Foreboding

The grimoire swung her legs back and forth like a kid, wearing the same frilled black dress and shoes with roses on them. “You live such an interesting life, for a noble.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Lawrence raised one eyebrow as he began relaxing his muscles.

“Usually, all the rich and pretentious live essentially the same. Look down on each other, flaunt their wealth and status, etcetera, etcetera—but you actually care about those around you. I don’t see that often.”

Lawrence attempted to sense the ambient mana Jacob was talking about during his trial explanation, but paused to reply to his grimoire.

“That may be true, but I know there are others like me who think and act the same. You have to look harder. I’m nothing special.”

“I'm not so sure of that.”

“What?” Lawrence asked, considering asking her to leave him be so that he could concentrate on his training.

“Are you sure you’re a noble?” She spoke in a higher-pitched tone, as if alluding to something. She had a smug look on her face as she continued to swing her feet.

“What do you mean?” He opened his eyes, skeptical of the Scarlet Oracle’s intentions.

“The vibe you give off is…is like a commoner, or a middle-class worker. You’re a lot more humble than the far too few philanthropists that reside here.”

Does she know? Or are her assumptions just based on how I act?

Lawrence opened his eyes and looked at her, who was acting nonchalant. He concealed his suspicion as he continued to watch the grimoire. He wondered if she was just nosy.

Not wanting to delve further, he closed his eyes again, exhaling as he attempted to absorb ambient mana again. Surprisingly, the Scarlet Oracle was quiet during this. But he was no closer to sensing the ambient mana even during the brief tranquility.

“Just curious, can all grimoires transform like you?” He asked, taking another brief break.

“Of course not. The only ones I’m aware of in my lineage are the Progenitors. Even fewer are sentient. That’s what sets us apart from other grimoires.” The Scarlet Oracle explained.

Makes sense, I’d imagine it would take an exceeding amount of mana and magic manipulation to create an artificial consciousness that’s sentient.

“So, most grimoires are just enchanted books?”

“Exactly.” She snapped her fingers and winked at him, ecstatic that he understood quickly.

“I see.” He cleared his throat, resuming his training, even if it felt like he was wasting his time.

“What are you doing?” She asked, hopping off the desk and circling Lawrence curiously.

“Active Mana Cultivation.”

“Really? You don’t know how to do that?” She bent over and rested her face on her hands, her elbows on her knees, as she stared at him.

Despite having little practice attempting the technique, her remark slightly irritated Lawrence as it sounded like she was downplaying something even a child could do.

“It’s actually pretty difficult to accomplish.” He retorted, opening his eyes again to glare at her.

“I wouldn’t have known since Ash did it in his sleep while on the battlefield.” She yawned, making Lawrence exhale sharply, unaware of her taunt towards him.

Eva’s brother is a Paladin. Perhaps he can do it. I should find the time to visit.

“Why don’t you help me then, grimoire?” Lawrence asked in annoyance, attempting to ignore the grimoire’s usual antics.

“Fine, fine, I’ll even give you a little boost.” She conceded, moving behind him and placing both of her hands on his back gently.

“Now, do exactly as I say.”

After carefully listening to her instructions, Lawrence cleared his mind of all thoughts and attempted to feel for the presence of ambient mana. He cleared all of his senses to the point that he wasn’t registering stimulation in his body, making him feel numb.

“As you know…” She spoke softly, almost in a whisper.

“Every living thing that has mana in its body has a unique frequency. Your soul replenishes your mana in sync with your magical frequency.”

He could feel her small hands moving methodically to different parts of his back, which made him a bit anxious, but he tried my best to keep his thoughts clear.

“To gather the ambient mana, you have to distort your frequency and allow your soul to bring it in.” She continued.

“You mean to lose my sense of self?” He asked, concerned by her words.

“In a way, yes, if you’re not careful, you can fall prey to the madness that exists all around us. That’s why we must take things extremely slowly, so your frequency isn’t corrupted.”

Despite her enigmatic nature, he trusted her enough to know what she was doing, but it still made him a bit overwrought. He didn’t want to succumb to such a sinister force of nature when he’d only lived this second life for such a short time.

Now, how do I let go of myself?

The question was more complicated than it sounded. Lawrence assumed it was a result of what he was already doing. He couldn’t feel anything in his body or even the grimoire’s hands.

Closing his eyes once more, he inhaled slowly. His breath was shaky as he exhaled, but he was confident he wouldn’t go mad.

