Chapter 13. The Clocktower Mystery Pt.2

We make our way back to the clocktower for the tour. This time, though, we try to stick together and try to use a shortcut we found on the way back from the inn towards the school. This way, we avoid the throngs of people, just like what we did yesterday.

After we have found the entrance leading inside the clocktower, the oddly unpopulated place, we tried knocking again. This time, the clockmaster seems to have been waiting for us, as he answered the door quite quickly.

"Welcome! I apologize for my rudeness yesterday. I will try to make up for it today. Usually, people pay for a tour of the place, but I will let you take a tour for free. I hope that is enough, my kind guests," he exclaimed.

"It's our pleasure, sir. We are the Yttrancian division of section 1-3 from the school of mana," Jayde introduced us, as we entered the side building, which seems to be connected to the clocktower. It is a small house, but it serves as a resting quarter for the clockmaster. In it, is a desk and a few books on some old-looking shelves. The books seem to be about clockwork and how to repair the complex mechanisms. There are also books that seem to be about Kronius, the time god.

"Ah, pardon my rudeness. My name is Julian. I will be your guide for today and I am the clockmaster of the clocktower. As the name suggests, I am responsible for repairing the clock as well as maintaining the clock," he explained.

"Woaaaahh! How do you do that?," Mia asked, clearly astounded at Julian's responsibilities.

"I will explain it to you later when we check out the mechanism itself, my lady," he replied pleasingly, as he noticed the interest that sparked in our eyes.

Despite the tour we are going to experience shortly, we shouldn’t forget that we are here to investigate an assault. I am trying my best to keep my focus on the case. Although, it is also interesting to learn about how they keep their time. All of the time clocks are calibrated to match this very clocktower. The responsibility of the clockmaster is very important. Many people might lose their jobs if he doesn't set the time correctly every now and then.

The time in this world is different to that of my previous life. Although it is very straightforward to understand. Instead of twenty-four hours a day, the day is divided into three sections: the morning, the afternoon, and the night. Each section consists of four parts, each part is around 90 ticks. Each tick is equivalent to about a minute in my previous life.

Continuing our tour, Julian seems to lead us through a staircase that leads to a hall on the base of the clocktower. This is the first floor out of the three of the clocktower. This room features a painted wall about the first meeting of the gods, Morta and Kronius. It is a very beautiful painting that explains the creation of the lesser gods, including Gaia.

"This is a hall that was built first during the establishment of the clocktower, six-hundred-fifty-three years ago. This hall on the center, it shows the creation of the lesser gods. It was painted by Liornami Milafred, a revolutionary painter during his time. He introduced the renaissance of creating paintings that show the beauty of what is beyond Gaia. His view is still widely accepted until now." he explained. Liornami Milafred is indeed a pioneer of his own time. However, he did not explain that he was also one of the first to have written a book about Yttrancian incantations that can manipulate interactions with the stars. Although he never succeeded in creating a working incantation, many have tried to follow his footsteps, but so far, no one has been able to develop one that actually works. I read about this in a book somewhere in the library. "Do you guys know about the story of Morta and Kronius?" Julian asked.

"Yes, I do," I answered. This story was told to me by May every night when I was little. She seems to be very fond of the creation of the universe. Afterwards, I tried explaining the story:

Once upon a time, when there was almost nothing. Not even the grass, the clouds, the ground. Everything was black, or something that would explain it better, is that everything was nothing. Not entirely nothing though, there were two unfortunate entities. These entities seemed to be very close to each other but at the same time very far away. They couldn’t communicate with each other through words, even when they screamed at each other. It is like having to know that there is a person beyond the wall but not being able to know how they look nor being able to hear them. These two entities are called Kronius and Morta. Kronius is a man, well built, and very precise. He seems to be very strict but at the same time, he desires flexibility. Morta is a beautiful woman, she is very flexible and loving, but she desires sternness. The two of them did not fully understand what to do, but they sensed each other. They knew that beyond the dimensions of physicality, there must be a place where they can meet. They desired each other, they wanted to know what lies beyond what they have seen so far: nothing. To try to get the attention of Kronius, Morta started to sing in a beautiful tone. Her tone expanded through different spaces but never actually reached Kronius. Kronius tried telling his poetry that could reach through the past, present, and future, but was never actually heard by Morta. It seems that the two of them had already given up, but one day when they felt like nothing could be done. They both wished that they wanted to just see and touch each other. Kronius wanted to touch the ever-vast space of Morta. Morta wanted to touch the ever-winding time of Kronius. At this moment, their loved aligned. At this alignment of their love, they finally saw each other. This is when they learned how to love. After this discovery, they tried touching each other. But the moment they both touched hands, an explosion occurred. . .

"Explosion?" Mia interrupted, her face in shock.

