CHAPTER 65: LOST CONTROL

Soren slid the bracelet housing the Philosopher's Stone into his wrist and tightened the rope. This should do, he thought. He glanced at Cassia who was admiring how many fake items Gunther has on his shelves. “Can I pay for this myself? How much does it cost?”

She casually turned to him with a confused look, “Buy it? You won’t need to. Consider it a gift from your seniors.”

Soren sighed, “Thank you, then.” He walked to where Nicholas was standing next to the entrance. The light from the mud-covered windows casted shadows over his face. Soren leaned against the wall next to him, waiting for Cassia to finish up.

“She must’ve missed him,” he said in a husky voice. Soren was startled—Nicholas usually left it to others to initiate a conversation. He nodded back at him, “His store is a bit far from the library, but it’s not impossible to reach… Why hasn’t she visited him before?”

Nicholas reached into his pocket and pulled out a cigar. “Want one?” he asked. Before he could decline, Nicholas had already shoved one into his palm. Soren smiled at it and shoved it into his pocket.

“I’ll save it for later,” he said and Nicholas nodded in return. The tall gentleman snapped his fingers, generating a small candle flame to light the cigar, much to Soren’s shock.

He exhaled a puff of smoke and leaned back—staring at the ceiling. “Thirty something years ago, I heard Gunther lost his daughter to a disease. The day she passed, it was like his whole world just shattered… His life deteriorated and he saw himself drinking and smoking more and more, living off the streets and leftovers from nearby restaurants. This lasted for a while, until Cassia appeared before him.”

Soren crossed his arms, “Cassia?”

He nodded, “Yes. She was a street orphan back then. One that Gunther decided to raise. I guess she reminded him of his daughter.”

“And then what happened?”

Nicholas took another puff from his cigar. “Who knows,” he replied. “Something happened and for whatever reason, Gunther returned to his old ways. Then Cassia was found by Mistress Sienna who saw her talents for magecraft and took her in.”

Suddenly, Soren noticed Gunther appearing once again behind the counter, this time with a bottle of alcohol in his hand. Cassia appeared next to him with a tightly-knit expression. She was scolding him, but he could tell the old man was hearing none of it.

Seeing this, Nicholas sighed and stepped out of the store. “I’ll wait out here for them to finish up.” Before he could fully exit, Soren decided to ask, “Why did you tell me this? I only met Cassia yesterday.”

The silver-haired man froze for a second before answering, “Who knows.” He didn’t await a response from Soren and simply left. Seeing this, he sighed and walked up the counter where Cassia and Gunther were. The old man gave him a strange look.

“Young man, who said you’re allowed to smoke in this fine establishment? That’s against my store policy. Tell that gentleman that came with you to not do it again.”

Soren chuckled, “You’re one to talk with that pipe in your hands.”

Cassia grunted, “Stupid old man… Why the hell won’t you ever listen to me?!”

Gunther stared at her in silence for a second then changed the topic, “How have your studies been? Is the Mistress treating you well?”

The question made her recoil a bit. “Y-yes, but stop changing the topic!”

“You need to keep studying. Become a strong magus, Cassia. You’ll be set for life if you do. Don’t become a degenerate like I am.”

Cassia clicked her tongue. “I won’t.” She slammed a few coins on the counter and stormed out of the store. “I will never be like you.”

Soren stood there in the awkward silence that followed, trying to process what just happened. Seeing this, Gunther sighed and took another chug from the bottle. “She might act tough, but she’s a big softy. Treat her well for me, will’ya?”

Soren scratched his hair, “You do realize she’s stronger than I am, right? At least I think so.”

The man’s lips curved in a smile, “Not for long she won’t be.”

“Huh?”

Gunther slammed the bottle onto the counter. “Nevermind, here’s your change by the way—5 Lorins. I told that girl to be more careful with her money, ugh. She needs to be more responsible…”

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Right after getting the change, Gunther immediately kicked Soren out of his store. He decided to catch up to Cassia and Nicholas who were waiting for him at the end of the alleyway.

“What took you so long?” He could see the annoyance in her eyes.

Soren sighed and handed her the change. “You forgot this.”

She glanced at it for a second and scoffed, “Still as stubborn as ever…” Cassia turned around and kept walking. Soren turned to Nicholas for answers, but he was back to being stoic so he decided to drop it.

“Are we finally heading back to the library?” Soren asked as they reached the busy main street.

Nicholas nodded, “Yes. Once we get back, I’ll be instructing you on how to do your job.”

The library job, huh. Soren nodded back. They continued to walk in silence for a while—it seemed that neither Nicholas or Cassia wanted to comment on what had occurred earlier in the store. Not that it mattered, anyway—he was much more interested in the Spellfocus he had just obtained. He glanced down at it and smiled—it’s string was wrapped around his wrist like a bracelet with the philosopher’s stone dangling from the bottom.

Unlawfully taken from Royal Road, this story should be reported if seen on Amazon.

To think this thing here has the power to project my thoughts with anima… He wondered how he’ll be able to use it in the coming days.

I guess all that’s left now is to study the material Sienna handed me… He still had a week to complete it before she promised to test him. Maybe I can find out about my affinities before then as well, he thought.

They continued walking for another fifteen or so minutes before Soren noticed something strange up ahead. A large crowd was forming on the main street—more and more people were either running away or heading towards the gathering. He squinted, “What the…”

Cassia stopped in her tracks, her eyes sharper than ever. Her dragon wings unfurled from her mage dress. She glanced back at Nicholas who nodded back at her.

“What’s going on?”

