Yuzu's heart skipped a beat.

Yuzu was completely caught off guard by her friend's sudden appearance. Her first instinct was that Char Char didn't have a fate thread, but after the shock wore off she saw that this was not the case.

It's not that she doesn't have a fate string, it's just extremely faint.

Yuzu realized after a moment. Char Char's smoky black string had already been more faint than other strings on the tapestry, similar to Firuzeh and Kai's strings. However now it was extremely thin and wispy, like a single strand of spider silk floating amongst hundreds of golden threads.

"What's wrong?" Char Char immediately caught Yuzu's hesitation.

Yuzu could see from Char Char's expression that she likely understood that it had something to do with Yuzu's powers. The sharpness of her friend's intuition surprised her— but thinking about it, since Yuzu had returned she had been noticing that Char Char was a lot more thoughtful and aware than before.

The past few months had indeed changed both of them immensely.

For a brief moment Yuzu considered making an excuse, but she thought better of it and simply replied, "You're much stronger now."

She didn't need to phrase it as a question, it was an obvious conclusion to come to.

"Whatever you did in the fight… Afterwards— well… how do I say it?" Char Char thought for a moment, "Firuzeh said I've advanced to Adept, or something."

"Adept?" Yuzu narrowed her eyes at her friend. Char Char gave a nonplussed shrug in return.

"That's what she said." Char Char frowned, "I mean, I

feel

stronger. Like, a

lot

stronger. And faster. And… I can also do some crazy things with fire now. I think. I mean, I haven't tried it but I just have this feeling— do you know what I'm talking about?"

Yuzu pondered Char Char's words, mulling over her friend's progression. In order, the mortal Exalted ranks were Candidate, Apprentice, Disciple and Adept. This was the same rank as the Cloud Peak Monastery's Abbott, Deacon Glass. Was Char Char really at that level now? Yuzu found it hard to comprehend.

As for the impetus behind Char Char's ascension, had the Chaos demi-girl really handed her an Adept level

sarira

? If that were the case…

"It's not impossible…" Yuzu said after a moment.

When advancing in Exalted ranks, there were two main methods. The most common way was to use spiritually compatible ingredients to craft a catalyst. The second way was to use a sarira from the same pathway as the recipient.

Sarira

ascension was generally considered a very safe method if the pathway matched exactly, but even then there were still risks due to subtle incompatibilities between the

sarira

's energy and the recipient's exact planar body makeup. Everyone's bodies were slightly different, after all, and

sarira

retained some of the life force from the Exalted that they had formed from.

If it were only one rank and the recipient was healthy, the method was nearly without risk. Two ranks, and there might be some difficulties but still within the realm of reason. However ascending three ranks or more in one shot required other factors, as a person's body would simply not be able to handle such a massive amount of energy.

If the

sarira

wasn't Char Char's pathway, she wouldn't have been able to absorb it at all without first turning it into a catalyst. So it must have been from Char Char's Rebel pathway. However the violent reaction that Char Char experienced certainly seemed out of proportion if the

sarira

was only an Apprentice or Disciple level…

"Does it have something to do with this thing you put on me?" Char Char asked, pulling out the emerald brooch from under her blouse. She had clearly been waiting for the right moment to ask about it.

Yuzu nodded, recalling her last ditch effort to save her friend, "This amulet has the power to strengthen the body and spirit of its wearer. It was able to siphon the excess energy away from you and save you from harm."

She paused, her eyes glimmering as she took the amulet in her hands and pondered the mechanisms behind it. Even though the amulet was concealed by Char Char's passive Chaos aura, once Yuzu came into physical contact with it, its golden string burst to life.

The amulet had stored the excess energy within itself and was slowly releasing it to Char Char in a controlled manner. From the golden thread she could see that it currently formed a tight bond with Char Char. Removing it before the energy had all been released would cause her energy to go haywire and result in a disaster. Similarly, attempting to use one of her new, powerful skills would likely cause the amulet to become overloaded and shatter.

"Don't take it off for now." Yuzu gave the warning to her friend, "The energies still need time to settle. Until then, you probably shouldn't exert too much of your new abilities either."

She purposefully spoke with a certainty that gave the impression that she had everything under control. And for the most part, Yuzu was pretty certain that her words were correct. Renshu had previously explained the Sun God Amulet's powers to her, stating that it would be useful for Yuzu to strengthen her own body for the inevitable fight against Akahi's will, but who could have guessed that the benefactor would be Char Char?

The fact that the amulet was able to save its wearer from the overflowing energies of ascension already showed its value. Thinking about it, the amulet probably was created for this exact purpose— After all, the Guru-chi were raising their

oji

to be the Sun God's successor. That

oji

would have to be as strong as possible, and they would have to ascend the Exalted ranks at an accelerated rate.

"But it's so clunky and uuugly!" Char Char protested as she looked down at the brooch.

"You're wearing a god-level artifact crafted by the God of Craftsmen. Are you actually complaining about its appearance?" Yuzu groaned.

"He's obviously not the God of Fashion then, is he?" Char Char sighed with a disgusted look, "How long do I have to wear it?"

