Chapter 182: What stares back?

Death, the ultimate mystery, casts a long shadow across the living. It is the one certainty; all that lives must too come to an end. But then a question is left unanswered.

What lies beyond the veil of mortality? Is there an afterlife, or is death the final end? Throughout the history of his world, philosophers, theologians, and ordinary people have grappled with these questions. Some believe in an afterlife, a continuation of consciousness in some form. It offers comfort, a sense that mundane existence transcends the physical realm. Others believe in reincarnation, the transmigration of the soul into another body. A cyclical view, thinking that life and death are part of a larger, eternal process.

Yet, there are those who believe that death is the end, that consciousness ceases to exist. In a way, this way of looking at things can be both daunting and liberating.

Mikoto never viewed himself as someone religious. Maybe it was due to his childhood that he could never believe in a 'higher power,' or maybe he would always have this viewpoint regardless of what he went through. He did not know what awaited him after death; the answer never interested him until now.

He followed after Guinevere, and the two walked in silence. Now clear of the destruction Lukas had caused, they were swarmed by lush trees and grass once more. The battle felt like a distant memory despite it occurring moments ago. To be honest, everything felt so distant at this very moment; he thought himself free of the Ancestor's words, 'a great Death,' her words rang clear in his mind.

"You seem to have something on your mind," Guinevere noted, no doubt due to his silence.

"It's nothing," Mikoto shrugged off, "So why did you want me to walk with you?"

"To have a little talk, undisturbed." She came to a halt, leaning against a tree, she folded her arms under her chest. At the same time, large glyphs expanded from her position, encompassing them both along with the general area.

("A ward spell to basically seal us off from the rest of the world. Meaning no one can listen in, this is even more advanced than the wards placed on that library back at the Academy,") Mikoto noted. "Quite the precaution," He wondered what kind of topic required these high-level wards.

"Well, I do not want to run the risk of them listening in," She vaguely clarified.

"Them?" Mikoto echoed.

"Ancestors, they're an unpredictable bunch after all." Her words confused Mikoto; they were brief, but she spoke of them as if she was aware of their core nature. She seemed oblivious to them in the meeting with the king, or was that merely an act? "Truth be told, I was aware of their existence prior to the attack on the capital," She revealed.

"Then why play coy back in the throne room? I'm sure the king would've appreciated more info," Mikoto pondered.

"Despite my position, I am not that loyal to Galadriel. And my knowledge of the Ancestors would not have helped the kingdom in any way. They hold vast power, power that would make any kind of plan useless." Guinevere explained, "Though for now I'll cut to the chase and be transparent with you."

"Be my guest," Mikoto gestured for her to begin.

"Well, you're quite strong, tales of your strength do you no justice," Her words were that of praise, but it did not seem like that to him. It was merely as if she was noting down a fact. "To defeat a bearer of a Divine Relic with such ease, not to mention not making use of magic or even Sabre's ability. I would like you to help me with a goal of mine."

"You seem plenty strong though; you'd even give me a hard time. Not to mention I can sense that connection, a Divine Beast, huh? You're packing some serious power." Mikoto hummed in interest; her quantity of mana dwarfed Lucinda's, and the sheer control and refinement surpassed his own. Adding in a Divine Beast at her control, and you'd get a seriously powerful opponent, "But if you need my help, then whatever your goal is must be serious."

"An apt deduction, this particular problem of mine requires thorough extermination," She emphasized, "The center of it you have already met, Aelfric, the Ancestor of Wisdom."

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[Galadriel]

[Capital City]

Tense. A simple term, and an apt one for how she felt. Time passed yet that feeling remained, the irksome feeling thick. Though it seemed it was only revolving around her, it was as if someone was watching her at every waking moment. But she could not gauge from where or even how. Saying it was unnerving would be an understatement. Her body was seemingly passively on high alert; she would have to thank the rigorous training the kingdom put her through for that.

