She

Has Arrived

Snow.

Snow everywhere.

That was the life Kaalan had known. The barren wasteland filled to the brim with white powder. An endless field of it—one that stretches beyond the horizon.

Standing atop the colossal serpent statue, he overlooked the tribe and everything else keenly. With the serpent coiling in a circle, forming a natural barrier around them, most threats were far too easy to deal with. But the magecraft formation he had devised through the powers of the Beacon of Guidance was what truly kept them safe.

Overseeing this, Kaalan didn't really know how to feel at that moment. Will his progress matter in the long run? Will the Serpent truly show its guidance once again?

He didn't know.

"It's not enough," he mumbled to himself. There was this endless void inside him, pleading to be filled… Perhaps the wounds from fifty years ago have yet to heal. No matter what he achieves for the tribe, nothing seems to close that gap… It was as if he was forgetting something important—something was missing.

The sudden sound of footsteps disrupted his thoughts.

"Elder Kaalan. We're expecting another blizzard soon." A voice reached out from behind, higher pitched than the howling winds. He turned to where it came from—a black haired woman wearing a red furcoat stood there, awaiting his instructions.

"Isha, tell them to get ready to activate the barrier once more."

She nodded sincerely, "I will let them know." She turned around to leave, only to hear the elder ask a rather strange question:

"Has Soren made any progress with his… research?"

She paused for a moment, trying to figure out what motive the Elder had for asking such a question. Pursing her lips, she answered:

"He has made some progress, but reaching the 2nd Circle is still not easy."

Elder Kaalan stood in silence. Isha had no way of knowing what he was thinking.

"It seems I have overestimated his abilities." He said in a rather husky voice. This somewhat confused Isha—after all, what expectations could the Elder even have for the foreigner? But deciding not to ask the question outloud, she simply nodded and turned to walk away.

Suddenly, a sudden shift in the air was noticed by the both of them. Isha froze—an eerie feeling took hold over her body as she felt a chill rush down her spine. She turned to question whether the elder noticed as well, but all she heard was a rather deep sigh.

"She has arrived." He declared.

Soren gasped for air as he stumbled to the floor in exhaustion. His blurred vision made it hard to see his surroundings. The only thing standing before him was the crimson jewel radiating in joy…

After all, he had just given it an immense amount of his own blood. More than what it will ever need in a week. At the moment, even his thoughts were becoming slurred. But at least he could smile at his own recklessness.

"[Hemomantic Transmutation] is truly a wondrous ability…" He mumbled to himself. His limb numbed as he continued to lay in bed, unable to move.

"You're the most exhausting person in the world, Soren." Myrin said with both scorn and worry interlaced in his brow. "How do you even come up with these insane ideas?"

Soren chuckled. "Well, you said the adjective yourself—insane. I am insane, you know?"

"Yes, you definitely are."

He sighed, "But my theory this time… I have to verify it. It doesn't matter how long it takes me—I know it's right."

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"What good will it do you to verify something that might kill you?" Myrin shook his head silently. "You are definitely right, though. This Pendragon fellow must have been immensely talented. I wouldn't be surprised if he was an Archmage during his time."

"Why do… you… say that?.." Soren coughed with every syllable.

"Because his theory logically wouldn't be something any regular magi could ever come up with. Thoughts influencing the behavior of the Beyond? That's an absurd notion for most. The Beyond is seen as an omnipresent force—a natural miracle of the world that only the gods could ever hope to understand…"

As he said this, Myrin threw a bottle at Soren which he promptly caught. It was the usual vitality potion brewed by one of the elders at the village. It was only really afforded to them through Cassia's pleading and their contributions to securing food provisions during their hunts… And yet, he was already running out.

Taking a jug, Soren instantly drank half of it. Just as quickly, its effects began to kick in. He felt his strength return to him slowly, as more and more of his body recovered from its exhaustion. Standing up, he glanced at the half filled potion bottle and frowned.

