛏᛁᛋᛏᛁᚳᛋ ᚠᚪᛚᚢᛖᛋ

ᛁᚳᚢᛁᛖ

ᚪᚠᚪᛏᚪᚱ ᚪᚾᚾᛁᚻᛁᛚᚪᛏᛡᚾ

ᚻᛠᛚᚦ: [?]

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

ᛋᛏᚪᛘᛁᚾᚪ: [?]

ᛘᚪᚷᛁᚳᚳᚪ: [?]

» ᛈᚪᛋᛋᛁᚠᛖ: ᛘᛖᚱᚳᛁᛚᛖᛋᛋ [?]

» ᛈᚪᛋᛋᛁᚠᛖ: ᚢᚾᛖᚾᛞᛁᛝ ᚠᚢᚱᛁ

» ᛈᚪᛋᛋᛁᚠᛖ: ᚠᛖᚱᚩᚳᛁᛏᛁ

» ᛈᚪᛋᛋᛁᚠᛖ: ᚪᚾᚾᛁᚻᛁᛚᚪᛏᛡᚾ [?]

» ᛈᚪᛋᛋᛁᚠᛖ: ᚱᚢᚦᛚᛖᛋᛋ

Eh? What in the Aether is this supposed to be?

Worried that either the wrist-bound rune or my oversight ability was broken, I inspected a nearby guard and got a perfectly intelligible status screen—I flicked the guard’s status away, leaving the weird one in place.

The misty interface was filled with runic glyphs often seen in the arcane formulae for devising spell sigils—and notably, adorning a certain Goddess and the intricate armor worn by her children.

Well, certainly hard to deny it now. This is one-hundred percent the aforementioned angelic child of Capricorn—but where were her wings?

Even with just a brief scan of the girl’s appearance, one would notice the presumed hallmark features lacking. Compared to the majestic appearance of her siblings I’d encountered before, this girl looked no different than any of the others around her.

No feathered appendages sprouted from her back. Not even her outfit betrayed a hint of attempting to conceal them either. Her form hugging chest-piece fit tight against her back.

The girl maneuvered through the crowd of armed soldiers with ease, and unexpected quickness.

In a bizarre looking blip of magickal energy, her giant sword suddenly vanished from her hands. The crackle of energy and tear-like ripple was identical to the portal spells I’d seen the others cast, and I knew she’d just stored it somewhere else entirely.

In the span of a blink, I was greeted with a beaming smile that encroached on my personal space.

She was just about two heads shorter than myself and I felt like I was looking down at a teenage recruit and not some Goddess’ powerful attendant.

Any shorter and she’d give poor little Tatsuko a run for her money.

“ᚹᛖᛋ ᚻᚪᛚ, hail sister! I’ve been so eager to meet you. Sorry for coming by with such short notice, but when mama told me you’d wrapped up your business with your elven friends I couldn’t wait any longer.

I faltered to find words at first, but once I’d come to my senses I greeted the cheerful girl.

“Good morning, and welcome to our city. Forgive the hassle my soldiers gave you. While Capricorn had given us advance notice, the ambiguous timing of when to expect your arrival has led to us being rather unprepared.”

As she was inches away from me, I had a good look at her face while I tried to shy away from outright admitting that she’d been pursued through the city by armed guards.

Her expression changed from a bright friendly to a rather negative grimace that gnawed at my nerves.

A chill ran down my spine, giving me pause.

The shorter length of her hair, paired with the rough expression gave her quite an androgynous look—and another face with almost identical features popped into my mind. Mors, the rather gloomy Avatar of Death.

“Hassled, huh?” Her twisted expression relaxed as she seemed to ponder what I’d said, “Eh, it wasn’t really much of a bother. The lower plane is full of all sorts of annoying creatures that pester anything that gets near. These bigger ones chasing me around with steel is preferable to the smaller critters that can crawl around on you.”

Hey, did she just group my city guards in with insects?

As if a switch flipped, her expression brightened back up and she wore a smile once more, “Anyway! Whaddya think about having a quick battle? A little sisterly contest to get to know each other better.”

“I’m sorry, what?”

