CHAPTER 33: FAIRY’S SOUL
Myrin stayed silent while kneeling before the curtained altar. The Maiden’s flower, Saintess Sylia, was still pondering over something—he refused to even breathe loudly.
It was fairly odd. He had already answered all Her questions and even the main goal of negotiating a deal on behalf of the Church of Nature had been completed. Why was She keeping him around?
“Myrin Zinrie.” Her cold yet soothing voice reverberated in his mind.
“Y-yes…”
“During your journey, you observed the characteristics of the Malevolent Hexes that have been spreading across this sacred forest. Do you have any insights into them?”
His eyes widened. Although he was already expecting to talk with the High Courts about what he encountered out there, he didn’t expect Her to ask about it Herself.
“What we encountered out there… Was a tragedy like no other,” he replied. “Hundreds of Unblessed had their entire Runic Existences erased. It was terrifying.”
“Indeed… Those poor souls…” He could feel the sincerity in Her voice, but there was also a hint of pity.
Myrin sighed. “A companion of mine has an ability to see into the beyond. With it, he was able to witness this grotesque anima shrouding the victim’s soul directly. It seems to hold the properties of forgetfulness—the person being affected will lose all their memories and even the beyond itself seems to ignore them, as if it can’t sense them at all.”
“A forgotten rune…”
Myrin lifted his brow, “Pardon?”
“It is nothing to concern yourself with.”
He lowered his head, “I apologize…”
“No matter… Before you head out, one last thing. Even though you won’t be returning to Yadria as a prince, I do want to grant you the right to participate in the annual Runic Acquisition Festival.”
His eyes widened in shock. She continued before he could even respond.
“Your human companion—the one with the book-shaped Soul Weapon. He can participate as well.”
WHAT?! He wanted to scream but held himself together—if Tina or the others saw him, they would no longer call him Myrin the Soothing Bard.
“Honorable Saintess, may you grant me one question? Please forgive my impertinence—I can somewhat understand why you’d allow me to participate, but Soren is a human! Isn’t that against tradition?”
“Why? Do you not want him to participate?”
“I-I certainly do! It would be the greatest honor for him!”
The Chamber Hall fell into silence once more. Her voice only echoed out a few breaths later.
“That human… His soul isn’t of this world. That would certainly not be that entirely special on its own—the Vynasians are also from beyond The Endless Sea.
“No. What is so interesting is what his soul really is. It has similar conceptual ideas to the Maiden Herself. The soul of a fairy.
“More accurately, the Abstract Rune he had merged with embodies those qualities.”
Myrin stayed silent, contemplating what She was saying right now. Like the Maiden Herself?.. Isn’t that sacrilegious? He wondered if this was a test of faith from the Saintess.
“The guild you are a part of—it follows the Witch of Star Fate, doesn’t it?”
Her question startled him. “Y-yes! Mistress Sienna.”
“I am sure you know what her goal is, correct?”
Myrin gulped. “Yarian’s Celestial Fate…”
“Indeed.
“Then would it surprise you to hear that a slight rotation within the Orbits of Fate was discovered recently? One that happened the exact moment my Illusionary Barrier felt the rift fracture open and spit out that young man from within its mangled maw?”
Stolen content warning: this tale belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences elsewhere.
Myrin was shocked. What Mistress Sienna had found was indeed a slight clue into the orbits of celestial fate. But at that time, it was still frozen in place—at least according to her. A movement in Yarian’s Celestial Fate had not been recorded since the end of the Third Age of Fantasia.
Not since the Great Yasini Demise.
Myrin already had assumed that Soren’s arrival on Yarian may have had something to do with its Celestial Fate. It was a fairly easy assumption to make—Sienna’s prophecies were usually hard to decipher and even harder to obtain. For her to read fate, a movement in the world’s destiny was needed.
And while the world spun, destiny remained still. For over a thousand years.
In most of her prophecies, the conclusion was something rather tame, like a new dungeon pathway would form that could cause minor disagreements between countries. Or a simple new discovery in magic would happen within the famed academy of Luvinica. Not once had she prophesied the coming of a person to Yarian, and even more specifically, their complete characteristics. It was something unprecedented.
And what was even more coincidental was the nature of their meeting itself—what was the likelihood of a Vagrant Phantasm having abilities that were exactly tailored to their needs?
Though, at the time, Myrin did suppose that it wasn’t that miraculous—he had always had the hope that even without the Mistress’s prophecy, Saintess Sylia’s control over the Illusionary Barrier could be waived to allow them passage. Though it never happened until the very end of their journey.
“You must be thinking about all the events that had transpired prior to your arrival. One of them being that young man’s ability to maneuver the barrier.
