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Chapter 220: Introduction to Spirit Studies (2)

Could there be another mechanism... Ramine, is there anything else you can sense in this tower?

[Asking me won’t help. You know better than I do. There’s nothing here.]

“...”

Karyl bit his lip.

Unlike Kaye Aesir, Quenite wouldn’t bury something so deeply...

Feeling like a fool, Karyl shook the blank pages of the Introduction to Spirit Studies one more time.

“Detection.”

In a last-ditch effort, he cast a detection spell, but the pages remained blank still.

There’s nothing in this tower. Not even a hidden mechanism.

Unlike in the past, when he couldn’t control mana, Karyl could now survey the entire tower in an instant. However, this ability only deepened his disappointment.

“I’ve been duped... This was a complete waste of time.”

Frustrated, Karyl scratched his head and returned the book to its original place.

“I never thought the woman hailed as the greatest spirit scholar on the continent could set up something even more deceptive than Kaye Aesir’s tricks in Einheri.”

[The Quenite I know wouldn’t do something like this...] Ramine muttered, sensing something amiss in Karyl’s words.

“Ahh...”

Karyl let out a low sigh. He had hoped that the Introduction to Spirit Studies would provide some clues, but now he was back to square one.

Growwwl...

At that moment, his stomach growled loudly.

“...”

Karyl realized he hadn’t had anything to eat since arriving at Fasio Han’s mansion, spending several days in the realm of his subconscious.

To live and to fight, one needs food and rest—even while climbing the hellish Tower of Pharel to go back in time, Karyl never forgot those two essentials. But now, he realized he had neglected them.

I wasn’t in a hurry. If anything, I was too absorbed. Karyl smiled bitterly.

How long had it been? Since reaching the pinnacle of swordsmanship, he hadn’t put this much effort into learning something new.

After gaining dragon mana and learning the Colorless Air Sword of Calnere with Allen’s help, Karyl kept relying on the sword even to master mana. In retrospect, this attempt to master spirit power was his first opportunity to exclude the sword entirely from his magical practice.

[Absorbed... I thought you might be exhausted from failure, but you’re actually enjoying yourself. Truly, you’re an impossible fellow.]

Karyl chuckled at Ramine’s remark.

[So, what’s next?]

With a lighthearted expression, as if he had already decided, Karyl replied, “Shall we get something to eat?”

The midnight infiltration seemed to end in failure, known to no one.

* * *

“Fresh vegetables just arrived today!”

“We have new skewers! Come and get them!”

As the late night passed and the sun rose, the market in Azor buzzed with people. Unlike the strictly hierarchical empire or kingdoms, the magic city of Azor had no nobility class.

Though Tatur had declared itself a Free State, it still bore the remnants of its past as a lawless land without a social hierarchy. The people there each carried their own stories, and because of that, a cheerful atmosphere like this could never take root.

This is a good sight.

Karyl couldn’t remember the last time he had been surrounded by a crowd of ordinary people like this. Even after returning to Tatur, he had mostly kept to his office and then gone straight to Antihum after a few meetings.

People like these are one of the reasons I have to change the future...

Karyl remembered the saying that haste makes waste; he realized he might have been too focused on moving forward. Although this situation wasn’t exactly fitting, acknowledging his failure with Quenite’s book made him feel like a weight had been lifted off his shoulders.

“Your order is here.”

After taking in the scenery, he smiled as he looked at the steaming food before him. It was his first proper meal in Azor.

Although Karyl had forcibly taken over the mansion, Fasio, upon seeing Allen Javius, had actually treated Karyl’s group with utmost hospitality. However, unlike Israphil, Karyl had refused all meetings and focused solely on learning magic, spurred on by his consecutive failures.

Come to think of it, the Eastern Land has been unusually quiet...

Karyl cut a piece of meat from the plate and took a bite. For a random spot at the outskirts of the city, the food was surprisingly tasty.

