Author's note: I don't think anyone reads my rare author's note, so I decided to put it here. Thank you all for adding this novel to your library, and special thanks to anyone who reads the latest chapter in the first hour of release.
It may seem like a lot, but the smallest comment or review would also be great. It really helps my motivation to keep going, and I'm dying to know what readers think, good or bad
I'm not sure if it's been understood, but let me just clarify some things.
Firstly, Selyrian is a language that retains qualities of several European Languages based on regional coordinates. It should be easy to tell what group a character is from based on the words I use in their dialogue.
Secondly, Huaren refers to both an ethnic group born from the intermingling of several Asian groups, excluding Japanese, and the Chinese language. Each subgroup still retains aspects of its culture, and I'll be covering that in later chapters. I hope this isn't offensive, but I did intentionally switch the arrangement of the Chinese names, having the first name before the surname. If a name is being recalled from the pre-collapse era, then it will be in the correct arrangement.
Enjoy the reading, sincerely
The Redgrave
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Damon froze when he heard her question. For a brief moment, the world around seemed to narrow as his brain scrambled to respond. Instinctively, he knew whatever he said in response would decide whether he and Henry returned to the deep.
Before he could settle on an answer, a familiar holographic panel appeared in his vision.
*****
[<<< Status Panel Updated >>>]
'What!?' Damon looked on in astonishment as he focused on the runes. The mysterious panel he had grown rather accustomed to was still there, but its form had completely changed, seemingly reorganized into a list of sub-panels.
[Host Persona] [Host Affinities] [Host Attributes] [Host Skills and Spells] [Active Quests]
Scanning the options available, his eyes halted abruptly on the Active quest header as it shimmered softly. His heart then skipped a beat when a single entry appeared faintly beneath it.
[>>Cecil's Spirit Empowerment (Available)<<]
["A fragment of her soul lingers as a gentle spirit, caught between illusions and reality."]
Now curious, Damon attempted to read further; however, he was quickly interrupted.
"Did you… not come to hear me play?"
Cecil's voice sounded once more, but her earlier excitement had clearly dimmed. Her smile faded, replaced by a subtle downturn of her lips, and her fingers curled against the edge of the piano. As if responding to her emotions, the very light in the room seemed to dim, and the shadows beneath the chairs stretched toward him like grasping fingers.
Just as Damon sensed the shift in her intent, a chill ran down his spine. He didn't know what would happen if her emotions turned sour, but every fiber of his being warned him it wouldn't end well.
"N-No," Damon quickly replied, forcing an awkward smile as he stored his Katana. "I'd be happy to hear you play. I just don't have much of a taste for music."
For a split second, he feared he had spoken wrongly after Cecil went silent, but then her head suddenly snapped up.
"Really?" she asked. Her green eyes lit up with vibrancy while the approaching gloom quickly receded as though it had never been.
Thud! She jumped off the piano, a light hop, and added, "I've never been anyone's first performance! That's even better."
Damon nodded without hesitation, noticing the excitement bubbling in her voice. He then watched curiously as she lifted the maplewood fallboard from over the piano keys.
"I actually prefer the violin more, but a classmate taught me a little piano recently, so I've been practicing in my free time," she admitted, glancing back at him
Her small fingers hovered over the ivory keys for a few seconds before she then took a seat and said, "This piece was written by someone from the pre-collapse epoch."
As she touched the first key, a sharp gasp came from beside Damon.
Henry's eyes snapped open, his hand instinctively reaching for a weapon that wasn't there. He then sucked in a sharp breath, and his body jolted as awareness rushed back into him.
Upon seeing this, Damon reacted instantly before a sound could escape Henry's lips, clamping a hand over his mouth.
'What the hell is he doing!?' Startled, Henry froze for a few seconds, his eyes darted around the room, and alarms set off within his mind.
Ignoring his reaction, Damon shook his head slowly and pressed his left index finger to his lips. He then motioned his gaze meaningfully toward the piano and the girl currently playing.
Henry followed his line of sight, and his pupils shrank the moment he saw her. The realization of who she was quickly set in, followed by sheer disbelief of the situation.