We were supposed to use these to recover our strength during emergencies, but I've been wasting them… Still, he had already managed to store three weeks worth of blood within the Heartdrinker Sigil thanks to their help.

Oblivious to his thoughts, Myrin continued his lecture:

"Astral Anima and its functions aren't something most are familiar with… Outside the Law of Mirrored Influence of course. But even then, most magi never even interact with that law. There's no way for them to have ever conceived of such a novel idea."

Soren nodded. "Astral Anima is only really utilized by Phantasms. Those who could manifest Mysteries are the only ones who will truly interact with its presence. You're definitely right in your assumption—regular magi would never even consider the implications of his theory, since they would first need to have a higher understanding of Astral Anima to begin with…"

Even I found them rather ludicrous at first… Soren thought, remembering what his own opinions were after initially reading the book. If it weren't for the fact that I had already experienced something similar, I would have never fully connected the dots…

During the events of the Crimson Ritual, Soren had to use his own willpower combined with Tazzith's to alter the very Orbits of Fate… If their Epoch Star's influence was governed by their own willpower, then it would indeed make sense that their anima was the root cause behind it… Without Tazzith's anima and the intertwining of their fate stars, Soren would have never been able to pull off something as miraculous as that.

In the same vein, why would that influence not extend to the Beyond itself? The Astral Anima was already influenced by the perception of those in this world… Was that not how the influence of an Abstract Rune grows? By making the very concepts that the Abstract Rune governs more popular… A shouting contest, in the most simple of terms.

And that perception would extend not just to the metaphysical concepts, but the physical as well. Everything that exists in nature was perceived differently by many people. That was why material runes shifted endlessly without pattern.

"I heard from Isha that the book was forbidden because a man in the tribe once pursued the ideas inside it to near obsession…" Myrin said plainly while flipping through its mired pages. "The others in the village didn't understand his ramblings. After his death, they ordered the book to be hidden so that the youth would not get corrupted by its ideas."

Soren shook his head, "Absurd."

"But they weren't exactly wrong, Soren." Myrin looked up from the book. "Influencing the Beyond to represent something in the way you desire it to is not something any one person can achieve. Even if the theory is right, Astral Anima is made up of the willpower of billions of lifeforms. That means that our thoughts alone cannot contribute to what is represented… How can your willpower compete with that of an entire world?"

"But it's possible." Soren said stubbornly. "In a way, am I not already fooling those around me? My illusions are that hard to perceive. And there are others who have Soul Weapons who could achieve the same thing. Cassia is one example. Another could be that one dream puppet Silmar controlled in Yadria… He was able to recreate his Soul Realm inside the Beyond to fool me."

He stood up from the bed and stretched. "Besides, I never actually was planning on changing the Beyond. I simply hoped that with enough willpower, I can simply nudge it into manifesting the material runes I need… Whether I will have enough willpower to achieve is a moot point. With enough time, I can continue to amass enough anima within the Heartdrinker Sigil to achieve it.

"[Hemomantic Transmutation] allows me to convert my own blood into anima for later use. And there doesn't seem to be a limit either." Soren chuckled. "Maybe we can even use this as backup for when the Blossom Sword Flower shows up."

Just as he said that, he felt the air around him shift… As if the chilling winds had turned sharper than blades. A sensation of drowning in a pit of swords, all clinging to his flesh overwhelmed him.

"This is…" Myrin said dryly. It seems even he had sensed it.

Suddenly, the door behind them to their room swung open. A black haired girl frantically entered inside—her breaths leaving stains in the air. She glanced at the both of them with a somewhat panicked expression.

"Isha. What's wrong?"

Biting her lips, she hesitated to answer. A bead of sweat traced down her cheek as she drew in a ragged breath, as if steadying herself for what she was about to say. Her gaze snapped toward them—wide-eyed with both fervor and terror. With a slight tremble, Isha finally uttered her reply:

"She has arrived…"

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