“You. Me. And an exchanging of blows, ya’ know? Oh yeah, I’m Ikuye by the way, but you can call me Ikki. Our other sisters do.”

The girl, Ikki pointed between the two of us and then made some sort of awkward motion with her hands which I took to be intended to mime said exchange.

The pieces all fell into place.

Capricorn’s early morning appearance, appeasement gift, all the talk about my sword being shattered, and her previous warning before I had set off for the Aestori of a ‘rebellious’ daughter.

The sly Goddess knew this is how it would go.

Once again I’ll have to give her a piece of my mind. Honestly, who would have thought a Goddess could be so juvenile.

“Sooooo, how ‘bout it, sister? Ready to tumble?”

I looked around at the crowd which had been standing by uneasily.

Who knows what she’ll do if I refuse. I had to hope that she’d be level minded and take a refusal with grace—but I just didn’t have enough information from my wonderful patron Goddess to make that call.

To avoid backlash it might just be safer to agree to duel the girl and hope that if I’m really killed, Capricorn was serious about resurrecting me again.

I suppressed the overwhelming urge to sigh.

I really don’t feel right scoffing off death so casually.

“Sure, just give me a moment to square all these folks away and we can head to one of the training yards.”

Across the worn dirt plot from me, Ikuye readied herself. The signature tear in space appeared, and she pulled a massive sword of scarlet-red metal free of the portal.

The scarlet blade twirled effortlessly around in her hands, coming down in a low-ready position as she took a fighting stance.

“Oh noble blade of justice, find my cause to be good and worthy. Awaken, Dyrnwyn!”

Ikuye chanted some sort of imbuement spell and the center groove along her weapon sparkled with a white sheen.

I took the moment to free my blade from its awkward prison. Raging crimson flames licked at my left hand as if admonishing me for keeping it in a weird place.

Not my fault you didn’t want to sheathe yourself. What am I supposed to have done? Cut some random person so you’ll go back into your home?

I shook away the useless thought and buffed myself.

“Source of light that dwells among the veiled. Come forth and guide our way, Radiance! Let the power hidden within my being come forth, Brilliance!”

A mix of golden and violet light cascaded over me and I switched into BATTLE STANCE.

“Are you ready, sister?”

“I am. A little nervous, but I’m ready.”

“ᚷᚩᛞ ᚦᛖ ᛘᛁᛞ ᛋᛁᛖ!”

She shouted something unintelligible and charged at me with blinding speed.

Her blade came at me quickly but I parried and countered with BLADE SLASH, flames swirled in the air around both swords as they met once more.

We continued to trade blows, but they were leagues away from equal.

Each strike from Ikuye’s weapon felt as if it had the weight of a falling tree. I couldn’t hope to block any of her attacks, and was forced to rely on agile parries or dodging entirely.

While most melee oriented specializations such as paladins or warriors favor STRENGTH over AGILITY and DEXTERITY, my statistics had grown uniquely to favor ranged attack magicks and avoid combat, resulting in my overall STRENGTH to be below my DEXTERITY.

As such, I held quite a high value in my ability to avoid being struck on potentially fatal spots during training—though I was keenly aware that in a real battle against powerful foes I fell short. Deep, dark, never-ending edge of the Wanderer’s Plane depths of short.

I recalled a time not too long ago when I’d been beaten and nearly killed by a certain Ettin…

Darting to the left and swinging my blade up, I parried another crashing timber. Barely keeping the attack from taking an arm.

“You footwork is superb, but your strikes lack force. Is that sword truly your favored weapon, sister?”

Ikuye leapt back and called out to me, her voice didn’t betray a hint of exertion. I, on the other hand, was feeling a bit winded from all the moving I’d been doing to stay alive.

“When it comes to physical fights,” I strained, “It is my only weapon.”

“Aaaaah! Well, don’t hold back on my accord. I want to know everything about you, so please show me all you’ve got.”

The bratty girl gave me a wink and readied her weapon again.

No holding back on spell casting then, great. Let’s see how you deal with some holy magick.

I hopelessly tried to encourage myself, that my magick would somehow turn the tide in this overwhelmingly one-sided battle.