"I don't know. Does it matter?" Yuzu said, frustration building in her, "Would you rather die?"

"Well, obviously not." Char Char tucked the amulet under her blouse as she sunk into a sulk, mumbling something under her breath.

"What was that?" Yuzu snapped.

"Nothing!"

"Hmm???"

"I said I wouldn't be caught DEAD wearing it, either!"

"If you hate it so much, then give it back!" Yuzu finally had enough as she lunged forward and grabbed the chain with both hands, yanking it up to take it off Char Char's head.

"Ah! No!" Char Char immediately clung to the amulet and pulled it back down as her spiritual intuition gave off a sharp alarm, "Stop, stop! Yuzu! You'll break it, you'll really break it!"

"Well, you two are certainly lively." Firuzeh's voice chimed in from the doorway as she gave a perfunctory knock to announce her arrival.

The two girls froze in position as they glanced over to the doorway. Yuzu had half-risen from her kneeling stance with one foot on the bed. Char Char, standing at the edge of the bed but leaning away. Both girls firmly grasped the amulet's chain with both hands in the tug of war that had the brooch halfway off Char Char's head.

The next moment Yuzu was sitting elegantly on the side of the bed with her hands clasped in her lap. Char Char was on the chair next to the bed, facing away innocently.

"Naomi is on her way up." Firuzeh said, glancing at each of them with a stoic expression. Her gaze lingered briefly on the amulet, which Char Char quickly stuffed back under her shirt— it was likely that Naomi wasn't aware of, or at least not fully privy to, the important nature of the relic on Char Char's neck, "Can I get anything for either of you before she arrives?"

"Some tea, please." Yuzu said.

Char Char simply nodded, and Firuzeh closed the door gently as she departed for the ground floor.

Alone for the moment, Yuzu shot a piercing glare at Char Char, who kept her face turned away to avoid the gaze. The tension remained as Yuzu tidied up the mess on the bed, wrapping the various coins and items back into the bundle before others arrived.

Before long they heard the sound of footsteps ascending the stairs. There was a knock at the door and Yuzu called for Firuzeh and Naomi to enter. The Nature Priestess was still dressed as she was before, in earthy robes with yellow and green embroidery. She hadn't participated in the battle, and so was no worse for wear, though she looked a little worn out.

She's been caring for me closely for the past three days.

Yuzu discovered through Fate Cycling.

Yuzu's physical injuries were bad enough, but that wasn't the worst of it. In addition to the wounds dealt by the Corrupted One directly, the backlash from the corrupted strings and the burns from the fires of Char Char's ascension had left mortal wounds on Yuzu's aetheric and spiritual bodies.

The severity of her injuries was such that even with Naomi's earnest efforts, they were unsure whether she would recover. Without Naomi, Yuzu might really have died. Furthermore Char Char, Firuzeh and Kai all had various injuries from the battle, which they had quickly recovered thanks to Naomi.

Yuzu attempted to gather more information, however due to the interference from Char Char and Firuzeh's Chaos presence in the conversation she was unable to read too deeply. Still, the change in attitude and the sincerity in the Nature Priest's actions left Yuzu feeling a bit touched.

"Miss Xing," Naomi bowed her head respectfully, addressing Yuzu for the first time by name, "It's good to see you awake. How are you feeling?"

"Just fine, thank you." Yuzu nodded.

"I'm glad to hear that, you might still feel pain or weakness but the fact that you're sitting up right now is a positive sign." Naomi said, crossing the room. She motioned to a spot beside Yuzu, "May I sit here? I had some special healing tonic delivered from Yuka Village especially for your hands. Your physical body has healed well but this will greatly nurture your planar bodies."

Yuzu let the priest sit beside her, cooperating with Naomi.

"May I see your hands? Let me see how well you're faring… Eh?" Naomi gently took Yuzu's hands into her own, but her calm expression suddenly turned to concern, "This can't be right…"

"What's wrong?" Char Char asked, eyebrows knitting together in worry.

"This… Miss Xing, are you masking your health in some way?" Naomi couldn't think of any explanation and so after a moment, asked this strange question.

"No." Yuzu said simply, already aware of the way this conversation was going.

"Then how…"

"I said I was fine, yes?" Yuzu smiled mysteriously, "I seem to have made a miraculous recovery, no doubt in large part thanks to you."

The words of gratitude were genuine, but hearing them didn't clear anything up for Naomi. Her powers were telling her that Yuzu's body was perfectly healthy and in balance. But given the extent of Yuzu's injuries, and the limited care that Naomi was able to provide, there was no way that this was possible!

The existence of the porcelain jar was, of course, a secret, so Yuzu had no reason to offer any explanation. Instead she stood up, bowing to Naomi, "For the help you have offered me and my companions, you have my gratitude."

This token of sincerity caused Naomi to respond with a flurry of action. To the surprise of everyone else except Yuzu, she dropped to her knees on the floor and bowed deeply to Yuzu.

"No, it is I who am truly thankful!" Naomi said emphatically,

"Blessed of the White Maiden, pray accept my deepest apologies!"

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