'Cecil Watson!? He found her, but how?.. What did he do?'
He immediately tried to speak, shifting his head away from Damon's palm, but before he could, his brother rested his left hand on his shoulder.
"Don't ask, just listen for now and stay focused until I come up with a plan." Muttered Damon, suppressing his voice.
'You don't have a plan..!?' Henry thought in bafflement. He reluctantly nodded despite the questions burning behind his gaze, then swallowed hard, letting out a sigh as Damon withdrew his hand.
Henry stared at the girl playing, and as the melody filled the room, his apprehension shifted into a surprising recognition. 'T-This.. I know this song…'
The Erased by Pu Yixing. A song that should have been lost to the dust of the old world. To hear it played here, by a ghost, was a chilling reminder of the weight of time and the significance of artistry.
The notes soon reached Damon's ears in a soft melody that tickled his consciousness. Contrary to his expectation, it was rather easy to drift into the gentle sounds, but he quickly focused his mind on Cecil's back before his muscles could relax completely.
'Phew..That was close. If my mind sank any further, who knows what would happen.'
Shifting his attention back to the status panel, he tuned out the music as best as he could.
*******
[>>Cecil's Spirit Empowerment (Available)<<]
["Your objective is to strengthen the lingering fragment of Cecil Watson by engaging with its core identity."]
["Your Success Conditions are as follows."]
[" 1. Listen to all her performances till the end without having your mind devoured."]
[" 2. Reinforce her persona by reminding her what happened to her."]
[" 3. Anchor the fragment with the host Life affinity and positive Intent."]
["Failure to complete this quest will result in a sentencing to the deep lake and spiritual energy backlash weakening the host's mind further"]
'How is any of this fair! I don't even know what happened to her or how to do any of this.'As the requirements were outlined before him, a sense of unease settled into Damon's chest, but he finally knew who had a hand in this.
'Master? What is this!?' He called out inwardly.
["I took the liberty of making some adjustments to your interface,"] Tomoe's voice purred, sounding immensely pleased with herself. ["It seemed unfair to reside in my dear student's mind without providing certain amenities. The panel will guide you for as long as our connection remains. Consider it a gift."]
Her words lingered in his mind for a few seconds.
'A gift? Or a tether?' Damon's jaw tightened. He understood his Master well enough to know that nothing was free.
Suddenly, a jarring note slammed into his eardrums.
'That didn't sound right.' His eyes narrowed as his gaze lifted back to the sight of Cecil's trembling shoulders. Her Hand hovered over the keys hesitantly, and the facade of the classroom flickered as the wooden legs of the piano began rotting.
Henry's confused mind quickly settled down as he noticed the growing danger. His heart pounded as he watched her falter.
"She needs to keep playing," he whispered with lingering fear. Sparing no time, he immediately stood up and began walking toward the piano.
As Cecil looked up, startled, Henry suddenly took a seat beside her and flashed a kind smile.
"You shouldn't be disappointed by one wrong note. It sounded great so far." Slowly moving closer, he then casually added, "I could show you the rest, if you want."
".." Cecil frowned and stared into Henry's eyes. Her expression then turned complicated, as if she was struggling to remember something. "Alright. But I'll play another song after."
"Of course!" Henry agreed immediately, maintaining his smile.
'I didn't know he liked music.. Does he actually know how to play?' Damon's mind raced with questions watching their interaction. He wasn't sure why Henry was familiar with the song, but he was glad he was.
Seeing his brother's renewed confidence, he decided to set aside his worries and commit to the quest for the time being. His paranoia toward Tomoe's motives could only be a luxury for later.
Taking a breath, he glanced at the panel once again and suddenly froze.
At the very bottom, a fifteen-minute timer had appeared, ticking down in rhythmic, blood-red numbers.
[14:59... 14:58…]
'Master?' Damon's face twisted.
["I've used your resonance with the Cecil girl to temporarily link this space to the physical world. that is the time you have left before the connection collapses and this entire domain implodes, dragging all your souls with it."]Tomoe's response came instantly, tinged with amusement.
["You should be grateful, boya. Now you know exactly how long you have to stay alive."]