Ikuye came at me with the same great intensity.

I dodged low and quick-cast a HOLY BOLT at point blank. The golden flame struck her squarely in the chest—but dissipated away as if warded.

The light gave me a moment of respite as Ikuye recovered from the minor blinding effect. I scrambled a few feet away and prepared a barrage of golden bolts.

“Those are quite troublesome, but you’ll have to come at me with something more powerful if you want to use magick against me!” She goaded me on, while shrugging off the wave of holy spells.

You asked for it. I’m not sure how I feel about using your mother’s power against you, but here goes.

I reached within and drew on the massive font of power that the Goddess had tied to me and flooded my body with magicka.

“Divine power which pulses with me, unleash my wrath to cull those who would stand against me, Reckoning!”

The training ground was washed in a deluge of crimson light. Jagged crystals flew in from every angle at Ikuye. She tried to bat one away with her blade, but it exploded, filling the air with shrapnel.

After learning the projectiles were volatile, she changed to dodging and avoiding the crystal missiles. They continued to explode into deadly shrapnel, even when they impacted the ground, but Ikuye had begun to use the massive sword as a shield.

In the aftermath numerous shards of crystal covered her blade, as if fused to the metal.

I heaved a sigh of relief, having a moment to catch my breath while she was forced to dance around to avoid my CHAOS BOLT for quite some time.

An alarming laughter disturbed me—the source being none other than my opponent.

I’d hoped the whole ordeal would’ve been enough and we’d be able to call the duel here, but it seemed I was too wishful.

“Brilliant! Yes. That’s more like it! Come on, sister. Show me what you’re truly made of!”

Ikuye had regained her posture, and was back in her ready position. With a gauntleted hand, she smacked the face of her weapon and the crystal shards fell to the ground.

She readied her weapon forward, brandishing it in a wide arc as if to show off that the chaotic crystals couldn’t blemish her weapon so easily.

She closed the distance between us in a heartbeat and her enormous sword bore down on me.

I barely caught it with Dáinsleif’s slender blade.

“Nice! ‘Kay, lesson one. Send small bursts of magick all throughout your body. Spread that magicka evenly across your circuits and imagine it reinforcing your muscles.”

The weight of her sword had me struggling to keep my knees from buckling.

What is she going on about? Reinforcing my muscles?

“Hurry up!” she goaded. Her stance changed in a slight way, and the weight of the sword felt as if it had doubled.

“Hnng!”

I tried to do as she said. I built up small amounts of magicka within my body and spread them out as evenly as I could.

What would it mean to reinforce my muscles? Like, weaving the magicka through them—

Heat began to build within my arms and legs. I felt a burst of strength, and pushed Ikuye’s blade away, causing her to stumble back a few steps.

She bore a sinister grin at me, a twisted smile of satisfaction and a dark hunger.

“Lesson two. I’ll show you a glimpse of true power. A taste of our birthright. Someday you’ll wield it as well as any of our sisters.”

All at once my vision blurred, my stomach churned, my knees buckled, and a wave of anxiety and nausea hit me with a crushing pressure.

I strained to keep consciousness and focus on Ikuye.

A flash of light erupted from the small girl, and a double halo of pure golden light manifested above her head.

As if they were always there, six wings framed her back and she lifted up into the sky.

[https://i.imgur.com/FfUUq4e.png]

The extreme pressure began to fade, and I struggled to my feet.

» AURA OF ANNIHILATION ATTACKS YOUR MIND [SANITY CHECK]

» YOU HAVE RESISTED AURA OF ANNIHILATION

Ikuye hovered high in the air, positioning herself so that the blazing morning sun was behind her. Feathers fluttered down to the ground, dissipating into golden light upon touching the earth.

The few people around us collapsed, clutching at their heads and bodies.

Celestials above… Is this truly the power of the Gods—or do the Alaetüs fall short of even them? I am truly blessed to have the backings of the Goddesses.

I offered a feeble prayer to Virgo and Capricorn for their support and guidance as I gaped upwards at the angelic warrior.

She shifted her blade and called down at me, “I’m coming at you stronger than before. Show me something new, sister.”

