Chapter 187

  Mi-Yung presumed half of the truths as her goals. She knew how restrictive and meandering many of the things in the library were, and those upper floors were even wilder.

  Since it was a great archive with a century of research filled with all sorts of secrets, there were things kids shouldn’t get to read, and places and pieces not so easily noticed.

  Having a great guide helped a lot indeed.

  Of course, there were other places with excellent research as well, but there were also exceptions and rules about them. One described an archive and terms of curiosity and history, and the others were quite physical evidence and a projection of science.

  The upper floors contained a lot of rooms and there were ongoing efforts to improve and elevate their basements and knowledge. Done by Walkers, it aimed at Walkers. From Darks, Emblems, and Systems alike, youths should see them one bit at a time.

  These subjects were hardly under the same bracket. Sometimes, they were similar, linked to others, and functioned by specialized people under or beyond the library.

  If there were a young Walker who needed a special kind of guidance, someone greater than a young apprentice would help them. Oftentimes, such occasions were already special at the start, so experienced Walker would act as a guide, or their family, or their choice of new home.

  As far as training went, knowledge and knowing these floors was as important as bound hell for people, organizations, or money.

  “What had he done?!” Mi-Yung demanded the truth from William. “I wasn’t quick enough, and he got to know you through me for sure! How... Wait... Anna?” She thought out loud and clicked her tongue. “He touched her?! Is he out of his fucking mind?”

  “Anna sounded like a fan meeting a great hero. Also, Kaufman wasn't a big deal. He accompanied me to a single room... and... also gave me this card.” William showed the full-pass card from his pocket since Mi-Yung was starting to get more than restless. Even a little bit annoying, too, so he revealed the last knock on her troubled mind.

  The card disappeared in a blink. Mi-Yung captured it before William had any change of heart and her demeanor changed one more time.

  “WHAT!” she uttered a single word, staring at each side of this card in bewilderment, craziness, and certainty that she should crush it to dust. “THAT old fox?! Did you sign a contract with him already? What has he done to your head? What did Luke forget? What happened in that room or the one before? What does Kaufman want?”

  Mi-Yung shot him a bunch of crazy question, leaning forward and slammed the card onto the table. The table was already unstable, so cracks spread, but the card remained safe.

  “Contract? I said it already.” William leaned as far as he could and talked more than he wished he should. Once more, he approached this long table. “He offered a vague proposition I refused cuz one thing at a time is one of my mottos. Luke also talked about you, and since the time was handy, he said a bunch of other things. I wanted to meet you first before running into any sort of corner. And... frankly, Kaufman was weird to me, and I wasn’t' sure what he was offering. He probably realized what I want. He should respect that, regardless of yesterday. I signed nothing, by the way. I swear.”

  “Him and respect? He is an old fox!”

  “Looked human to me.”

  His swearing didn't help a soul. Mi-Yung was still furious and thought much further ahead.

  “Kaufman is a Walker who is doing whatever he wants. Bastard. He would not give this card to anyone. What in the world is he planning? Is he starting another clash?” she wondered out loud and judged the possibilities that Kaufman might do or accept.

  She bet she couldn't even imagine half of his steps. Just what was in that offer, or why do that to begin with, and not even finish it? Did he wait for.... Awakening. That seemed likely, though someone like him wouldn't wait to do what he wished to do and waste time.

  In truth, Mi-Yung had almost no plans for William at the moment. She was busy and wished for his Walker status and Emblem to grow. That clashed with the first meeting and the right judgment and decisions. So far, his Emblem looked terrific, skipping a beat in a similar color rhythm to his father. It could be even greater since she didn't look at it at the right angle.

  But the mother? For now, Mi-Yung thought and considered William's immediate marks. Nothing suggested the other person.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  For his future, she wished to be like a ground supporting his steps, or a hand gripping his back so he wouldn’t fall back. Being a teacher didn't sound right.

  Viktor had done the same thing to her, albeit from far away and under a very different time and feelings. It wasn't karma; he was simply doing his duty and doing it well.

  Mi-Yung wanted to come closer. Maybe more than necessary, but who should judge her for thinking of karma and hope that finally arrived after all those years?

  If he will be even half as good as his father, who reached Rank 6 before turning thirty even without that shitty Forced Awakening, making a steep record break way back, she will push William beyond his boundaries even if he won't like it.

  Right. She will be forceful if she has to be, and willing to go into unfamiliar territories for him and work for it more than ever.

  Very soon, others will discover him and Assembly won't let this go, or be untouched. Before that, she had to ready her cards, broaden her influence, and ready her justice.

  “What had he mentioned?” Mi-Yung asked again after a deep try to calm down. It didn't work and her eyes turned savage, both gleaming in delightful, strange sharpness.

