Back into the dark. Blurring consciousness, awareness, fading slowly until finally comes blissful sleep in hazy dreams.
…or so it seems.
In truth, my body needs no rest to operate. It simply won’t operate at full capacity, making sleep a somewhat necessary activity. It also helps keep up appearances in society.
My senses still reach out into the world. My ears can hear up to the fluttering leaves of the trees planted at the sidewalks, my sense of mana spreads out, like the sprawling wires of this city, trying to find connections where there are none to be made. Every single root of mine reaches out to the silent void as if there will be a difference this time around.
There will be.
Something catches my attention, something close by.
From across a thousand illusory miles, two voices are conversing, one is familiar and one is entirely new. Madame Alkin’s soft, modest voice that’s usually neutral or disinterested sounds tense while the other voice… strange, I can’t make it out. There isn’t anything distorting their voice or disrupting my senses, it’s more like the voice isn’t even there when they clearly are.
In a perplexing way—there’s no voice to be discerned at all—even if I can clearly hear a human voice speaking.
“You’re sure that she can handle it?” The voice says.
“Yes,” Alkin responds immediately, “I think she’s the perfect person for the task. Well, not right now, but given some time, Lily can play the role.”
“… If I hold you to that, what will be the price for this… service?”
“Case.” Alkin corrects them.
“Pardon?”
“This is simply another case and nothing more. The only difference is that it will take much longer than our previous cases. Now, to answer your previous question, the price is a simple, tiny thing, really,” She lingers for a while, a fire dancing deep within her heart that blazes up to the surface as she says, “I want a guaranteed partnership between the Florel clan and the Alkin clan. No caveats or any such bullshit—only the cooperation to gain mutual benefits and profit.”
The conversation comes to a full stop. With nothing else to hear, I try to break through whatever is stopping me from discerning not only this person’s voice, but also their emotions. Pushing my drowsy intent to a state of focus, I shift to a red hue and strike against the unsettling veil, but it remains indifferent to the attack.
Interesting. How about a little more power?
My mana shifts to a purple hue… and rips the veil to shreds like a ravenous beast.
Suddenly, I hear a brief gasp.
“Hm? Something wrong, dear?”
The man’s voice is deep, indifferent, and laced with exhaustion.
“No… it’s nothing.”
She barely manages to contain the surprise in her cold tone of voice.
“I’m fine,” she insists, “don’t mind me.”
The human man sighs tiredly, “That offer, Madame Alkin, needs quite a bit of thought. Let us continue this some other time.”
“No problem. You and your wife must be tired from the journey, so please take as much time as you please. Peris city can be quite full of surprises.”
Alkin directs that last part to the woman in a happy tone of voice.
“Indeed. Good day to you, Madame Alkin.”
A moment after he says that, I hear the door open with a melodic ring and then close. Silence graces the office and remains unbroken. Alkin doesn’t call me over or send any mental messages so I drift off back into peaceful slumber.
***
May 15, 1951
Today, we arrived at Peris City.
People call it the city of flowers. Maybe because of the many unique flowers that bloom here or the ‘Florel Tower’ that allows any Magi to send mental letters across the entire globe. My husband said we’ll visit it together after his schedule frees up.
The first thing on the schedule was a visit to the soon to be heir of the Alkin clan, Antonette Alkin. She gave an absurd and quite naive price for our ‘case’ (as she calls it). Does she really expect our clans to work together unconditionally for mutual benefits or… is she planning something else, expecting that we would never agree?
This was my first time meeting the rumored Investigator.
Her office was shabby and dainty looking, much like its owner who met us with an apathetic gaze, but I didn’t mind any of it. Underneath the grandeur of the Florel clan, we aren’t that better off than the Alkins who have survived at the edge for the past 10 years after the Great War. Both clans even have someone with purple mana—myself and Antonette.
When our dull purple eyes met, it felt like looking at a me who’s climbed to heights that I couldn’t even dream of reaching. I know I shouldn’t compare myself to other purple Magies, but no matter who it is, they were always far superior and more attuned with their Concept than I am. However, this habit of sensing other purple Magies proved to be quite the boon today.
It happened right after Madame Alkin told us of the absurd price for the case. Something broke through and entered the
Today was quite interesting, but the details of today’s events will not be put to pen. Fufufu~
***
There’s a knock at the door.
“Lily?”
“Hwes?” I respond.