“Indeed, I could have allowed you and your companions passage from the very beginning.”
Myrin lifted his head slightly and lowered it just as quickly—he wanted to question her reasoning.
“It was a test,” She replied to his thoughts. “That young man’s control over his own thoughts is just as fascinating as yours. It is a shame he was born a human.
“Aside from that, however, it was also to make sure he didn’t perish from his own Soul Weapon’s influence.”
His Soul Chain’s instability? Myrin wondered how She knew so much. “Are you saying that using that [Eyes of the Fairy] ability could allow him to maintain control?”
“Yes, but not permanently. The effects it holds on his Soul Chain revert back to nothing only a mere few hours after its usage. As you know, Anima functions based on influence, and that ability creates a lot of influence within the Beyond.”
Myrin pondered over her words. “The more one interacts with the Beyond, the more it changes…”
“Indeed.”
“So then do you know what exactly is causing his instability in the first place?”
Dead silence. The awkwardness almost suffocated him this time.
“I do know, however, that is not something I should tell you. Let the young man disclose it himself.”
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Like a hawk, Soren stood on the tilted roof of a building, overlooking the street below—his feet firmly hooked beneath tree roots that were interlocking with the building’s architecture. Tina was right next to him. Their hair fluttered in the midnight breeze—he could almost imagine their shadows being cast by the overhead Silver-Eyed Moon.
After their brief encounter with the individual he has dubbed, “The Nameless Culprit,” an interesting change occurred to his Soul Weapon.
A trail of anima was detected. One that The Records managed to pick up. And with its help, he was able to find a location that held large quantities of that anima.
Just two streets away from the tower they were on, a large building could be seen. Mangled branches snaked their way across its concrete walls, giving it an eerie vibe. The windows were also completely dark—they could not see what was happening inside. It all felt as if a mini dark forest resided within.
According to Tina’s investigation, that building was abandoned 30 something years ago—an apparent storage depot that a local guild operated—they most likely were caught smuggling narcotics or other illegal things into Yadria. To the locals, it was probably seen as a cursed location—a place unfit for those blessed by the Maiden.
Whatever it had been transformed into now, was most definitely far more sinister.
Even though Soren couldn’t see anything inside, the vibe it gave off was most definitely anything but normal. He could almost smell the corrupted anima seeping out from within.
“Are you sure you wanted to come, Soren?” Tina said with a concerned face.
He smiled. “Yes.”
“But you have no reason to do any of this. Our deal ended the moment you brought us to Yadria—we only asked you to navigate the Illusionary Barrier. This mission has nothing to do with you. Why would you take this risk at all?”
“Because it’s fun,” he said nonchalantly. Tina was baffled at his answer. “That ghostly figure we saw—he smiled at me. It was most definitely a challenge from him. How can I let that slide?”
“... You’re crazy.”
Soren chuckled. “Maybe so, but what is life without any thrills? Besides, you said we would only observe, anyway.”
She stayed silent for a moment before nodding. “I secretly tipped off the Court of Nightshade about this location a few hours ago. They should come look into it tonight.”
Soren squinted as he tried to get a better look. “It’s so odd, though. How did he manage to hide in such an obviously abandoned building? The rest of the block certainly has residents. How did he evade all their attention?”
“It was probably the same method he used to make sure no one noticed our small fight in that alleyway. This is why we can’t engage him directly—I am definitely not stronger than him. I’m assuming he’s a Tier 3 Phantasm or higher… Though it's hard to say.
“Remember this Soren, in a battle against a magus, preparation is key. A battle against a Phantasm? That requires another Phantasm. Even though I hold some fairly powerful Sacred Treasures, the Mysterious World is not something most can fathom—it truly runs deeper than your wildest imagination.”
Soren nodded. “I understand.”
Suddenly, Tina noticed something from the corner of her eye. Tiny shadows were swiftly moving across the street. Not even the whispers of the wind could be felt from their movement.
It was the Court of Nightshade.
“They’ve arrived,” Tina whispered. Soren decided to activate [Eyes of the Fairy] once again.
“Are you sure you want to use it?” Tina asked. She knew how strenuous it was on not just his psyche but also his physical health. Without Myrin’s healing magecraft, Soren would have never been able to use it this many times.
Sadly, this time, Myrin couldn’t come with them—he was for some reason late to their rendezvous point. Tina suspected that something else must have come up during his visit to Floramere Keep, but that was just mere speculation she formed after gathering intel during the evening.
But by far their best asset for this kind of mission had to be Tyrel. His abilities were much more suited for the shadows, and sadly, he was unavailable as well.
This left them much less prepared for what was about to come.