"Yes, an explosion that was so big and vast. An explosion similar to that of a cannon but a million times stronger, no, even stronger! This is when they realized their love for each other. They started to create the lesser gods, spreading their wisdom through them. One of these lesser gods is Gaia. This is where we are now." I finally finished the story. It seems that Mimi, Jayde, and Julian were listening carefully.

"I am very impressed with your knowledge, good sir!" Julian was surprised. It seems that not everyone actually knows the story. For me, it was just a bedtime story, though.

"Not going to lie, I am impressed as well," Mimi exclaimed, trying to squeeze in a compliment for me.

"That story makes me want to cry! I need to eat lots later," Jayde said, almost sobbing.

"I really love the part about the explosion!!," Mia said while actioning a big explosion with her hands.

"Why don't we continue with our tour, my companions?," Julian exclaimed. He leads us back to a stairwell on the other side from where we came from. This goes for a little bit further up, as the ceiling of the main hall also seems to be very tall.

The second hall is a little bit smaller than in the first hall. This one shows the mechanisms of the clock. It seems that the mechanism is made of steel and other metal. I cannot help but be mesmerized by the sound of the clock, elegantly ticking. Although I can imagine that the sound could be interrupted by the bustling amounts of people during the day. This room has no special paintings, but the clockwork of the tower makes it just as special.

"This here, my kind friends, is the mechanism of the clock," as he pointed at the structure.

"Woahh!!! It's so beautiful!," Mia said, again shook by the beauty of such a piece.

"Yes, my lady! This incredible piece of human achievement is made by the great Loumia Grania, one of the ancestors of the current royal family. It is said that Loumia Grania was a prodigy and was very good at creating mechanisms. Although she wasn't a Kraeka, she made a lot of inventions during her prime. Although she never raised to be a queen, her achievements are enough to deserve her spot in the history books. She is also revered by some as a national hero, mostly by Kraekan manipulators, who take inspiration for her creativity," Julian explained. It seems that Mimi already knows about this piece of history as she stood there proud with her chest straight and high. Jayde and Mia seem to have been shaken by this piece of information. They were about to say something, but I signaled that we have to keep our actual names hidden.

The mechanism itself features different sizes of gears circling each other. It is almost hypnotizing to follow all of the gears.

"Isn't it a beautiful sound? I like sitting here all day, listening to the sound of gears clanking and clinking at each other as they hit the teeth of other gears. The clock has never been broken before, but I am here to add oil at times. This keeps the clock running smoothly. And at the corner over there," Julian pointed of what seems to be a coil of rope, "is where I wind the clock every few weeks." Julian seems to be very proud of his job.

"Woah! How long does it take you to wind the whole thing?" Jayde asked.

"It doesn't usually take long, but at times it takes just about ten ticks to fully wind it back up," Julian answered.

After a while, Julian invites us to visit the third and final floor. This floor is open-air, from here, you can see the vast kingdom of Dirya as well as beyond the city walls. Near the western wall, where I first entered the city, the school seems to be the biggest, if not the largest structure in the area. From this point, I can see all of the winding halls that I walked through. The towering library, at the eastern end of the school, as well as the branch-like structure of the Division houses section. I can totally see the white walls of the school as well as the blue roof before me. The royal palace at the opposite end seems to have a similar size, as well as the same color. But what I really want to see is Orma, my hometown. The place where I grew up. Unfortunately, I couldn't see it from here, but knowing the general direction of the area, I try to keep myself positive. The woods I see off in the distance must be the same woods where I often went to pick some mushrooms and where Olen and I were attacked, and later saved by May.

This same floor also features the bells of the clocktower. It is housed in the center of the third floor where it is roofed by the stone and brick and walled by glass. On each side of the wall is a giant clockface that moves. The clock face features the three sections of the day as well as the quarters within. Each quarter beautifully numbered in gothic lettering. The dials are gilded out of gold.

"This is the final floor of our tour, the bells you see inside are made by many men and women. The bells are made of cast iron and create a very strong and beautiful sound that can be heard all around the kingdom and beyond. Take your time and check out the area. Please enjoy, my friends," Julian finally finished the tour.

After some time of checking out the tour, we start walking through the same stairwell. It is much scarier to go down than up. It is like you are falling. Julian went ahead of us, as he said he was going to clean up for the day.

"This is so scary!," Mia pointed out.

"Yeah, I cannot help but close my eyes at times," Jayde agreed.

After some time, "This tour didn't give us any information about the case. If this continues, we will never be able to find out who the perpetrator is," Mimi trying to keep our focus back on the case. But despite her thoughts, I was thinking about the case the whole time.

It is a gamble, but I am pretty confident about my deduction, "I think I know who did it," I tried telling them. Their faces respond in clear shock.