Chapter 124: Another gift from the Divine (2)

Rested and healed, Rainer headed downstairs with Luna sleeping in his hair. He prepared himself for the eventual questions he’d face after recent events. Despite the readiness, Rainer nearly stumbled when a blue-haired little Fairy hugged him.

After a few seconds of squeezing as hard as she could muster, the fairy let go.

“Did I do it correctly?” Sasha asked.

“Do what correctly?”

“A hug. I am unfamiliar with such a thing. It seems quite silly, but Maya suggested it would be a proper way of demonstrating my gratitude. Especially since it’s not something Fae often do. Did my feelings come across?” she asked with beaming eyes into the nearly foot taller Rainer.

Unsure of what was happening, Rainer at the very least didn’t want to disappoint those obscenely shining blue eyes.

“They got across very well.“

“That’s good then,” Sasha nodded before entering the room Rainer was just heading towards.

“Well, at least there’s another of the rare few Fae I have a good opinion of… Why are all the Fae I like so strange, Luna? Does it say something about me?” He asked the sleeping Fairy in his hair, and only got a light snore in response.

--

Entering the room filled with various couches and sofas around a central table, Rainer sat beside Kara. He soon realized that, added on to the complete lack of conversation, everyone was staring at him.

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“Yeah…?”

“Sorcerer, what was that thing?” Gunthar asked.

“Thing? You mean you could see whatever it was?” That was new. Perhaps he could get Kara to share her memories of it with him. The new spells Maya gifted certainly allowed for such a thing.

Hesitantly, most of those present nodded, though Amer did some strange wiggling with his beard tentacles. Tucking away that weird body language for later, Rainer continued.

“Well? What did it look like? I’m guessing it was behind me.”

Rainer waited for answers and was instead met with silence.

“Ah well,” Gunthar said moving a hand across the back of his skull, “I’m not sure. It was as if it was both there and not. A presence of death and darkness of the likes I have never seen.” He turned serious, “For a brief moment I thought I was to fall to a true death.”

“It was a Divine,” Rainer answered, only adding to the silence of the room. Completely ignoring the mood however, he continued, “but I’ve already solved that problem. I just need to use my version of [Mana Presence] during the healing. Then the annoying meddling bastards who keep bothering me won’t be able to see what I’m healing. Well, I don’t mind if they bother me on occasion. After all, this coat and being able to see a technique like that, I’d say it was worth it.”

Most experienced with the shock of dealing with Rainer, Gunthar opted to move the conversation before anything else.

“We have begun planning our raid on the Blood Soul guild. I imagine you wish to do this with the issue of healing Akhor’s resolved.”

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Kara’s glare at Gunthar over how easily the whole topic was brushed aside was ignored.

Maya nodded before continuing, “The Guild itself is underground and hidden by some powerful illusion magic. Even if you know where it is, you’ll just get lost walking in circles unless you are keyed in to enter. I figured I could head in first, and sabotage the magic long enough for you all to rush in.”

“I can’t say that’s a bad idea, but can’t I just drop the illusion the same way I do to your glamours?”

Maya looked at him before opting to test it herself. She disappeared in a Glamour. Her skill in mind magic meant hers was quite stronger than average.

“Count to 30 and give it a go,” She added before silently moving elsewhere in the room. And then standing completely still, reinforced it with all her Mana and Magic. Even the powerful assassin wasn’t this well-hidden. At least, while moving.

A casual [Arcane Presence] appeared across the room for only a brief moment as Maya was revealed.

Perhaps underestimating the skill’s new strength, Rainer was left with the sight of both Fae’s pale faces and the renewed silence that was present when he first entered the room. And having just experienced a similar pressuring force, the group was far more susceptible than usual.

And soon the stunned silence turned to glares, apart from Kara, who looked she wanted to drag him back upstairs.

“Sorry?”

--

“What do you mean you don’t know how to track a Soul?” Amer asked, “You have told me you knew [Soul Detection].”

“And?” Rainer questioned, not seeing the relation between the two.

After grumbling something that sounded like ‘irritating [Archon],’ Amer spoke again.

“The first thing I taught my students after they learned the [Devil’s Soul Language] and eventually the [Faraan Runic Language] was Soul Tracking. The spell itself isn’t particularly difficult, and it primes someone to later learn [Soul Detection], something all but required to make true progress with [Devil’s Soul Language]. It is quite difficult to attack something you can’t even tell exists.”

Rainer nodded as the Devil continued to explain the spell itself and write its formula for all the people in the room. Furtak and Theodore sought to learn this spell so that when they separated, they could call for Rainer to appear at will and communicate otherwise if needed, which was another spell of a similar variety.

Sending actual messages over a link between Souls, however, was impossible without the [Devil’s Soul Language] or a similar medium, as far as Amer was concerned. Which meant Furtak and Theodore were only learning simpler ones, such as ‘help’.

As the communication, Rainer and Theodore had set up using Luna as a medium? Theodore had decided, with Elru’s help, to become her undead rendering that prior method with Luna as a medium moot.

While not a user of magic, she was old enough to have once thought to learn not only Body Enchantment but also magic. Which meant she already knew the [Faraan Runic Language].

The pair planned to practice it until she could bind Theodore to her. The end result would mean he’d have full access to his Mana, and they’d no longer be as vulnerable without the rest around.

They had split up soon after confirming the plan to raid the Blood Soul Guild. Rainer would crack apart the illusion with his [Arcane Presence], and at the same time issue a warning to flee. And then Amer, Furtak and Rainer would bombard randomly for a few seconds before finally hitting the actual Guild.

