A losing battle

Reminded of the topic of magic, Eliseline brought her Vasa out and tried to recreate the tool Savine made.

'Squashed sandpaper, steel in the middle, a tornado to spin it… and the whole thing connected through willpower.'

The first three things, Eliseline could create without problems. But when she tried to connect it all together, her mind couldn't help but steer towards logical, scientific phenomena that would solve the problem neatly.

She tried to do it the way Savine told her to, but every time she tried to, her mind would halt functioning.

Then, Eliseline tried to remember how Savine did it. She used the spell on Eliseline's Vasa, so the details of her work were clear in Eliseline's head. But even so, the process was odd. The three separate pieces were not connected with any scientific phenomena at all. They just hung there with nothing to support it, but they felt extremely sturdy and steadfast.

'It truly was magical…'

Every time Eliseline cast a spell, she knew what was going on. There was no confusion in the process. She was in control. But with Savine's spell overlapping with hers, it was almost like the girl was inside her brain, breaking things.

But that was a common thing to happen when she was with Savine. The girl knew everything and could do anything.

When Eliseline first interrogated Savine and decided to bring her into the Fest duchy, she was confident in being able to unmask the fraud in front of her, to strip off the lies surrounding her one by one.

God's Chosen? What a joke. Couldn't she find a better excuse?

Can't feel emotions? Savine was the most sadistic and the most mischievous person Eliseline met.

Deduced everything just by listening to the talks of merchants? She probably just bribed baron Yeltsin for the info.

One by one, Eliseline planned to destroy these lies. But only two weeks later, she realized that it wasn't Savine that needed to be on guard. It was her. 

More often than not, Eliseline often found herself in awe in Savine's presence. Everything she said and did were not something possible for the child she looked to be from the outside. Shows of mastery and wisdom far beyond even the wisest of sages that couldn't help but trip Eliseline's feet. 

The girl knew everything and could do anything. Even details of the Sovereignty, the mana tree, magic, life of nobility, all her new inventions. Things no 12-year-old girl from the Magicracy's lowrungs should know, but she could talk about them without end, and much better and fluently than any expert of the field.

If she looked like an elderly woman, with wrinkles covering her entire body, then perhaps it wouldn't have been that bad. 

But the contrast that Savine embodied was something that was impossible to ignore. It piqued Eliseline's curiosity regardless of what attitude she needed to have. Her job was supposed to be vigilant and skeptic, but more often than not, Eliseline found herself attentively listening to Savine's words.

For a long time, Eliseline made excuses and reasons for Savine's knowledge. She was raised secretly by nobles, she was favored by a passing Magi, she knew all the things she shouldn't know because she read them on a random letter that was lost in delivery.

But each time she made these reasonings, Eliseline knew they were the futile defenses of her pride. 

The seed that Savine planted in Eliseline's head had now fully grown. There was no need for Eliseline to wonder about who Savine was. Because she already knew the answer. 

'God's Chosen.'

When she first heard those words, Eliseline could only feel derision and disappointment. It was right after Savine gave out that exceedingly clever excuse for her calmness: that she couldn't feel emotions. It was a blatant lie and the later days they spent together proved it. 

But Eliseline couldn't help but respect the excuse. It was an extremely clever thing to say, because it very easily served as an excuse for almost anything.

Of course, it wouldn't have done anything good if Savine was tied to a bed with a torturer and his tools, but she already knew that Eliseline's side wanted her very badly. And that fact as well, Savine deduced by insulting the bishop to his face to see how Fest would react. 

But the thing that sold the lie the best was the fact that she kept her calm even with a knife to her throat. 

Seeing something like that, Eliseline felt respect for the child. 

But a bit of that respect was lost Savine insisted that she was indeed God's Chosen. Clearly, she was smart enough to think of a good excuse, and she was capable enough to act out the excuse. But to claim she had seen God... what was that?

Did she want to insist on the fact because they were going to a temple? Did she think that maybe she'll be able to climb higher if she claimed to be an agent of God? If that was the case, then Savine was sorely mistaken.

The temple acted in higher power's name, but the people in power there were all atheists. They were nobles who had lost their political power and were trying to get back into it somehow. And besides, everyone knew that the Sovereignty's temple was something that was created out of opportunism, rather than belief in the holy. 

The Founding Sovereign did not want to use the same system the Magicracy used when dealing with outside blood mages, to turn them into slave mages. 

