A few hours passed after that. The stunned Titania spoke with eloquent Seifes, and the new ruler of Honesty met Tivo of Happiness, too. For a minute, mercury wondered whether that's what it was like for one's children to meet, then shook his head.

Nah. They were rather far from being his kids - viewing them as that was a rather significant overreach into their individuality. Their deeds were their own, and he would not take credit for anything more than giving them ground to stand on.

Instead, as the conversation went on, Mercury began to look inward, at what he had learned, and found himself sighing. There were some closed wounds and a dozen new aches caused by the painful knowledge. But… that was just fine. He would live. It was simply part of being human.

Gently, Mercury let go of the grief from Cherry's death. He had hoped… wanted to hope, just a little too much. Now, he had two open main quest slots. Well, one of them was open, the other had promptly filled, too.

-

[Main Quest: "Restore the Fae Realm." (Chain <3>)

Condition: Ensure the stability of the fae, ensure their action cause no more harm than needed.

Reward: 5 levels, <Guest> Title, <Astral Advent> mastery, <Fae Magic> Affinity Pass, <Mystery> Affinity Pass, 15 000 Gold.]

-

He smiled. That seemed about right. Two affinity passes, though? That seemed rather generous. Well. Not that it would be his only reward, even then. He had already gained a whole lot from this expedition. In fact, he could feel those gains buzzing in his veins.

Modifying Truth had been one of his most intense desires in a while. It resonated with him, so he had wanted it. Pursuing that desire… well.

[Level Up!]

[Level Up!]

It sure had its boons. Of course, he had gained more, though.

[<Witnessed> has met the necessary qualifications for evolution. Evolve? (evolution voucher)]

[Evolution confirmed. Engaging. Please pick an option to evolve the Skill into. The price will be the same (evolution voucher), no matter which you choose.]

[1. <Pierce>

2. <Glare>

3. <Perceived>

4. <Unravel>]

[<Pierce>: Leaning into the offensive nature of its predecessor, this Skill can be applied to any instrument wielded by the user, significantly enhancing its capabilities to bypass any defence. Any place the individual can see is within range for them to hurt.]

That one was out. Mercury knew evolutions couldn't take away the previous use of the Skill, and he would still be able to use it as he had before. But this… indicated a preferential treatment of violence that Mercury wasn't comfortable with.

He'd already felt disgusted by what he'd done to Oberon. This was too far.

[<Glare>: Rather than harming, this one instills fear. The individual will be able to apply their presence, supplanting their own existence over that of others. Glare and make them buckle. Their secrets shall spill forth without effort.]

At least it mentioned what he had primarily used <Witnessed> for. But no. He didn't intend to grab this Skill, either. It felt very similar to what the fae rulers did when they looked at him in an attempt to make him kneel, and that was really rather silly. If he was powerful, he didn't need to intimidate anyone with a Skill specifically for that.

[<Perceived>: This evolution expands the scope of its predecessor. Line of sight is no longer required. Any sense the individual has will be able to dig deeper into the target. You will taste their secrets, hear their sorrow, sense the grief from their shadows, or the touch of arrogance in their mana. Perceive the world - all of it.]

Finally, a more palatable Skill. This one was good. He liked it, quite a bit. It suited him, too, given how many perspectives he had to use. But there was one more.

[<Unravel>: To see is to understand. Close your eyes. Trace your fingers across the web. The world, everything within and without, is made of strings and gaps. A tapestry of connections and holes. Feel the weave, its ebb and call, and unravel its nuances.]

Mercury blinked. This one was, by far, the most vague description out of this lot. But at the same time, the name… <Unravel>. It suited him, didn't it? It sounded much more like what he had been doing in the fae realm. In fact… there was a good chance that every bit of his latest impossible accomplishments had all fuelled this upgrade.

He smiled, faintly.

[Acquired the Skill <Unravel lv. 1> through fusing Skills.]

For a moment, the change applied. Mercury felt a new sense bloom. No, that wasn't the right word. It didn't "blossom", it wove itself into being.