“…Try again.”
I do try again,“Yeswu.”
Taken from Royal Road, this narrative should be reported if found on Amazon.
And I fail again.
Speaking has been a struggle even after all these years.
“A little better. May I come in?”
“Indeed.”
The door lock opens with a satisfying sound.
My room is a mess. Paper scattered on the floor around my bed like a white bird nest, three umbrellas missing their handles lie on one corner while another corner has a desk with said handles. To top it all off, the wooden closet is split in half with all my blue victorian dresses flooding out.
Alkin’s eyes linger on the broken closet before turning to me and scowling.
“What happened?”
“Experiment bad.”
Her shoulders slump down, “Okay, tell me the details, Lily.”
Alkin makes the motion to sit down on the floor only to be caught by a chair that builds itself beneath her in the span of a few seconds using the floor boards as material. This would make me bad if not for the fact that this room isn’t real. Everything except the umbrellas and paper are made entirely out of mana, so using her Concept on it is fine. She’s not actually damaging my cozy little room.
The materials are too fragile. A single Impact Droplet causes the Universal Thread structure to erode which leads to my spell becoming unstable and weak. Upon making contact with the closet, the force of the Impact Droplet traveled vertically and became more of a slash.
“Maybe the fault lies not in the material.”
Alkin opens her palm and bends the world to her will and the world obeys. One of the drawers on my desk opens from which thread floats up to hover above Alkin’s open palm. Using her purple mana, she controls the Universal Thread, forming all the Magic Circle variations she taught me with ease; going from one pattern to the next in an uninterrupted flow.
“Not all Magic Circles made with Uni-Thread are publicly known. The Florels hide many secrets and only provide top quality products to people who can afford it. Supply is also limited,” She lets the glowing white thread fall to her hand, “Once the structure is broken, Universal Thread disappears. Similar to how Magies lose any mana they let out of their control. Therefore, replacing or repairing these Magic Circles are a must, putting heavy strains on the Florel’s production time.”
I see… are you telling me to give up again?
Alkin chuckles.
“No, Lily. I’m telling you to learn the secrets of the Florel clan during your stay.”
My heart jumps and I sit up from my bed to look at Alkin; she isn’t joking, of course not.
What do you mean?
“What else would I mean? You’ll be staying with the Florels in a few years,” for the first time in years, Alkin gives me a playful smile and her next words do not give me conforf: “Lily Florel.”
***
Time passes, the news settles in, and Alkin remains the same as always. She immediately proceeds to the next steps in fulfilling this case, that being to take on more cases. Our client this time is able to speak freely and tells us about a recently growing bud of a Hallway leading to the Eldritch Realm—my home.
Our client took us to an entrance leading to the underground maze of Peris. Based on what I’ve read, these are called the Catacombs of Paris which have over three million souls buried here, mostly forgotten by the world above. Nothing actually remains here now after what happened during the Great War.
Anyway, the Hallway wasn’t very far, about a five minute walk from the entrance which isn’t good. If an Entity were to escape, the people above wouldn’t have much time to respond before innocents start getting their mana forcibly ripped out of their body. Convenient for us though.
The client, a middle aged man wearing full winter gear and carrying skiing equipment on his back, gives us a cursory glance. Alkin handles the talking while I inspect the Hallway. It isn’t so much a tear in reality, more like a curtain that’s blended into the wall, infusing it with qualities of fabric and mana.
Hallways are the lowest in terms of threat level but in no way are they easy to destroy. How does one break down an ethereal bridge between two worlds? Simple, kill all the inhabitants.
Of course the world gives the solution of extinction to humanity. What else would there be? Nothing—it's the only answer they’re willing to accept back then and right now.
Your thoughts, Ms. Florel?
Maybe three weeks old. Don’t call me that.
I turn around in time to see Alkin appearing from around the corner.
“Has a nice ring to it,” she says, feigning interest in the topic, “Shall we get to work?”
“Indeed, Madame Alkin.”
We step through the stone wall which parts like curtains to let us inside an illusory hall, stretching a thousand illusory miles.
“Huh. Haven’t heard you say that in a long, long while, Ms. Florel.”
We are standing atop a massive pillar of ice, waves crashing down below at all the pillars leading to a warped door in the distance and above that are a circle of winged creatures I can’t quite make out.
“Do you dislike it?”