In the fraction of a moment, instinct kicked in and I raised my sword to deflect the incoming strike and immediately countered with a quick-cast CHAOS BOLT. It barely managed to repel her attack and I was back on the defensive.

I need something better than operation-class magick if I’m going to make it through this assault.

Think, Airis! Think!

There was no possibility I could’ve reformed one of my existing spells or attempt to create something new on the fly. Ikuye’s offense battered at me like a raging storm, and if I hesitated for even a moment I’d be in the hands of the Goddesses.

Even if I had access to tactical-class magick, I’d probably risk blowing half this block away in the aftermath.

What I really needed was something to tune my existing magick up. If I could boost either of my two buff spells—Gah!

I was knocked back a few yards.

Gotta do something, and fast.

BRILLIANCE could be a good option, since it already affected all magick, but it was only a minor spell and the base sigils left little to play with. One of the many reasons it remained untouched.

That left me with AURA OF LIGHT. While it was a powerful boost to holy healing spells, it didn’t affect any other school. The main sigils were simple and modification didn’t prove a major challenge—the spell just became extremely unstable when trying to add new base sigils, or replace out holy for another school.

I don’t even have the time to worry about figuring the specifics out while deflecting blow after blow. Ahhh, if only the spells could react to my desires.

Another blow inches away from my face disturbed the air as I strained myself to bend backwards to avoid it.

Damnable magick acts on its own accord to translate elvish in real time to cause all sorts of drama in my personal life, but it can’t change one little spell when my life is on the line?

I shook my head clear.

It would be too easy to have spells change themselves to be more efficient on their own. Years of scholarly endeavors would be invalidated…

Yet I still felt a little selfish. And quite a bit upset.

Ikuye continued to strike at me relentlessly, a wide grin plastered on her face and her eyes lit up with joy.

This battle-junkie was going to be the end of me if I couldn’t come up with something to give her pause.

So I reached into my body, in the metaphysical sense, and untapped the font of chaotic power Capricorn. I didn’t focus the power into a specific spell, instead I let the abundant magicka flow into every nook and cranny.

In every imaginable scenario that played in my head, I’d likely end up dead. Either by the blade, courtesy of my new combat-crazed angelic sister, or through some spontaneous explosion of magicka caused by my fiddling with chaos magick.

On a suspicion that by letting the Goddess’ font of magick permeate my being it would boost my power, I opened the flood gates with the expectation I’d be met with either what I hoped for—or be blasted mentally to kingdom come by magicka feedback.

And powerful it was!

A little too powerful, if I was to be completely honest with myself.

Every part of my body seemed to shriek in pain. I struggled to avoid blacking out. In the turmoil I recalled something Rias had told me about her experiments with magick.

Throughout the bodies of most all living creature were pathways for magicka to travel, called mana circuits. These pathways were fundamental in a spellcaster’s ability to control the power level of their spells, and a trained sorcerer could overboost a low tiered spell if they had control over those circuits.

I, however, as the Goddess had put it so bluntly earlier this morning, was a third-rate paladin. One who definitely did not have control over her mana circuits—not to mention I’d just learned this enhancement spell just now.

In essence I was using lightning to flash cook a meal that should have been slow roasted over a warm fire.

Nonetheless, overwhelming power surged through my body. I dealt with the pain as best I could, through gritted teeth and with clenched fists, I charged at Ikuye.

What once were weak blows to be shrugged off leisurely with her greatsword, now had a driving force behind them and staggered my would-be attacker.

Her wicked smile was unnerving, “Oh, that is quite something. But it’s not anything I haven’t seen. Enhancing your body to this level is the baseline to taking a fight seriously. Judging by that grimace on your face it’s not something you’re used to though, so I applaud your strength—though it is not enough!”

A parried blow sent me flying backwards, crashing into the ground in a cloud of dust.

I felt a burning itch crawling under my skin, I assumed to be where my mana circuits were.

I charged back into the fray with a new vigor.

Thrusting my blade forward with reckless abandon, I activated a WILD STRIKE aimed to take the girl’s head.