I hope the envoy from the Eastern Land hasn’t returned home yet.

He took another bite.

It’s been about a week, so Kamma and Aidan might have arrived in Azor by now. I should visit the guild after I’m done here.

While he could have gone to a restaurant on the main street of the plaza, Karyl wanted to enjoy a quiet meal for a change. He didn’t want people from the Ulkas Guild to recognize and bother him.

“Hey!! You begged for this, and now look at what you’ve done! How could you make such a mess?”

A sharp voice jolted Karyl out of his thoughts. He turned to see a mother nearby, scolding her child. Their table held an empty glass of milk, freshly baked bread, and what appeared to be a meat stew—now ruined after the child had seemingly poured milk into it.

“Haha, dear. Kids will be kids. Let’s not scold him on his birthday.”

The large man next to her chuckled, finding the child’s antics amusing.

“Even so... It’s hard to come by this kind of meal.” The wife sighed.

Indeed, most commoners in the kingdoms of the continent rarely ate out. Restaurants were decently expensive, usually priced for adventurers and officials. It looked like this family had come out early in the morning for the child’s birthday.

They’re better off than some. At least they can have a meal together.

Karyl looked at them with a bitter expression. In his childhood as an immigrant, his mother had been more of a warrior than a maternal figure.

Mother taught me how to distinguish poisons before she taught me about food. Like Father, she was a perfect warrior.

And yet, he had followed Kuwell, who had exterminated his tribe.

Have I forgiven him?

Karyl couldn’t help but wonder how he and Kuwell hadn’t become mortal enemies.

“Karyl, go north. There is a hidden cave at the old site of the Wolf-Fox tribe. There you will find... the truth.”

During the Oracle War, Kuwell left Karyl his final will as he lay on his deathbed.

When had it begun? The time when his father carried that secret alone in his heart. In his previous life, Karyl had never once forgiven Kuwell MacGoven. How could he? Would anyone follow the man who had killed their real father and annihilated their tribe, only to become their adoptive father overnight?

“What is there?”

Karyl had never understood why Kuwell had summoned him instead of the emperor during his last moments.

In any case, he had found it in the cave in the north.

“...”

If Kuwell hadn’t revealed that truth to him, Karyl might never have resolved to transcend his past life and return.

Even though his final words were indeed the truth, they were nothing more than a confession made years too late. I still haven’t forgiven him.

And yet, Karyl found himself calling Kuwell “Father” again and again, as foolish as it was.

Perhaps it’s because he was the only one who told me the truth in my past life. Thanks to him, I could come back.

But that wasn’t enough.

It’s time to meet Randol.

Surprisingly, Karyl and Tiren were thinking the same thing. With the empire’s movements under scrutiny, the only variable was the fifth.

I’ll have to see if he’ll act as I intend.

He frowned and resumed his meal, now irritated.

“Our son did well. Honestly, the sauce was too strong, but now that the milk is mixed in, it’s milder,” the man whispered quietly so the kitchen wouldn’t hear.

“At first, everything was overbearing, the meat, the vegetables. But with the milk, it all blends nicely.” He patted the boy on the head and laughed heartily.

“But now we can’t enjoy the milk. I specifically ordered it because it’s so hard to come by these days... And now it’s gone.”

The wife still seemed disappointed.

“It’s not gone. Instead, we got to enjoy a tastier stew, didn’t we?”

“Yes!” the child cheered.

Of course, stew with milk couldn’t possibly be tasty. The man was merely trying to make sure the child wouldn’t get upset.

“Mixed in and disappeared...” Karyl muttered to himself, thinking about what the family had said. “It didn’t disappear... It tastes better...?”

He then poured the water he was drinking into the remaining sauce on his plate.

“...”

Using his fork, he stirred the sauce and water together. The thick sauce didn’t seem to change much, even with the water added. Karyl gave it a taste, and it was terrible compared to before.

[What are you doing? Are you giving up and thinking of becoming a chef instead?]

