Mysterious Power

“We should’ve stopped for a break two hours ago.”

Despite Medrauta’s insistence on slowing down and taking a short moment of reprieve from their travel-weary saddles, Viviane ignored her knight’s best attempts at enticing her to dismount. Of course, this led to Medrauta incessantly suggesting they take a break at every opportunity, but Viviane would have none of it. Even after the knight’s latest suggestion, Viviane continued to keep her gaze locked ahead, not even turning as she replied to Medrauta.

“We cannot, Medrauta. We must reach the spire as soon as possible, for this is something that concerns not only the people of this duchy, but the people of the empire as a whole. Our friends who reside at the academy, the brave soldiers on the front lines who are still fighting as we speak, and even ourselves.”

Medrauta frowned, her eyes lingering on Viviane for several long seconds as their horses continued to thunder on. Though her gaze usually remained on Viviane’s visage to admire the noblewoman’s beauty, her eyes were filled with nothing other than confusion and concern at the moment. The knight had no clue what had happened to her lady, but ever since Viviane awoke from the brief spell of unconsciousness she suffered back in the ritual chamber, something about her had changed.

If she’s not gonna take a break despite those dark circles under her eyes, then I might as well keep her busy so she doesn’t fall off the damn saddle or something... Medrauta clicked her tongue in displeasure. She understood the need for urgency, especially when the empire was currently being covered in all manner of foul witchspawned beasts, but she still couldn’t stop herself from placing Viviane’s health first.

Medrauta hesitated for a moment, attempting to formulate a more elegant approach to her question rather than simply asking bluntly. Unfortunately for her, she wasn’t able to come up with anything even after several seconds of thinking. Oh well, here goes.

“Hey, Vivi... While we were fighting Bastiche and Ritya, did you, uh, hit your head or something? I dunno what it is, but after you woke up, you kinda feel... different?” Medrauta regretted her words almost instantly even as they flowed from her mouth, wishing she’d spent a bit more effort on phrasing that more eloquently.

“...Right. I guess you’d feel that.” Viviane said. “I guess it’d be weirder for you to not notice, huh? The truth is, when I fell unconscious, I got... pulled into a different world. That’s the best way I can put it.”

“Pulled into a different world?” Medrauta frowned. While transdimensional travel wasn’t theoretically impossible given the implications of certain extremely rare Crest abilities and the presence of Kaslavna’s secret weapon during the first war they waged against the empire, she’d never heard of it happening to someone unconscious. Plus, there was another, even more unusual factor.

“Yeah. I was really confused when I woke up there. I thought I’d been teleported or something at first, but it turns out only my soul was transported, if that makes sense.”

“...Not really. In all the cases I’ve heard of, people who experience transdimensional travel are transported entirely with their whole body and all.”

Indeed, Medrauta was correct. This alone was the factor that confused her the most, seeing as Viviane’s body hadn’t disappeared at all from the chamber after falling unconscious. Plus, her lady’s claim was absolutely ridiculous even if it was true. If Viviane’s soul was somehow pulled out of her body and into another dimension, then only two entities could have performed such a powerful feat: Aluvsha himself, or a suitably powerful witch.

No Crest reached the domain of manipulating or influencing souls, for such an ability would not only be branded taboo by all churches across the continent, but also reign supreme amongst all other Crests, bearing the ability to manipulate life and death itself. Not even the Solar Crest that the imperial family bore would even begin to compare to such power.

Sensing her knight’s doubt, Viviane continued her explanation. “I was transported to a place called “the Lake.’ I met someone who looked like you... Well, a younger version of you. They called me ‘Child of Eventide.’ Does that mean anything to you?”

Medrauta shook her head. Neither the name Viviane gave her nor the title rang any bells, and fortunately enough, they didn’t induce any splitting headaches either. “Honestly, that sounds kinda creepy, doesn’t it? You saw me in another dimension and they were calling you all sorts of weird names?”

