“You are seeing the glass as half empty, as usual.” Solus said. “There is no risk in trying. As Xoth said, we can leave at the first sign of trouble. Also, if this is really an attempt to trigger a tribulation, then it already failed.
“World tribulations don’t happen if you want them to. Last, but not least, I want to believe in Faluel’s kindness. If she sent us here, it’s because she hopes that by helping Jiera we can also help ourselves.
“The Forbidden Sun will affect both of us and even if it doesn’t cure our respective condition, it will provide us with invaluable knowledge about Forbidden Magic that we wouldn’t be able to acquire without committing unspeakable crimes.”
“And you are seeing the glass as half full, as usual.” Lith replied. “You are right about the tribulation, but the problem is that I don’t want it to trigger because I don’t want to die, so the risk still stands.
“Whatever her reason for sending us here is, I hate being manipulated. She should have come to me and said everything straight to my face. The only thing we agree on, is that passing the opportunity to check on the effects of Forbidden Magic would be beyond idiotic.
“The Odi, Arthan’s Madness, they all require a healthy individual to work with whereas my life force is already cracked. I can’t overlook the possibility that all our planning might become useless if my condition causes side effects with those kinds of procedures.”
“Yeah, right.” Solus scoffed. “Faluel should have been upfront, just like you did your whole life.”
Her words made the girls chuckle and made Lith even more gloomy.
“Faluel may have set you up, but she also left you a way out. If you don’t want to do it, we can just get in, stay a few minutes, and then get out. If you claim to have experienced side effects, no one can question your words, not even Faluel.
“You can pass the test without even trying.” Solus said. “This is how wisdom works. It’s not about being always ten steps ahead or having an ace in the hole. Those things help, but what really matters is what you do with the opportunities you are given.”
“Do you want to come along?” Lith asked to Tista and Phloria.
“I’d rather not.” Tista shook her head. “During the last few days, I’ve seen so many horrors born from Jiera’s plague that the only thing I want is to go back home and enjoy the peace of the Griffon Kingdom until I die of boredom.
“Yet I’m not going to leave you alone, little brother.” She hugged him, trembling at the idea that what shocked her to the core was just a minimal part of what her brother had faced to become an Archmage at such a young age.
“We need to think about a contingency plan.” Phloria didn’t even consider the idea of letting Lith kick a hornet nest the size of a lost city without her watching his back. “Solus might lessen the burden on you, but she might also make it worse.
“We don’t know if the Forbidden Magic ritual will treat you as a single individual or as two different persons. In the first case, you should be able to endure the ritual as long as you need, otherwise you might actually be forced to get out even faster than a regular person.”
“You’re right, Phloria.” Solus sighed. “Not only is my core cracked, but also my life force has always been my weak point due to its link with the tower. Without a mana geyser to sustain my other half, I rely on Lith to survive.
“Worst case scenario, I’ll double the strain on his life force instead of relieving it.”
They spent the next couple of days over a mana geyser that Tista had found during her missions, preparing for every scenario they could predict and crafting the tools they might need.
Lith also used that time to put his body to the test and make sure that his life forces could endure even his most powerful spells. Only then did they return to Reghia and accepted the mission.
“I’m glad to have you among our ranks.” Xoth the Nue gave them a nod and contacted the merfolk to pick the group up. “You need to swim to your destination because opening Warp Steps underwater would flood the city.
“Always remember that we’re not sending you there to fight, only to collect information. If my assumption about Leegaain’s pins turns out to be wrong, the language barrier would make your presence pointless.” He said to Tista and Phloria.
“Lith, if you can endure Kolga’s sun, use Life Vision to search for its power source. Otherwise leave the city as soon as you can. We have no need for heroes or martyrs.” The Nue gave him two Adamant ingots as down payment and waited with them.
Their guides turned out to be part of the group of merfolk that Lith had met during their first day in Reghia.
Merfolk were a race of humanoids that lived underwater. They had faces with no nose nor ears and fins coming out of their spines and hips. Sky blue scales covered merfolk from head to toe, turning of a pale white in the abdomen area and the palms, making them all look like the same age.
They were capable of breathing underwater and on dry land through gills on their necks and heard from two small holes on either side of their head. They had no lips either, leaving the row of pearly teeth in their mouth partially exposed at all times.
Their hands had webbed fingers that ended in small claws that, due to their bright colors, were clearly venomous. Female merfolk had breast-like bumps on their chest and slenderer builds compared to males.
The moment they got dry, however, they would turn into a form that closely resembled humans, and only their oddly colored hair would give out their real nature.
“How much do they know, Xoth?” Rem, the leader of the group, said.
She was a plump woman with sky-blue hair and a voice that sounded friendly even though she spoke while gurgling the water still coursing through her gills.
“The minimum necessary. I leave them in your care. Answer all of their questions honestly. I take full responsibility for this mission.” The Nue replied.
“Very well.” She clicked her tongue at the sight of the humans, but her face remained neutral.
“Please, take our hands and don’t leave them for any reason. Flying spells don’t work underwater, but that’s not really an issue. Just use water magic in the same way you would use air and everything will be fine.” Rem said.
“We’d better move now so that you have the time you need to adapt your spells and we can gain speed.”
“Why holding hands?” Tista asked.
“To breathe. All the stories about merfolk allowing humans to stay underwater by kissing them and passing them air are as romantic as they are ridiculous. It’s not that we couldn’t, but merfolk don’t make out with strangers and even if we did, moving at high speed would be impossible”. Rem said.