With my sword arm extended, I incanted a simple CHAOS BOLT. I grasped the jagged crystal firmly in my free hand, and focused on a technique Rias had been working with me on. More of the Goddess’ magicka flowed, and channeling the wavelength of the chaotic shard I dyed the magicka in my body heavily in chaotic energy.

I pushed the power into my blade and the dark crimson-red flames flared in the unnerving blood-orange that I knew to be the embodiment of Chaos.

At the same time, the faint golden glow around my body had swelled and was now stained the same sickly color.

My attack met Ikuye’s blade, the weight of it bore down upon her sword, giving way to reveal her undefended face. Dáinsleif’s flame flickered hungrily.

“ᛋᚻᛁᛖᛚᛞ!” She called out something in a panic, and a golden wall of light appeared to deflect the strike. A small cut ran down Ikuye’s cheek, a streak of silver-colored blood dripped down her skin.

I sent the rough crystal in my hand flying at the barrier. It impacted with an explosion of orange light and deadly fragmentation, forcing the two of us apart once more.

Ikuye took flight into the air, keeping herself out of my reach, and wiped the silvery stain from her face.

“Hoooh! I yield, I yield. Reforging an active spell through vacuity? How interesting you are, sister. So much more interesting than I had hoped!”

The massive sword that had threatened my life disappeared in a blip through a portal and she held both hands out in surrender, “I see why mama chose you. I’m in. Whatever this is,” she spread her arms wide and motioned around, “I want to be included. Whaddya say sister?”

I heaved a sigh of relief and dropped to my knees in exhaustion. Flicking the internal switch to stop the flood of Celestial magick, my body writhed in renewed agony.

With the last remaining strength I sheathed my blade and fell flat on the ground, my heart threatening to beat its way out of my chest.

“Give me a minute to rest, will ya?”

“Hah! Sure, sure.”

I heard the soft crunch of dirt under foot as she landed and came to sit down next to me.

“What’s that flickering light on your arm for?”

I turned my head to look down at my wrist, and sure enough there was the trademark notification light blinking—stained orange, as expected whenever I managed to do something wildly unusual with magick.

» YOU HAVE GAINED IN POWER, YOU HAVE LEARNED A NEW ABILITY:

» NEW ACTION CLASS SKILL, PHYSICAL ENHANCEMENT

» AURA OF LIGHT HAS BEEN MODIFIED, AND HAS BEEN REPLACED WITH AN AFFINITY POWER, CHAOTIC AURA.

INSPECTION

SPELL

SCHOOL

CLASS

DESCRIPTION

AURA OF LIGHT

Holy

Combat

Increases the effectiveness of healing magicks.

AFFINITY DESCRIPTION

CHAOTIC AURA

AURA OF LIGHT now increases the effectiveness of all spells and attacks by a percentage equal to your WILLPOWER.

“Just the world confirming I’ve gone and done something inconceivable again.”

Ikuye tilted her head in confusion at the misty interface that was now obscuring my face.

“Airis!?”

A cry of concern called out from somewhere nearby.

I turned to find a mass of onlookers that had been gathered nearby. Some people were still out cold on the ground, but medics were already on scene handling them with care.

Off center from the main group, a disturbance was happening. The huddled soldiers were parting to reveal the owner of the voice—Hailey, in full officer’s regalia including her treasured staff, storming her way towards me.

Her warpath faltered as she passed through the crowd. She gawked at the sight of Ikuye with her wings outstretched, but composed herself and raced forwards.

When she came within a few yards, Hailey hesitated again. Though, this time it seemed she was gawking at me.

“Uh, good morning, Hails. I feel awkward for causing a scene, but Capricorn didn’t really give me any time to warn anyone. Things just got out of hand quickly.”

Hailey’s face twitched.

Waaauhhhhhhhhh! I have no idea how to explain all this in a way that doesn’t cause more stress. Come on, Hails, please cut me some slack. This isn’t my fault!

The sound of rustling feathers behind me caught my attention and I felt Ikuye approach the two of us.

“Red hair, pink eyes, and an artifact from the Celestial realm. I’d heard Virgo’s beloved fire bird took a liking to a new human. You’re my little sister’s mate right?”