Both of us feel watched while we hop across the pillars, slowly making our way through the Hallway.
“No. It has a nice ring to it.”
“I see.”
Tell me what you really think.
Alkin sits down, letting her elegance crumble slightly.
“I do like it, Ms. Florel,” she stretches her arms and begins gathering a plethora of mana, “Only because you are the one calling me that.”
All at once, mana wraps around the pillar we are standing on in a spiraling motion, embedding the roots of Alkin’s will into the pure mana structure. Unlike the real world where objects possess no will of their own—or my room where I let Alkin do as she pleases—pure mana structures require Alkin to expend more mana to order them around. Not a real problem; she has plenty to spare.
If you say so, Madame Alkin.
Sounds of shattering ice echo into the silent fake night of the Hallway. With one final crack, a chunk of the pillar is wrenched free, free to float towards our destination. Neither of us share another word or mental message, letting each other prepare for the battle ahead.
***
Three wings unfold from their backs, revealing light blue feathers that point to the fake sky, their bodies are modeled after human skulls if humans had 10 eyes and if those eyes remain even after decomposition has done its job. Creatures that don’t pose a great threat aren’t given a name by humans, and are simply called ‘Eldritch Entities’ or ‘Entities’. In rare cases, ‘Anomalies’ are given a name due to their consistent distinct traits and appearance in the Eldritch Realm.
These Entities have only been ‘born’ recently and nobody knows about them—nor will they ever—so I guess it would be a waste of time to name every single random thing that pops into existence in the Eldritch Realm.
When our floating chunk of ice got near enough, the winged skulls opened their many eyes. Axes, swords and spears manifested in specific sets around each of the Entities. The first skull creates 9, the second creates 8 and so on until the eighth which has 2 weapons.
Every weapon shoots out as fast as bullets and tear into our chunk of ice like a salvo. None of them slow down, breaking through the other side and then turning back to plunge into the ice chunk again. The process repeats a few times before the weapons run out of mana and begin fading into blue sparks of light.
Alkin utters a single word…
“
…and every single piece of the broken ice infused with Alkin’s mana returns to life.
We have long since left our crude ride. Right now, the two of us are watching the action from a safe distance, about three giant pillars away. Like I said before, most human Magies prefer fighting from far away. Alkin is no different, simply better than most at fighting from range. It doesn’t matter how broken or tiny the object is, so long as their mana, Alkin has
Still fairly large ice chunks are fired back but due to their size, they fly slowly, giving their targets enough time to narrowly avoid them. However, narrowly isn’t enough as those flying just above the surface of the ice are impaled by suddenly appearing spikes. The three fastest are the only ones to survive.
One fires a salvo of 4 weapons, followed by 3 and 2 more deadly implements. This time, each of the glowing blue implements makes haste at destroying the chunks of ice. Literally grinding them down into snow.
A blizzard sweeps through the flying skulls… and starts pressing into all 10 of their eyes. Blue blood explodes in the air and the skulls fall from the sky, turning into blue mana before they could reach the cold, dark waters. This sight brings me no great joy or sadness, only the warm feeling of accomplishing another case with Alkin.
Shall we head home?
“Hm. Finish the last one off and we can buy dinner on the way back, you’re pick.” Alkin says while patting away the snow off her dress.
My face lights up and I quickly turn to face the last winged skull—the one hiding up in the clouds—preparing to shoot 1 gigantic spear shining with radiant blue mana.
Gather, compress into a singular point, remove any unnecessary mana…
Focus all of it towards one purpose: Pure destructive power.
I shift to a purple hue and chant:
Universal Threads dart out from my dress pockets, weaving a magical circle infused with blue mana in front of my open palm. A raindrop floats through it, mixing raw, unstable power with the stability of blue mana to form a harmony between two opposites. In a single instant—everything breaks.
Sound of shattering glass assaults my ears and the
In the distance, I see Alkin looking at me. No emotion on the surface or beneath it.
She simply takes out a wand made of ashen wood and swings it upward. Dark waters erupt a reverse waterfall towards the last winged skull, dragging it and the giant spear into the endless abyss of the sea. Now, the case is closed.
I’m… my apologies.
Alkin offers me a hand and says, “Try again. We have plenty of time, do we not?”
I reach out to grab it without hesitation and she helps me up.
Taking a deep breath, I try again:
“…Indeed, Madame Alkin. We hwu… hwave time.”