“Follow me,” she said before sprinting toward the area. Soren had no choice but to follow. Suddenly, shrieks began to sound from within—unnatural ones. The screams were getting louder and louder. They squeezed in between the fear stricken crowd, and that’s where they saw it. A man was hunched on the floor, spazzing out strangely. A strange miasma covered his body.

Next to him, an ethereal sword covered in anima was laid on the floor next to him. The man was screaming in agony.

This… He decided not to hesitate and activated his Soul Weapon. Butterflies swam into his eyes once more—[Eyes of the Fairy].

Within the Beyond, Soren noticed something. The energy that was coming from the sword was arcing over them, as if it was being siphoned from the man into the sword. His ability deactivated shortly after as he glanced over at Cassia.

“This guy, he’s a Phantasm!” he yelled. “It seems he’s losing control!”

Cassia nodded, “I guess I have no choice… I’ll have to take him out of his misery.”

“Huh?!” Soren noticed as Cassia’s wings began to glow—he could tell she was going to attack him.

“Wait! I can tell he’s still in there! [Eyes of the Fairy] tells me he’s still fighting for control, It’s not over yet!”

“It doesn’t matter,” Nicholas replied. “We cannot take such a risk. There are too many civilians nearby.”

Just when Soren was about to continue protesting, an ear piercing whistle came from the sky. He squinted his eyes as he stared past the glare of the sun. Without giving him any time to react, a silver javelin sliced the air as it descended rapidly into the man losing control of his Soul Weapon, resulting in a large explosion that sent everyone in the crowd flying back by a few meters. Soren had flinched from the impact, but when he opened his eyes, he realized there was a protective bubble around them—Nicholas had casted some spell to shield them.

“What the hell just happened?!” They were engulfed in a cloud of dust that dispersed on its own slowly. Soren’s eyes refocused on where the javelin made landfall. A small crater appeared on the ground beneath the corpse of the man—a silver glowing javelin sticking out from his back. Moments later, the body of the person began to burn rapidly before disintegrating into ash.

“A Silver Valkyrie…” Cassia hissed. She swiftly deactivated her Soul Weapon and turned to Nicholas who understood what she was saying. Before Soren could react, Nicholas grabbed him by the arm and dragged him away from the scene. The three of them huddled behind a pile of trash in a dark alleyway that let them see the unfolding scene.

“W-what th—”

“Shhhh!” Cassia turned to him desperately. “Deactivate your Soul Weapon. Now!”

Soren didn’t question her further and did as he was bid. All three of them stared out of the alleyway, where a woman wearing glistening silver plated armor that extended into a battle skirt appeared. Her enchantingly beautiful visage felt like nothing more than a facade that hid a machine of death and destruction beneath it all. Above her glistening violet hair, a radiant silver halo was visible for all to see. The woman nonchalantly grabbed the silver javelin and pulled it out effortlessly.

Then, a company of silver-armored knights appeared, their march shook the earth itself. They stood behind the woman and saluted. One of the knights approached her with a large guidon spear-flag which she planted into the earth proudly. Soren was able to notice its design—a white crescent moon with another smaller moon placed within the crescent. The flag waved on its own, as if enchanted by an invisible wind.

The Silver Valkyrie glanced at the company of knights for a moment, then turned to the small crater before her—not even a sliver of hair remained from the phantasm who was losing control. She lowered herself onto one knee and clasped her hands in prayer.

“O’ Mother of SIlver, your daughter has delivered another lost soul to your vibrant embrace. May you cradle it back to its silver white purity.”

She then stood up and glanced at the fear-stricken citizens surrounding the spectacle.

“Fear not! For I have cleansed this nation of heresy!”

The soldiers beat their chests proudly in unison, “All Hail the Mother of Silver! All Hail the Mother of SIlver!” Their warcry echoed out into the plaza for all to hear.

What the fuck… He couldn’t help but quiver. The anima within the air was stirring—he could instantly tell that every one of those knights was extremely powerful. Not even the battlefield from the Nightshade Raid made him feel this nervous.

Soren glanced at Cassia who was grinding her teeth. He could tell there was hatred in her eyes, and yet, also fear.

As the chant carried on, the citizens surrounding the scene remained frozen in terror. The Silver Valkyrie lifted her arm, signalling for the soldiers to stop. Without waiting, she simply continued walking down the main street with the company of knights marching closely behind her. One of the knights in the back picked up what remained of the victim’s Soul Weapon sword.

After the spectacle ended, the citizens began swarming the area once more as gossip flooded the street.

“Why the hell would she be here…” Cassia whispered angrily.

Nicholas dropped his cigar and stepped on it. “Probably to negotiate that deal Candice spoke to you all about yesterday. The joint expedition into the Avalon Ruins will be happening soon. The Staterra Kingdom must have chosen them as their representatives. Though, it is still fairly strange…”

Soren glanced up at him, “Why is that?”

“Because it is still too soon… The representatives from Yadria haven’t even arrived yet. The expedition was scheduled to take place a day or so before the Greenfather Festival. We’re still a month away…”

Seeing the soldiers out of sight, Soren stood up. “Man that was fucking crazy.” He had no way to describe what just happened. “Does the Silver Moon Church hate Vagrant Phantasms this much? This seems too extreme…” Even now, his heart was beating out of his chest. If Cassia hadn’t dragged him away, he might have died before even knowing what happened to him.

Cassia patted her clothes from the dust and stepped out into the main street. “Never mess with them. That is all I will say. Meddling with Abstract Runes is one of the biggest taboos a person could do in the eyes of the Silver Moon Church. Always remember that. They view our existence as no different from trash.”

Soren stared at the small crater surrounded by civilians—the dust cloud had still not fully settled. His dry lips twitched slightly—he wanted to say something, but all he could do was stare at the chaotic scene.

If I lose control a year from now, this will be my fate as well…