CHAPTER 25:
“Ok. I think it's done”
Using her fingers, Sylvia scooped up red powder on her two united fingers
“And how are you planning to use that?”
“Come closer. I don't bite”
With a raised eyebrow
Haru moved closer to her
In range where she could easily touch him
So Sylvia reached out and rubbed the red powder over the skin of his beck
Forming a yhwh writing on his neck
The marking embedded itself on its skin, burning and glowing red as it appeared like a tattoo in the middle of the neck
“Ouch”
“What was that for? It burns badly”
“It's a spell that I put upon you”
Sylvia grabbed the towel nearby to wipe at her fingers. Moving the black bowl to another place as she settled back in the chair
“It's the name of god almighty in Hebrew. The specific spell can redirect attacks to the bearer”
Haru had moved his hand to rub his neck but stopped
“Seriously? Redirect all attacks to me?”
“Yeah, let me show you”
Sylvia then opened the drawer and grabbed a silver ballpoint pen
She tossed it aggressively at Haru while spinning in the chair
The ballpoint pen, although heading slightly off Haru immediately changed directions
When it changed directions, the mark on Haru's neck glowed bright red
It seemed like when a foreign object or a magical attack was in that range, it would immediately redirect to him
That would certainly help in defending others while battling
Before it could make contact with him, Haru caught it in his grasp
“That's useful…but that means all the more suffering for me”
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He played around with the pen in his hands
Then, casually, tossing it back to Sylvia
“I suppose. Do you want me to remove it? It's gonna be easy”
“No…it's my responsibility now. I've taken on that role, haven't I?”
“...”
Sylvia stayed silent for a second before speaking again
“Since when did you decide that?”
“Well since you had tasked me with uniting the team…I inadvertently became the leader”
“Really? So you see yourself as the leader now? I can’t change your opinion or decision, but I should warn you that you may not be able to bear the pain”
Sylvia said with one eye closed while looking at him
“Are you serious? If I can't, then who can?”
“Huh. That's what I like to hear”
She scoffed to herself with her arms crossed
After a short bit, Sylvia stood up again
“There's one other thing that I haven't explained”
“What's that?”
She reached out with a raised index finger towards him
Her voice in a long while going serious
“It's magic. Although I've explained to you about the 9 holy relics, you vaguely know about what mana can be used for”
Scratching his head in response, Haru uttered
“Well I know the basics. Like teleportation, dashing, and amplifying. If that counts”
“That does count. But there's a whole lot more. You can't begin to imagine just how many things you can do with mana”
In a slow rhythm, she walked past him. Her voice is going soft
“Think of it like learning how to drive. Initially, you need to memorize the control, but the skill itself takes time”
Haru looked down at the floor for a moment before responding
“And how much time does it take to learn the magic system?”
“That's the beautiful thing. It depends entirely on the magical concept that one decides to learn”
“...”
“You think there is a concept out there that can nullify the feeling of pain?”
“Possibly? But I think you have gotten used to that”
Sylvia said with a bitter tone
It was true that haru by now had gotten sued to all the pain and suffering
But that didn't mean that he didn't feel it still
Like a primal fear. It never truly goes away. You just learn to live with it
“Nevermind…back to the matter…what do you mean by the deadline on which magical concept”
“A magician, or I guess someone who knows of the supernatural can only choose one path to master. If one chooses the arts of Buddhism per say then he can only learn Buddhist spells”
“I see. So you are limited by what you choose. Can you master two concepts at the same time?”
“...”
With a sigh, Sylvia continued the explanation
“While that is possible, it is very difficult for one to do. Imagine trying to juggle two poles on each hand while tiptoeing. It's gonna damage you more than do you good”
Haru unconsciously moved his hand to rub the mark on his neck
It felt strange as he hadn't experienced such a thing before
It seemed that he to needed learn the basics
“But why only one at a time? Is that the body's natural limit?”
“While there is no specific reason as to why, it is theorized that the mortgage body has adapted only to house one change at a time due to lack of expertise in the early years”
It took a moment for the question to register in Haru's mind before he spoke
“And just how many spells are in one concept?”
“It depends on the concept. Most often, it's around 100-150. Although many of them are not useful in battle or every day, use”
“That can only mean that they are spells for specific situations, yeah?”
Before answering, Sylvia took a moment to hear for the door
It seemed like there was a knocking noise that came from the outside
“You there?”
“Yeah. I think I just heard something at the door”
Her lips pressed in a thin line as she spoke…
Matthew and Garcia outside of the room were visibly shaking and sweating
Garcia had accidentally pushed Matthew against the door, which made that noise…
“So anyways, as I was saying. Those kinds of spells are super specific and generally forgotten about”
“So if I use a spell and I can't draw enough Mana in time to cast the spell, what then?
“...”
“Then you simply get hurt. There's no way around that”
“That seems rather grim…my ability is both a blessing and a curse. The irony”
With a dramatic sigh
Sylvia flopped back on the bed
“As if you of all people are blessed”
“I heard that!”....
From outside
Matthew and Garcia had decided to return back to the living room with quiet steps
Luckily they avoided Sylvia's wrath
They couldn't bear another lecture, avoiding conformation was the smart play for them
Making sure not to alert anyone with their steps
“Are we in the clear?”
“Yeah, thankfully so”
Matthew gave out a sigh of relief. Plopping against the couch
“Shit that was close”
“I told you not to make any sound”
“And I tried to warn you not to push me”
Both gave out a sigh instead of being angry at each other
The others looked at them weirdly
“What are you guys on about?”
Scylla said, pragmatic as ever
“Don't sweat it. It doesn't matter now”
“I have suspicion that I know what they did”
While refilling his soda, Preston spoke
“Hey. Has anyone seen Sasha and Zoe?”
“Thise two? I think they are in they are in Zoe's room. I'm not sure though”
Charybdi moved around with a tray in her hands. She set it on the table roughly
“Hey!”
“What did I do wrong this time?”
Preston set his soda down. Careful not to spill any
“I think Scylla is trying to warn you not to be so rough”
“Tch, bunch of bull crap. I didn't spill anything”
For the first time in a long while, Scylla was visibly fuming
Before Charybdi could react, Scylla would grab hold of her head and mess with her hair
“No!”
“You deserve it this time”...