Another second passed, and the change fully settled in. <Witnessed> was forever changed. It had <Unravelled>. Been taken apart into strings and rewoven.

Strangely, Mercury didn't feel like it was an external change. He had wondered about the mechanics behind the system, but there was no external force. No guiding hand reaching down and changing him at his core, no flood of mana that changed his being.

It was a soft sensation, one that resonated within him. An anchor, a tapestry that wove itself. A string made from threads of <Truth>, bits and pieces that he felt. Knowledge he had, decisions he made, things he'd learnt.

Mercury took a breath, letting the Skill settle with his eyes closed. It would be overwhelming enough anyway. He could already tell it would be, because it was part of him, and part of him already felt those changes to the way he could understand the world.

He opened his eyes. Grass. Trees. Sky.

He opened his eyes.

The world unravelled. All at once, it was a tapestry. Each living being was a million, billion strings. Interconnected, interacting, shifting and changing. Each movement a ripple, each act a change, each person so infinitely vast and complex, yet simple.

Mercury pulled at a string, and a blade of grass shifted. He pulled on another one, and a few hundred meters away, a butterfly stumbled in its flight. It was all unveiled. Shadows, auras, decisions, heat, smell, taste, sound, sight. All of it condensed and interwoven, endlessly complex.

Taking a deep breath, Mercury leaned on <Still Mirror>. His heartbeat slowed back down. He closed his eyes, and when he finished blinking, the world was mostly back to normal.

Mostly, because he still felt the vestiges. The sensation lingered. The Skill was one that had a passive effect on his perception, and an active one if he delved into it. Maybe, for now, he would hold back from trying to unravel the entire world all at once, though.

Breathing in and out, he let a few seconds tick by. This Skill was the culmination of his efforts in the fae realm, of understanding the <Truths> of the world, of getting to know the <Dreamweave>. In a lot of ways, it was a pillar of his efforts.

He smiled faintly. Wasn't he supposed to have a signature Skill? How were all of them so important to him?

There was <Prevailing>, the evolution of <Survivor>. The Skill that let him cling onto life, no matter what. <Hydration>, to help him adapt to and heal from anything. <Veil>, to manipulate others into forgetting he was there entirely. <Itinerant>, <Oceanic Consciousness>, <Dream Manifestation>, <Astral Advent>, <Still Mirror>, <Voidwalker>, <Unravel>, <Truth>, and, of course, <Seeker of Secrets>.

All of those could reasonably be signature Skills, couldn't they. He shook his head a little. His Skill list was a bit ridiculous. He wanted to look at all of them, but before he could, he called up the rewards from his latest outing, from when he had fully broken through Truth's labyrinth.

[Your Skills and abilities have levelled up! <Combat Sense lv. 2 -> 3>, <Medicine, lv. 5 -> 6>, <Thread lv. 6 -> 7>, <Perceived Ease lv. 3 -> 4>, <Itinerant lv. 5 -> 6>, <Oceanic Consciousness lv. 5 -> 6>.]

The progress was satisfying. He could also tell that a few Skills were hovering rather close to that final threshold. <Still Mirror> and <Clarity> sat at level 9 each, just a hint away from evolution. And the same was true for <Intuition>. It had sat at level 6 for so long now, he was sure it had to level up soon.

In fact, it was his <Intuition> that told him so. He was also rather sure it would evolve at that next level.

How silly was that. A Skill that told him when it would evolve, for once. He sighed a small sigh. Orin had sat down next to him.

"Everything okay?" The fae asked. Their red-brown fur moved faintly in the slight wind. The world smelled of life.

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

"Yeah," Mercury said. "I'm good."

"Glad to hear it." Orin gave him a huff and a smile before leaving back on their hands, looking at the sky. "Thanks. For making the sky so stable. Without it, Truth might've broken me." The wind wavered slightly at the words, but continued unabated, brushing through their fur.

Mercury looked at the fae, then shook his head. "Nah," he said. "It wouldn't have broken you."

"Oh?" Orin tilted their head.