From there they’d casually charge in with the hope that anyone truly smart or dangerous chose to flee. They had little doubt that a guild of dark mages would have escape tunnels. And that Rainer’s recently obtained [Arcane Revelation] on top of Theodore’s and Amer’s expertise would deal with any traps left.

“Looks easy enough,” Rainer remarked seeing the simple formula. Amer had mentioned he used this spell to teach.

And so, the group went to practicing the otherwise harmless spell.

--

In the dark of night, a group of eight flew to the doom of others. Rainer led the group, carrying everyone with [Eldritch Flight]. Amer, Furtak, Theodore, Maya, Gunthar, Kara, and finally Luna, who was hiding in his jacket. Lilia stayed back with Laneth and Elru on guard with stronger members of Laneth’s family. No reason to risk her being used as a hostage.

It also helped that Rainer had applied the tier 1 Mana-type spell, [Soul Trace] on her. Though in a surprising move, she was able to not only feel the connection but communicate through it. He knew he’d have to see just what she was capable of with that Soul Affinity of hers sometime soon.

It left Rainer little concern for her safety as he could Void-walk across the connection.

Once they learned of his success with healing Akhor’s sickness, Prince Laneth’s father had been over-accommodating with any request, even when he found out the spell was useless for anyone other than Rainer.

Rainer imagined no longer having the fear of catching such a deadly disease, or seeing your loved ones fall to it, was a huge weight off his back. And Yulia’s claims of the Courts having a method to heal it? Completely false, at least as a whole. They simply hid away members of their courts afflicted by it, or in other words, exiled them.

Matheus’ treatment at having been born without Mana was more than enough to show what the Fae thought of those afflicted with Akhor’s sickness.

They arrived on top of rolling hills in a wide open plain. A few trees were scattered about, but otherwise there was nothing of note for miles in every direction.

“It’s here,” Maya said.

Wordlessly affirming their plans, Rainer stepped forward. Careful not to include his party members in the skill, a world of violet erupted out over the quiet plain.

With a large fluctuation of magic, the illusion over the entrance of the guild shattered as if a giant screen of glass breaking. All that was left was a simple tower leading to the massive underground base. And all that was left for Rainer to do was to put a righteous fear into its inhabitants.

“Judgement comes for you!” A booming voice laced with Arcane echoed out, “Be returned to the wretched shadows from whence you came.”

And with a wave of his hand, the trio of mages brought forth destruction. The once peaceful plain of grass and its solitary tower falling to a storm of Arcane and Fire.

--

“They all really ran?” Rainer questioned. After all but obliterating the entrance and then using [Terra Manipulation] to clear it out, they carefully entered the underground base.

“There are dark mage hunters in the north, you know. And not every Mage Guild is as bad as the Skyborne to facilitate Dark Guilds in their territories. Most mages hate them. After all, one of the best sacrifices involves stealing the talent of young children to improve one’s own. During youth they aren’t as... attached, to their magic,” Maya added. Being Yulia’s liaison with this guild she had overheard much over the years.

Rainer nodded, understanding how easy such a group was to hate. Though the pragmatic side of him believed those in power only cared that talent they could have added to their own forces was stolen. Growing up studying well-detailed history that spanned millennia took away a lot of faith in the goodness of any government if one paid enough attention. And with [Sleep Learning], Rainer’s memories were more permanent.

Any traps or enchantments were easily destroyed either through a direct [Arcane Energy Manipulation] or an application of [Arcane Presence].

The group finally came across a strongly enchanted vault. Noting with [Arcane Revelation] the numerous enchantments, some of which gave off a dangerous feel, he imagined that perhaps they hadn’t had time to open and empty the vault in their hasty retreat.

With but a push of Arcane energy, the steel door’s enchantments crumbled.

Amer behind him couldn’t help but let out a surprised whistle at the filled vault.

“Already I have no regrets for taking this journey with you,”

Rainer snorted, “You had no regrets the moment you went home with a Fairy after the festival.”

Amer merely ignored him as he went to divest centuries of knowledge from the vault. The [Archon] wasn’t wrong, but he wouldn’t confirm it for him.

Rainer himself left soon after, wanting to make sure the place was completely safe before he continued to explore the vault.

Though what he soon came across disturbed him deeply.

Kara walked in shortly after only to see Rainer moving bodies. What appeared to be a family were now lined side by side as Rainer hovered over them. Their necks had been cut and divested of blood for some ritual, though it seemed their coming had interrupted it.

Seeing Rainer in silent thought, she merely stood next to him.

“What are the traditions to bury them?” Rainer asked Kara.

“Most of the north has a moderate belief in the World Tree as their Divinity. Graveyards often have a tree in the center surrounded by graves.”

“We can use the one we saw in the plain,” Rainer said, taking them one at a time before Void-walking out of the room. It took only a few minutes with a manipulation of the earth to bury them at the largest tree in the area.

Rainer returned to find Kara in the same spot as before.

“A part of me wonders if I’m at fault for waiting so long to raid the guild…but yet another remarks that with all the worlds out there such a line of thinking is pointless. So then should I not bother with anyone because there are trillions of souls suffering just the same?”

“Isn’t Lilia proof of what you should do?” Kara asked.

“I suppose she is…”

It was self-satisfaction, he mused, to only save those you happened upon. To only help when it’s easy because you couldn’t bear the guilt of watching it happen and doing nothing. The fact that you could stay callous to the suffering of others so long as you didn’t see them. But if being self-serving could help at least one person like Lillia, Rainer didn’t care how it seemed.

Wasn’t it the privilege of the powerful to be as selfish as they wanted?

He wouldn’t drive himself to madness believing he had to use his power to save people. Void-walking allowed him to reach too many to remain sane.

“Let’s finish searching then,” Kara added as the two left the blood-stained room.