Viviane nodded. “I guess it does seem pretty weird now that you mention it, but I wasn’t exactly in any danger. The Lake was... white. It was an endless sea of white. Well, an endless lake, I suppose, but you get the idea. It’s... hard to explain, but I feel like I belong there and... I don’t know what it is, but I came out of there feeling... complete?”

“You mean I wasn’t enough for you?” Medrauta joked.

“T-That’s not what I meant, Medrauta! Come on, I’m being serious here! It filled me with some sort of power that I can barely comprehend... I’ve got no idea how to use it or what it even is, but it’s there. Even now, I can feel it resting in my Crest.”

“In your Crest...?” Medrauta frowned, now even more confused. While Crest Metamorphosis was one thing, the last time Medrauta checked, Viviane’s Crest had remained the same. It certainly hadn’t felt any different, and the armor it provided hadn’t changed in function or design either. The effects of Viviane’s Crest prior to falling unconscious and after she returned from the Lake had been identical.

No. That’s not true. Medrauta realized. The Crest’s physical appearance and the appearance of the armor it bestowed hadn’t changed, but there was one significant difference that the knight almost overlooked. Despite Ritya’s rapid regeneration that allowed her to emerge unscathed even after suffering horrifically grievous wounds that should have been more than fatal for any living creature, that regeneration had suddenly stopped once Viviane woke up and bestowed her Crest upon Medrauta once more.

More accurately, Medrauta’s attacks had begun to suppress Ritya’s regeneration or perhaps even negate it altogether. The knight’s eyes widened at this revelation as she turned to Viviane, her face a strange amalgamation of excitement and confusion. Though a question had been answered, it only left her with more.

“Do you think maybe that power was what allowed us to suppress Bastiche and Ritya’s regeneration?” Medrauta asked, the excitement in her voice evident.

Thanks to her mysterious knowledge of witches and witchspawned creatures, the silver-haired knight was rather familiar with their general capabilities and knew they possessed some form of regeneration similar to the pseudo-immortality Amelia had bestowed her Sworn with. If the power Viviane gained really did allow Medrauta to suppress regenerative abilities while bearing her lady’s Crest, then it would no doubt be instrumental in their quest to destroy the spire and defeat Amelia.

“I think... I think it’s definitely possible, but walk me through your logic, Medrauta.” Viviane replied, looking at her knight with a curious gaze. If it wasn’t for the heavy bags under her eyes, the noblewoman might’ve even looked lively.

Medrauta nodded in response and took a moment to explain how she noticed the cessation of Ritya and Bastiche’s regenerative effects only after she struck them with her blade after being enhanced by Viviane’s Crest, emphasizing that such a reaction only took place after the noblewoman had awakened. Viviane listened quietly, her thoughts drowning out the drumming of hoofbeats as their mounts continued pressing on through the grassy prairie ahead of them.

“Well, there’s only one way to confirm whether it’s true or not,” Viviane said after Medrauta’s explanation concluded. “And if it really is, then we’d best get to the border as soon as possible.”

Medrauta nodded in response. “Looks like we really are the only ones who can put an end to this swiftly.”

“That and... Ever since I returned from the Lake, I’ve felt a strange calling to the spire. Almost as if I know instinctively that my destiny lies at its very top. As if everything we’ve been through so far, all of our struggles, all of our pain... It’ll all end there.”

“...In a good way, right? As in we’ll defeat Amelia and bring peace back to the empire, right?” Medrauta asked worriedly.

Viviane didn’t respond. Instead, she simply pressed her lips together in a thin line wordlessly.

The knight had no idea what sort of destiny her lady had been led to believe while she was in the Lake, but Medrauta certainly hoped it wasn’t something like a tragic end. She would never accept a conclusion like that even if she had to forsake Aluvsha himself. It was a heretical thought, but a thought she drew strength from nevertheless. No matter what transpired at the top of the spire, Medrauta simply wouldn’t allow Viviane some sort of idiotic storybook death.

That alone she was certain of.