At that moment, the rays of the rising sun shone through the window, illuminating the table where Karyl was sitting. The light gradually spread, covering more than half of the table, and eventually reaching the plate with the now watery sauce.

The liquid was bathed in the bright sunlight, but again, nothing seemed to change.

Nothing has changed, even though something was added.

Karyl stared at the gleaming liquid.

When water was added, the taste changed, but the light doesn’t change anything. Something was added, yet the liquid remained the same.

Thump... thump...

The pages weren’t blank.

Karyl’s lips curled into a smile.

Nothing changed despite something being added... That’s why the pages appeared blank!

[...?]

Ramine remained silent, confused by Karyl’s rambling.

Thud!

As though possessed, Karyl suddenly stood up, toppling his chair. Everyone in the restaurant turned around at the noise and looked at him, but Karyl paid them no heed and dashed out instead.

“Give the change to that kid! Let him get whatever he wants!”

Before leaving, Karyl tossed some coins to the owner without even looking at him.

“What? Yes...?! Si-Sir!”

The owner was taken aback when he realized that all the coins were golden.

* * *

[You... You’re not planning something crazy, are you?]

“Heh... Hahaha...!”

Karyl ignored Ramine’s question, unable to stop laughing to himself.

“Right. Why didn’t I think of that?”

[I’m getting worried... This doesn’t sound good.]

“The book Quenite left behind. Just because the pages were blank doesn’t mean there was nothing there. It’s quite the opposite. It’s perfectly mixed.”

Just like with the mixture from this plate, this was about blending seamlessly with the light, maintaining one’s essence without imposing it. Quenite was trying to convey that this was the basis for dealing with spirits of different natures.

“Spirits exist in our world, but not as tangible forms. Unlike the five major elements, light and darkness are on a completely different spectrum.”

[What on earth are you thinking?]

“Ramine, the reason you can’t harmonize with the opposing forces is that my Arcane mana is too powerful. So, if I suppress your flame... no, if I make it transparent, like light and darkness, then it will work.”

Ramine seemed completely lost, unable to grasp what Karyl was saying.

“Even Allen will be stunned.”

Crash—!

Karyl burst through the door of the mansion. Allen, who was still teaching Israphil, glanced up, breathless.

“Causing a ruckus first thing in the morning. So, did the spirit give you the answer you wanted?”

“No.”

“Hmm...?”

Karyl’s lips curled into a smile.

“What I’m about to do is something she’s never even thought of.”

“She?” Allen looked at Karyl with a puzzled expression.

Although a legendary spirit sorcerer, Quenite was still human, meaning she could only use one element. However, Karyl was different.

“When light combines, it eventually becomes colorless[1]. Ramine, I couldn’t absorb your power because of my Arcane mana, so I shall give you the remaining elemental powers.”

[You’re crazy!] Ramine yelled, realizing what Karyl was planning.

“From now on, I’ll mix all seven elements. Each with equal strength. No complaints then, right?”

[What nonsense! It’s hard enough with two forces, and now you want to mix six more? Over my dead body!]

As Ramine shouted desperately, a small flame figure tried to escape from the Ein Trigger. However, before it could even jump over Karyl’s shoulder, the small flame was caught by Karyl’s hand, writhing.

“From now on, I will fill my mana with the power of all the Spirit Kings. You should be proud to be the first one to become part of my power,” Karyl said, looking at Allen Javius—or rather, he was specifically looking at Duaat, who formed Allen’s structure.

“With dragon mana, it’s possible to wield all the elements... But to take it further and combine the powers of all the Spirit Kings... that would mean controlling them all.” Allen laughed incredulously. Yet, watching Karyl propose such an outrageous idea sent chills down his spine.

“I’ve never seen anyone as greedy as you in my life.”

At that, Karyl’s lips curled into a grin.

1. Yes, that is what the original says. Yes, we know how light actually behaves. ☜