"I mean it. You're not the kind of person to break so easily, not like that. You stood up to Oberon for your freedom, didn't you?" he said. "Truth is- was different, of course. But, well, not that different, at the end of the day. It's all the same. Mental pressure and such. You would've been okay."

The fae laughed a little. A small noise. Then, they smiled. "It didn't feel like that… but I see what you mean."

At that, they fell into a comfortable silence. There wasn't much to talk about, not really. Mercury knew what would happen next. He would soon get up, and get into a carriage, and head to the territory of the next ruler. There weren't too many stops left. Allure and Loneliness, definitely. Maybe Blood. He'd already changed the ruler of Blossom, too, he noted.

When looking at Titania, Mercury knew she was different from when he had entered the fae realm. Less… ruthless, maybe? He felt that she had grown a little more settled. He smiled, faintly. Sometimes, when the problems were gone, terrible people could become decent.

Oberon, though. Mercury wasn't quite too sure what to do about him yet. He was very sure he hadn't seen the last of the ruler of Mellow yet. There would, inevitably, be more trouble coming his way. He smiled, looking at the cloudless sky.

If trouble came looking for him, he'd deal with it.

For now, there were plenty of problems to solve already.

Before Mercury could get up, Seifes appeared next to him. The many-handed jester gave him a half dozen friendly waves. "What are you up to now, Mercury?"

"Same as usual," he said with a shrug. "Off to the next court. Might be a little bit before we meet again."

A smile of sunlight appeared on Seifes' veil. "Oh, well, I see. In that case, I assume I can't simply join your travel party?"

"Haha. Aren't you a ruler?" Mercury asked. "You should be busy keeping watch over your court."

Seifes waved him off. "Hogwash. What court? Do I look like there are any fae left under my jurisdiction? Kisususu. No, no. I am free as a bird, Mercury. Plus, every bit of Honesty I need is right here." They smiled, tapping the embroidered, beating hearts on their suit.

"Pfffft," Mercury snorted. "Alright, then. Come along, if you will."

"Oh? No, no, I was inviting you to come along with me! See, I hear the fields of Allure are lovely this… what season do we have right now?" Seifes asked.

"It must be spring, out in the human realm," Mercury said, being less sure than he sounded.

"Ah, yes. Allure is lovely this blossom. Or so I heard. Ah, no. So I know. It's only right that I would know things, having been Truth before, no?" Seifes said, still wearing that silly smile.

Mercury looked at Orin, giving their companion a questioning gaze, but the fae just shrugged, seemingly ambivalent towards Seifes joining. Alice, too, didn't seem to particularly mind, so Mercury nodded. "Seems about right. We'll be travelling with you, then."

"Fabulous. When shall we be off?" Seifes asked.

Mercury looked at Tivo, ruler of Happiness, who was now busily tending to the jungle, jumping through the branches as a monkey of stained glass. Unlike Seifes, Mercury was also rather sure that there were more fae within Happiness.

Even back when it was Joy there had still been some. Those had been turned into his gardener, Kim. Bits of the rabbit, the caterpillar, the cat and the wolf fused into one. But Mercury knew there was more to it. Some of the vines had an aura, and so did some of the trees.

This jungle was alive. The fae were young and new and only just coming into being, but the point of Happiness was to have it grow, even in harsh situations. No doubt the jungle would become sprawling as time went on. Mercury hoped to see it again someday.

Compared to that, Honesty was different. It didn't sprout up or grow, it took a lot of conscious, continuous effort. It wasn't just being truthful - it was about the intent behind statements.

Looking at Seifes, Mercury could see that they were actively trying to be Honest. There was nothing stopping them from lying, unlike most fae. Those of Honesty had to choose to be honest, rather than having it forced upon them.

Of course, there would be consequences for breaking it, so Mercury supposed it was a little more like a vow than a choice, but still. They were in a rather unique position. What a strange court they'd become.

Mercury gave a small sigh. "Right, right. Tivo, do you need any more help here?" he asked.

The monkey paused their swings for a moment, looking over at him. It scratched its head, though the sound was closer to the clinking of glasses than anything else. Then, Tivo shook their head. Silently, they kept on swinging through the jungle, soon disappearing from sight again.