  William saw their light, skipping throbs, and wonderful depth. It was like stars in her eyes, glowing and moving in the sky. Then, her hands stressed under her force and strange lines and veins spread over her skin.

  “He offered... apprenticeship, I guess. That I would follow him, or whatever. Again, I refused.”

  “I get you did. You wouldn't be here otherwise. Wait. No. He wouldn’t take a no for an answer. Either he doesn’t know what he is doing, you are not to his liking—which I doubt—or he is waiting for further reaction, or…nothing. Is he testing me?”

  “Kaufman can easily kidnap me, right?”

  “You get him that much? Now, of all times? A bit late, but whatever. What had he assessed? Synergy. Time. Some pressure. Talk to me. You walked with him to the upper floors and rooms, so...”

  Again with more questions. It was getting tedious.

  “T-test? Force… or something. My Emblem snapped while I missed it in the head. Snatching and stuff. It hurt. As for the room, it was vast and part of two. It described the beginning, I think. For hours, he let me see anything while he made small lessons here and there.”

  Mi-Yung sighed, and mist spread under her palms, which moved to her face. “I don't get it. I will talk to him by myself if he has eyes on you. He also knows about me... so what does it mean? Him?” Mi-Yung flicked that card back at William, hoping her worries were false.

  “Emblem test. That's what he had done to you. He pushed it until it would prove, weaken, wake, and react. It reeks of Rank 0s evaluations done at the higher sequences, but even then, most young Walkers have some form of Rank 0s. Mostly weak, it is patiently sprouting until rightful time.”

  “I read about it. Heard some stuff. Done…. some stuff.”

  “Yeah? Rank 0 is a stage where the Emblem has a much higher threshold, influence, and... scientists call it Ego. It is a chaotic stage that is strictly unregulated by the System, so it is stranger than good. It is young. Affectioned. Maybe it won't make sense to you for a while or even at Rank 1. Rank 0 is believed to be a semi-awakening, where the Emblem undergoes tremendous shifts and acts for the mind and body of the youths. That gets dangerous. I suppose you... have it closer, right?”

  Looking at him, her eyes were inescapable. “I won't force a thing from you, just so you know. Am no Kaufman. I will speak. I will ask you and assure you that what is right is right.”

  “Yes. I know many instances where my Emblem surged and... voices. Troubles. I didn't like them most of those times. They were confusing and harmful. Many people disregarded it when I was young, saying it will pass, or how it is just my imagination or Outside doing its work. I remember a lot of ignorance aims at unstable youths like me. I kept it... hidden or calm, or it did? Oh well.”

  William shrugged it off and didn't seem opposed or hateful towards anything in particular.

  Which was odd on its own right, and Mi-Yung wondered how susceptible to stress and emotions he could become.

  “I can't answer your depth. You know and feel it yourself.”

  “Which means what?”

  “That you are growing and others should adjust to it instead. That's fine. What were those times alike? Crimson is... an extreme coloration. Is it a very powerful Ego?”

  “It feels like ants crawling, voice whispering at the back of my mind, and hand creaking. Bones, muscles, veins. I don’t' even know what I shouldn't tell or feel. It is like being forged and hot flame goes through me, changing nothing, or grabbing me and letting me know it by insane shouting.”

  “Oh, what an excellent wordplay.” Mi-Yung reckoned and felt she wouldn’t call it any better. Similar to him, she had her experience with Rank 0, but hers was all over her torso and at a much different setting.

  Rank 0's effectiveness was a relatively unknown phase. South Korea had its thoughts about them, similar to Japan and the Federation, or China. Well, pretty much every land had opinions about them.

  Korea was also not that old for Mi-Yung, who knew what to do and expect simply because of her family and her own familiarity with these schemes. Nowadays, Rank 0 was acknowledged very well under the Walker societies and organizations. Still, many considered it impervious to the great System, or a simple seed-like stage.

  The reason didn’t matter, since it was an unshakable fact. There won’t ever be a child at Rank 2, but even those children could kill. Who? What? How? Anything goes within this chaotic stage, so pretty much any guess was simply a guess.

  Unless there were specified circumstances or acts to accomplish. Mi-Yung wanted to ask about them, yet didn’t know how to start.

  “When... did you think it started?”

  “Kaufman asked the same thing.”

  “And your answer was?”

  “When I was five.”

  “FIVE?!” It was yet another shocker, but this time, her Arcana seemed to hide very deeply in her, which might indicate how shocked she was.

  “Right when I lost my mother... and... I dunno. It felt odd and like a terrible dream. Nowadays, I don’t like to remember anything, but some stuff is right there. In my arm. My mother. Monster. Some… things. Stuff that I…. eh…” he stopped as his hand squeezed itself and he clutched the red object with his left.

  Mi-Yung forcefully clutched her hands as well, leaning out and crossing her arms. Maybe this answer wasn't up to her liking. It meant a lot of things, after all.