Lucinda blinked, realizing she had been blacking out in her current conversation, her eyes locking onto the armored form of Mirabella and her friend, the horned girl in a black dress, Juliana was her name if she recalled correctly.

"Sorry, what?" Lucinda sheepishly questioned, Mirabella had been speaking for the last few minutes, but she only heard at least half of what the second princess said.

"Huh? You been spacing out? C'mon, I've been talking forever now." Mirabella huffed in annoyance, folding her arms beneath her chest. Juliana threw a wry grin at the scene.

"Mayhap Miss Lucinda has a lot on her mind?" Juliana offered an excuse; she could help but send the younger girl a smile of appreciation.

"Geez, you staying up late or something?" Mirabella questioned.

"Oh, nothing like that, it's just...it feels as though someone is watching me," She admitted with a strained smile.

Mirabella's eyes wandered around the marketplace; everyone's eyes were practically glued to Lucinda. Looking at her as if she were some foreign centerpiece, they seemed enthralled by her beauty. Some even seemed on the verge of approaching her. The princess could not help but scowl; some even wore lecherous looks. "Tch, there's a lot of people watching you, alright."

"I see that..." Lucinda shook her head with a small frown.

"You....you should pay them no mind, Miss Lucinda." Juliana meekly advised. "Usually when I get stared at so much, I like to focus on just one thing and ignore all else; maybe you can try?" The horned girl offered endearingly.

Lucinda took her advice; the annoying stares she attempted to ignore. The leering, the whispering, everything. She turned her mind elsewhere, looking for something to focus on. The festival, of course, it was already something on her mind, but her focus constantly drifted from it. Her last experience in the festival was something she would have much rather forget. But still, she would participate again, and thankfully it would be the last time.

She felt as though all the attention from the masses seemed so insignificant as of now. Especially when something as important as the festival loomed, Lucinda chuckled as she glanced at Juliana, "My, your advice worked like a charm."

A small but radiant smile adorned the younger girl's face. Such genuine and pure appreciation was welcomed, especially considering how rare it was, "N-no problem."

"Seems you're a natural at helping, huh?" Mirabella mused with a grin.

"Oh yes, my bad, you were speaking of something earlier, and I was not paying attention," Lucinda fiddled with her hair sheepishly as Mirabella waved her off.

"Eh, it's nothing serious. Just about Arcane Ascendance, I've been training with the headmaster, but things are annoyingly slow. I've only improved my mana barely; you got any advice?" The princess inquired as a pondering look adorned Lucinda's face.

"I might not be the best person to ask," Lucinda admitted, rubbing her chin in thought, "Mana training can be a hassle, but I've never truly made use of it. You'd be better off asking Victoria."

Mirabella huffed, "She acts all pompous like she knows everything. And like that stupid Mikoto, she started using 'Mira' too! Damn it, it's already annoying that my sister calls me that stupid nickname; now I got two more people doing the same."

Juliana seemed to want to chuckle at her misfortune but refined, "Mira is a cute nickname, though." She inputted, "It suits you." She finished with a smile.

"Hm, I sense that someone is talking about me," Before Mirabella could thank Juliana, a voice cut in, her eye twitched as she immediately recognized who it belonged to. The golden-blonde hair was distinctive even in her peripheral vision, as was the elaborate blue armor. "Hey there, Mira~" A teasing voice rang out.

"Tch, what the hell are you doing here?" Mirabella spat, already annoyed as she threw a glare at the spawn of the God of Knowledge and Alchemy, Victoria. The older girl shrugged, childishly twirling as a small smile graced her doll-like features.

"I'm here for you, Mira. Dear Aleister says you've been slacking," Victoria wagged her finger as if disappointed, "Tut, tut young lady you ought to know better."

"Don't you usually annoy that Solkari? Why don't you buzz off and go do that?" Mirabella harshly rebutted.