"Hmmmm," Mercury hummed. He felt alright. Reasonably well-rested at least. Alice floated towards then, carried by a gust of wind. She smiled.

"Are we off?" the heroine asked.

When Mercury looked back, Titania was already gone. It was just Orin, Alice, Seifes and him. He smiled. "Alright. Let's head out," he said, then rose from the ground.

"Wonderful," Seifes said. "Let's travel, then! Ah, well. Honestly, aren't we already at the court of Allure?"

The smile vanished from Mercury's face. "You motherfu-"

He was cut off. Mercury wanted to scream, but he didn't have a voice. Or any recognizable structure.

Deformed and folded in on himself, he felt like a ball of paper being sucked through a straw. Like someone had grabbed him, turned him inside out, stuffed him in a suitcase, then tossed that suitcase down a hole.

It was cramped and dark and altogether uncomfortable, even as <Itinerant> fought to make the walls wider, to let him breathe a bit more. Then, all at once, it was over.

Mercury stepped on grass that was suspiciously soft, his stomach roiling, but soon calmed by <Hydration>. Orin wasn't so lucky, instantly buckling over and throwing up. Alice appeared midair, spinning wildly. Mercury's hind legs were buried in the soil. Only Seifes stepped into the empty space without trouble, quickly brushing off their suit.

"See," they said. "Already there! No travelling needed."

Mercury took a moment to dig his feet out of the ground, when he was hit by an explosion of fire. It was ridiculously hot, and his skin burnt away at it. <Hydration> kicked in, and <Rainfall> did the same a second later, rapidly extinguishing his own and Orin's burning fur.

"What a cool, calm day it is," Seifes said with a smile. The fire vanished. Mercury's rain flickered for a moment, but remained. Instead of the scorching heat, the air was clear again, and he could see Allure.

It was a world of softness and pastel colours. Grass made of feathery cotton, the ground looking more like clouds, softly enveloping him. The very air smelled pleasantly sweet, but not overwhelmingly so. The sky was a hint of lilac, casting the world in a calming shade of it.

Mercury felt himself grow calmer, sleepy - and then drew <Rainfall> tighter. <Still Mirror> swallowed the false relaxation, returning him to his own neutral. He was vigilant, awake, and perfectly calm.

The spark of anger from the manipulation and fire was also swallowed by the lake of his soul. Mercury looked upon Allure, at the ruler that had just attempted to set them on fire out of surprise. It was shifting, beautiful, and then he really looked.

<Unravel>.

Thread by thread, the gorgeous world was spun apart. He saw how it pulled on him, each blade of grass tempting him to come closer. The siren song was tied into its very being, pulling at him, and ever so gently, Mercury reached out and pulled those threads away.

It was like pulling his head free from cobwebs, and he did the same for Orin. Series and Alice seemed to have things under control, with the recently freed fae being the only one in need of help.

He still left some of the web intact, since he needed the connection, but when he opened his eyes again, Allure lost all of that supernatural lustre. It was mundane. Pinks and purples, lilac hues that were pretty, sure, but no more. Not entrancing, no longer a siren song.

In fact, it even revealed some of the hidden traps. Blades of grass that were razors rather than cotton. Spongy pieces of ground, ringed with spikes and teeth.

The ruler of Allure sat upon their throne, shifting less. Mercury felt he saw double, seeing them as both an ever shifting, pretty creature, and a hungry monster of waiting maws. Aimlessly reaching out, greedily drawing in more victims.

Mercury breathed. "Good day." His voice was calm and collected.

Allure flinched at his words. "So cold," they said. "I was startled by your arrival. Do trust that I do not plan to set you on fire again. You may dismiss your storm-"

"No," Mercury said. "I refuse. There is procedure to this. I am here to stop your court from breaking. I expect to meet your ancient one. Where are they?"

The ruler slowly tilted their head, a little too slow for their facade of elegance and grace. "Why, you stand upon them, of course."