I nearly collapsed from her last statement. “Ikuye! I—You—Gah! You can’t just say something like that abruptly.”

“Oh. Is her association to the fire bird a secret? Whoops! My bad. And hey, didn’t I say you should call me Ikki?”

A wave of unease washed over me.

I tried my best to recompose my own thoughts before starting again.

“That information is being kept on a need-to-know. But that wasn’t the part I was concerned about here! People don’t just go around saying… That bit at the end. We don’t use the word mate and we certainly don’t talk about it so tactlessly.”

I stammered a bit and turned towards Hailey looking for backup—but what I found was a red-faced and confused mess.

Instead of aid, what I got was blasted with rapid-fire questions, “What in the Goddesses’ name is going on here!? Who is this? Why do you look like that? What in the Aether happened to your face—not just your face, your whole body?”

My face?

“What do you mean my face?” I turned to look at Ikuye, “Iku—Ikki, did something happen to my face? I was pretty sure I deflected your swing that had come close.”

“Hmmm,” the angelic woman leaned in close and inspected me, “I don’t see any scratches or cuts, your skin looks fine to me.”

“Looks fine!?” Hailey interjected, “Her whole body looks as if its dyed dark with stain! Not even mentioning all these marks. You call this fine?”

Ikuye blinked rapidly at Hailey.

“Marks? Oh, you mean the Feyndirian runes? Those are normal whenever channeling chaos magick through your circuits. They’re the base of the spell coding, the magick wouldn’t work if they weren’t there. The runes fade away after a while. So there is nothing to worry about. Surely mama would’ve explained that?”

Glimpses of the Goddess flashed around in my head as I tried to recall if Capricorn had ever mentioned something like this, but haunting memories of unceasing courses of degenerate magick lessons caused me to cut them off.

“She may have mentioned it briefly, but my introduction to this magick was a crash course when my soul was plucked away after I died. So, there may be a few key points I missed or have trouble recalling.”

“Died, huh? That’s a new one. Hmm, I wonder…”

Ikuye’s right eye suddenly went black. Completely black. As if her pupil had dilated impossibly wide—transforming into a small void.

Her hand swiped up in front of her and a series of runes appeared in the air and I felt a spell being cast over me. Ikuye weaved a spell I’d seen Capricorn use once before.

She was inspecting me with an advanced form of my OMNISIGHT spell.

Color returned to Ikuye’s eye as it changed again. Her iris returned, though it was an unsettling orange like the Goddess herself.

“Yep! I thought so.” Ikuye beamed at me and dispersed the open status window.

“Something you can share? Last time Capricorn looked at me like that, she said there was something about me I’d have more fun with if I found out myself.”

“Well~” she drew out in a singsong way, “I’ll think about it. It wouldn’t do any good to try to explain it in words, you have to experience it in a more personal way. Fret not, dearest little sister, I will take it upon myself to teach you the ways of our kind. So let me stick around!”

Ikuye’s smile remained, seemingly from a genuine happiness—her overall appearance marred by the mismatch of her eyes, which gave her an unnatural presence.

I had yet to give her an answer on whether she could ‘be included’ as she had asked after the duel ended, and now the potential pros and cons began weighing on my mind.

If she could give me insights on my new magick then of course having her around would be a benefit—but just looking at the state of the soldiers who had been watching our fight when she triggered that aura…

She’s also much stronger than I am. I know she was holding back the entire fight, slowly adding more pressure on me bit by bit to force me to adapt.

That alone is a boon to our power, and also a frightening possibility that she could cause us harm. Intentional or accidentally.

While my mind wandered in thought, a blood-lust crept its way around my senses. A chill ran down my spine and my attention locked to the source—Hailey was staring daggers at the two of us.

“You’re shrugging this off too lightly. Airis, you look… demonic. I can’t believe that these changes won’t affect you in other ways, not just physically but mentally too.”

Hailey paused, seeming to consider something to herself.

“This Celestial magick may be twisting your emotions. I couldn’t even imagine you doing what you did last night… But now, seeing you like this, it makes so much more sense.”

Her expression turned sorrowful, and she turned away to head back to the gathered soldiers.