"Dear Fiona is on a training expedition with my dear Mikoto, I've no one else to tease. And your reactions are so fun~" Victoria shamelessly admitted as she turned to Juliana, "Ah, and Juliana correct? We met some time ago at the academy. You're still so adorable, I could just hug you now." She teased with a grin.

Juliana flushed at the comment, "Well-I..I'm not adorable," She denied, but her blushing only enforced Victoria's words.

"Don't sell yourself short, dear." Victoria advised with a small smile, "You-" She suddenly cut herself off, her nose twitched as she slightly narrowed her eyes. "My, what an odd smell."

"I don't smell anything, but there's a thick mana in the air." Lucinda noted, slightly tense. "Well, it does not seem harmful."

"I don't see or smell anything," Mirabella shrugged.

"Suppose we can pay it no mind," Victoria hummed out, "Now what are you three dilly-dallying for? You two usually strike me as the types that want to keep busy."

"Training is all I do these days," Mirabella huffed, "I have a life outside of that, so I decided to hang out with Juliana in the meantime."

"You seem rather relaxed in her presence," Victoria chuckled as she turned to Juliana, "My, what a feat, taming the wild Mira~"

"Wha-" Juliana seemed to be at a loss for words, Mirabella flushed at the jab.

"I ain't some wild animal!" The second princess exclaimed, drawing in some stares.

Lucinda suppressed a snort, Mirabella really was easily riled up.

"Uhm, I'm sure Miss Victoria meant nothing by it?" Juliana's squeaky voice seemed to attempt to do damage control.

"Blondie's pushing it, I prefer the other blondie. Hell, even mini blondie!" Mirabella folded her arms under her chest.

"That...that's a lot of blondies." Juliana could not help but note.

Lucinda chuckled, "Indeed, may-"

"Spawn of Octavia, a word." A voice suddenly cut in.

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The figures of Lyra and Aerinon shortened the distance as they approached the four girls, the latter trailing slightly behind. Lucinda sent the court mage of Verdantis a look of confusion; her eyes latched onto Aerinon, and familiarity sparked in them.

"You're...from last year's festival." Lucinda noted, the three behind her turning to the odd duo.

"Ah, an Inheritor. Aerinon I recall, the spawn of the God of Darkness." Victoria noted easily as if the knowledge was just awaiting to be spoken, "And you are the court mage of Verdantis, correct? Lady Lyra."

"You're well-informed it seems, makes sense considering you're Almeric's spawn." Lyra mused, coming to a halt in front of them. Aerinon seemed content on keeping his silence, merely glancing elsewhere. "But I am not here for mere pleasantries, spawn of Octavia, you are in danger." Lyra's serious words caused the aforementioned girl's brows to furrow.

"Danger? What do you mean?" Lucinda questioned, yet her mind already went elsewhere. She felt so on edge, even prior to this warning. The feeling of someone watching her every move, waiting for an opportunity to strike.

"Some-" Lyra cut herself off as an oppressively silence suddenly hung in the air. The bustling of the marketplace having suddenly ceased. A simple glance to their surroundings immediately provided as to why.

People all around stood frozen in place, their eyes wide as if entranced by something and their mouths agape. It was as if they were mere statues, their bodies unnaturally stiff and eerily so.

"W-what's going on?" Juliana stammered out, her form shrinking in apprehension. Mirabella stepped in front of the girl, her blue eyes narrowing.

"They're just frozen? But I didn't even see a spell activate." Mirabella's mana spiked, already on guard for what might come.

"It might have to do with that stench from earlier. These people may have inhaled something that's causing these reactions," Victoria deducted, immediately after a single applause followed.

"My little spell was only meant to ignore that filthy spawn of Octavia's. As well as Aegraxes and Aragorn's and dear Lyra." The applause silenced as a figure stepped forward, "That you should retain consciousness....you must possess a powerful mind."

Lyra's eyes narrowed into slits, a snarl escaped her as she took a tentative step forward, "Aelfric!"