Mercury looked down, and indeed, from one of the hidden, ringed maws on the ground, a green thing of vines emerged. The avatar of the ancient one was unassuming, their face a blank slate. They were made from a tangle of green vines, and full of maws, with their hands and legs ending in them.

How fitting, for the ancient one of Allure to be themed after a venus flytrap.

"Greetings. What shall I call you?" Mercury asked.

The ancient one's avatar took a step closer. "You are just as Arber said. Ehehe, well. Almost. Your fur seems a little singed," they said, giving another chuckle. "Let me ride on your back."

"Absolutely not."

"I'm not telling you my name until you do," they teased.

"Alright. I'll call you Silly until you do," Mercury said with a smile.

At that, the avatar flinched back, aghast. "... Huh?!"

"That's right. Thanks for introducing yourself to me, Silly. Well, then, shall we move on to-"

"Wait, wait, wait! My name is Sera, it's Sera!" They stomped a leg on the ground. "Sera, yeah!"

Mercury smiled. "Lovely to meet you. My name is Mercury."

"Now will you-"

He frowned. "Touch me and I wreck this entire court."

The ancient one pulled back. "Fine! Jeez. You're no fun," Sera pouted.

"Are you quite done," the ruler of Allure asked. They sounded almost… bored.

Mercury stepped across the ground, avoiding each razorblade, each tooth in the ground. Gingerly, he took a route that avoided each of the traps, and slowly, Allure's eyes widened. "What… Gah!"

The fae ruler covered their face with a dozen illusory arms. "Stop! Stop looking- don't look at me!!"

Without hesitation, Mercury closed his eyes.

Silence. He gave them a few more seconds. "Better?" he asked, still not seeing anything.

"... Yes," Allure replied shakily. "What was that?"

"I saw past your illusions, unwrapped your traps. I thought this was all a game to you, all some sort of elaborate trick. And it is, but it's also the only thing you know how to do. What do you want to be?" he asked.

"Alluring," the ruler replied without hesitation.

"What else?"

"Pretty. Desirable. Wanted," the words spilled out of them. Drawn forth into Mercury's <Truth>. "I want to be needed, for people to come to me, to spend all their time with me, I want to be their whole world, I-"

They paused. Mercury didn't see what had happened, but he heard a wracking sob a moment later. "What is wrong with me?! Why- Why don't I remember my name?"

Taking a deep breath, Mercury nodded. He looked back at Alice for a fleeting moment. He didn't need to see her to know that she flinched slightly.

He breathed again, stepping closer to allure. With his eyes closed, he stepped on a few razors, a few teeth, a few traps. He felt the gazes of Sera and Alice, Seifes and Orin linger on him, and he stepped forward some more. To the throne of Allure; the cracked throne of Allure. He didn't need to see it to know that.

"You poor thing," Mercury said.

"I killed them, I- they're dead. Dead. They're-"

Gently, a crown of silver wove itself on Mercury's head. It was made of vines, and the amber hue pushed aside the overwhelming pink. The world grew a little more quiet, a little hushed. "It's okay," he told Allure. "Breathe."

The ruler laughed, tossed their head back and gave a guttural sob. "I don't have lungs."

"So what," Mercury shrugged. "That's not what breathing is about. Here, let me show you." <Rainfall> reached out with the essence of <Breath>. It was calming, cool, extinguishing some of the fires.

"No, stop, I- I don't deserve this. Please, go elsewhere, go-"

Slowly, their pleas quieted down. The world was silence and rain. Mercury wove his <Thread>, the kind that made others' thoughts slow down. "I'll make a blanket for you, alright?" he asked.

There was no reply, but Mercury knew that they'd nodded.

So, he got to work. Spun the thread, and wove it, bit by bit, into a thin comforter. It only took a few minutes, since with his stronger mind and <Force of the Hecantoncheires>, he had more than enough hands to finish it up quickly.

Gently, he laid it onto Allure. The ruler was breathing, slowly, still crying. Mercury did not look. He did not touch them, just stayed at their side for a little while.

Quiet, comfort, and rain.

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