Instead, he created the temple and had it adopt commoner mages into its ranks as priests. They would never be allowed enough power to become a threat, but they were allowed to escape the mana fevers they suffered from childhood, and unlike the Magicracy, they were treated with the respect they deserved as mages. 

And that difference in treatment was not without practical reason. It gave the country a better image, and more importantly it allowed the Sovereignty to poach some of the Magicracy's talents.

Due to all of these reasons, Savine clinging to the title of God's Chosen was only going to hurt her. 

Because of that, Eliseline was somewhat disappointed. She then also decided to keep a close eye on Savine, thinking that she was an ambitious snake 

Despite feeling disappointed, Eliseline ignored the poor excuse in consideration of Savine's previous reasoning. And it was true that they needed her very much. 

Thinking that they'll be able to wring out Savine's secrets bit by bit, Eliseline decided to bring her to the Sovereignty. What could happen?

But only two weeks passed and Eliseline was already... she didn't even know what. 

She was helplessly hooked by Savine. There was no other way to describe it. 

"Uhh, which shed exactly are we going to, madams?" the driver's voice broke her out of her daze.

Eliseline had a look around and realized they were in the middle of the northwestern side of the city.

"Keep going straight," she said. "It's at the very end of the city."

At that point, Savine also woke up. She yawned, looked around herself, sniffed something in the air, frowned and finally sighed. The 12-year-old was no longer there.

"I should sleep more while I still can afford to…" she murmured something weird under her breath.

As Savine was waking up, the carriage arrived at their destination. It was a well-off two-story house with a large, desolate yard and a big barn. Cows and horses could be seen in two smaller patches of land, with relatively fine grass, while the giant flock of sheep and goats could be seen grazing way out in the wild. Someone on a horse was headed to the sheep, most likely to steer them back home.

Since the flock was so big in number, about 300 heads, it was impossible to keep them inside a fence. They were let go to graze in the wild and were steered back to their home by the shepherd at around noon. Gradually, throughout the afternoon, they would trudge back home and sleep the night near their owners who could protect them from wolves.

Of course, not anyone could possess such great flock of sheep. In Fest city, there was only one family who had that privilege.

"Madam Eliseline!" a burly, bearlike man appeared out of the house. "Was wondering who was coming to our house in such fancy carriages! Ahaha! And who are these two ladies?"

"It's good to see you, too, Koni," Eliseline greeted friendlily. "We actually came to try a magic tool. It's a… brand that can increase the fertility of an animal, and-"

"If you brand a female animal's abdominal area, then the animal will be twice as likely to become pregnant and its offspring will be much healthier and vigorous as well. While if before, one in five lambs died from either malnutrition, disease, or exposure, then after all the mothers are branded, only one in twenty will end up dead."

"Not only that, the shear a sheep produces will become fluffier and healthier, the cows will give more milk and the horses will last longer on runs. And if that wasn't enough, the flock will become more immune towards all sorts of diseases and they'll react more smartly against wolves and other predators as well."

Even Zuri, who was carrying the brand looked at it with admiration.

"Woah, woah, calm down little girl," Koni laughed. "There can't be something so good, can it?"

Koni glanced at Eliseline, his gaze asking if he should take this seriously. Oddly, Eliseline found herself unable to answer. Obviously, all of it sounded fake, but at this point, it was hard not to trust her.

"If you don't trust me, then you can brand yourself," Savine suddenly said. 

"Uhhh… that's..."

"You'll be healthier in general, but more than anything, you'll feel extremely energetic. You'll sleep less, you'll be more focused, and your libido will be much higher than before. I'm sure your wife will be extremely pleased," she winked. "Though the effects will only last for a month or so."

"No, even with all that…"

"What."

Koni really looked willing. But of course, there was a problem.

"I mean, I guess all that's good and all, but I don't think I'm willing to let myself get branded just because of that…"

His eyes kept darting between Savine and Eliseline, but it was now filled with fear. 

Likely, he was thinking that he was being punished for some reason.

Savine cleared her voice.

"The branding will not hurt you whatsoever. You'll only feel cold metal to your abdomen. Since this brand's infused with mana, there's no need to heat it till it's scorching."

"What, really?"

Now, Koni looked convinced. If the brand had no downsides and only benefits, what reason would be there for Savine to lie?