I’ve read multiple accounts of mages during the Age of Darkness and even now, where they’ve gone mad, hearing voices, seeing things that aren’t there…I hope that doesn’t become me…

“Active Mana Cultivation is categorized by most as archaic magic, since it requires succumbing to nature.” She explained, still pressing her hands against his back.

“Not just physically or mentally, but spiritually too?” He asked for confirmation.

“That’s the most important part. Your spirit must be one with nature, is probably the best way I can put it.”

He nodded his head, processing what she said and keeping his eyes closed. Her explanation was similar to the process of enacting a perfect atral projection. Letting oneself go from the material world and allowing the spirit to become one with the next dimension.

After about ten minutes, Lawrenced blocked out every sensation to the point where he couldn't even hear the grimoire anymore. He could only mentally envision darkness, unaffected by any outside factors.

Faint flashes of blue appeared in his mind. He tried to focus on them, but they were difficult to keep track of. He could hear very faint whispers in the distance of the dark space, which made him sweat a bit, but he continued.

Then, there were more flashes of varying colors. They were slow in recurrence but gradually accelerated until hundreds of flashing colors overstimulated Lawrence's mind, as the whispers grew louder. Nothing of what was being said made sense. The whispers spoke in gibberish, or perhaps an old, unknown language.

Lawrence could feel himself slowly start to lose grip as a sharp pain from his groin shot out to all parts of his body, jolting him awake as he yelped in shock, and the images ceased to appear. At the same time, the Scarlet Oracle did the same as she fell back and caught herself before falling to the ground.

She clutched her forehead in pain as Lawrence looked down at his shaky hands. A lingering, vibrating sensation remained in his forearms as his senses returned. Certain parts of his body ached from the shock of pain as he rubbed his arms, trying to mend them.

“What…was that?” Lawrence looked back at the grimoire without an answer. He had no idea what it was himself.

The whispering sounded chaotic, disconcerting, or perhaps even foreboding… Is this Madness?

“I think we should take a break.” She got up, dusting off her dress, although he noticed her legs were a bit shaky, most likely from the feedback of his magic frequency connecting with her.

“Yeah, I think that would be best.”

Lawrence got up and took a couple of steps toward the door before stopping. He glanced back at the enigmatic box briefly before leaving for the night. The grimoire returned to her spiritual form and left him alone with his aching thoughts.

Is it such a good idea to be messing with forces beyond my understanding just because Lawrence’s father told me to?

He pondered the thought. If he could master active mana cultivation, he would be a lot more potent than most mages, accelerating his journey to the Divine Tower.

But at what cost…?

A sudden feeling of sleepiness crept up on Lawrence, forcing a yawn. He took the door key from his pocket and locked the door behind him as he headed up to his room.

Dong…dong…dong…dong…

Lawrence looked out of his window through the thin curtains when he noticed the faint sound of heavy bells ringing in the distance. Out of curiosity, he parted the curtains and opened the window to listen to the bells more attentively.

From the second floor of the mansion, he could see the shadows of several knights and police officers running through the visible streets, holding lamps as they made their way towards the main cathedral.

That certainly can’t be anything good.

The Scarlet Oracle appeared again, staring out of the window next to him, her face filled with concern. “When the bells ring, it means something grave has happened…”

Curiosity and ennui caught Lawrence. Since it didn’t immediately affect him, he was sure it could wait until tomorrow.

“I’m sure we’ll find out what it is later.” He collapsed on his bed and fell asleep instantly. Unable to take off his dirty clothes, he snored softly as more yelling in the distance echoed throughout the city.

----

The ominous bells of the main cathedral of the Agarian Church rang out across the capital city, as a great commotion echoed in the distance.

“It’s done, master.” The man encased in the night’s shadows reported.

“And what of the Nightblood?” The figure in the gray cloak asked menacingly.

“It seems it’s most effective on the Church’s apostles, who so devoutly worship their Principle.” The unknown person the figure was speaking to responded.

“Good, I can take this back to the rest. Continue to distribute the Nightblood and dispose of the Blackwood child if he’s a hindrance.”

“Of course, master.” The man, enveloped in shadows, complied, but he was fidgeting as if he had something else on his mind.

“What is it?” The cloaked one asked.

“With this mission, I shall receive a grimoire?”

The former didn’t speak for several seconds as they stared at each other in the darkness.

“Yes, but only should you find a vessel for our Lord. Then you shall receive your grimoire and a seat at the table with us.” They replied with a sinister smile.

“Thank you for this clarification, master.”

“Continue to distribute the Nightblood to the Agarian clergy and their worshippers. We must find one holy enough to accept the Nightblood. Our time of reckoning nears.”