The Way Ahead

Chapter 99b: Looking Up

You've heard of me? he asked, confused, I dont think Lefi sent even a single letter since we ran into each other. How? Also, yes. Hi. What is there to discuss?

He shook his head and extended his hand in greeting. She looked at the motion in curiosity, and Edwin quickly withdrew it. Shaking hands wasnt a thing here, not really.

Sorry, he muttered.

She just smiled, Its alright.

Edwin was of two minds about her friendliness. On the one hand, she was clearly like Lefi: she liked everyone, so he wasnt special. On the other, he did like her more than the clearly-compensating-for-something adventurer hed been traveling with, and the attention wasnt bad.

Inion would be giving him such a hard time when they reunited, though.

He realized hed been sitting in silence for a bit longer than was polite, Anyway, hi. Im Edwin. He inclined his head in greeting as she took a seat next to him, which she replied to with a dazzling smile.

Pleasure to meet you, Edwin. Im Rillah.

Yeah, I anyway, what did you want to talk about?

Smooth, Edwin, real smooth.

She innocently shrugged, Well, I like seeing interesting things, and there havent been a whole lot of those around lately. Youre quite the sight for sore eyes, really, she capped off her statement with a bit of a sparkle in her eye, but Edwin had gotten mildly distracted in the meantime.

Oh, so Im better than complete boredom, he mused.

Shut up, me. It was obviously meant as a compliment, another part of him retorted.

Me? Interesting? I mean I dont other than and yeah, I guess, he sighed without any way to really help the conversation avoid him- after all, so long as Rillah didnt know much about him, she was unlikely to dislike him.

Its okay, she put her hand on Edwins arm, and he felt a powerful Skill originate from the touch. Instinctively, he jerked his arm back, Im sorry!

She immediately apologized, I didnt realize that youd react so negatively. Its not often that Soothing Touch provokes that kind of response.

Its alright, Edwin mumbled an apology in turn, I overreacted, sorry. It was a flinch. What what does it do?

Its just meant to help you find the contact soothing, help take off a few nerves.

Can- he started

Can you turn it off? The question sat unbidden on the forefront of his mind, but Edwin brushed it off slightly. He he could get through this. If nothing else, it was Adaptive Defense training. He didnt think Lefi would leave him alone with someone untrustworthy, so he could probably let his guard down a bit, right?

Can I what? she prodded slightly.

Nothing, nothing, he waved off her concerns, Its nothing important. Can you do that again, I suppose? he tried asking with a small smile.

Of course, she returned an even larger smile and placed her hand back on his forearm. He could see the Skill, a sort of dark silver snaking its way through his arm. Once it reached his torso, he relaxed against the chair, resting his head on the back cushion.

That that feels nice, he remarked, happy to get a smile in response. Then he shook his head, regaining his cognitive functions, What were we talking about?

She giggled lightly, I mean, that doesnt really matter all that much, does it? We were talking about you, but if thats not your speed, we can talk about anything else. Youre just so fascinating.

Edwin vaguely felt like squirming under the compliment, but managed to quash the impulse in part thanks to Soothing Touchs influence. He could focus, he could be good.

I guess?

Of course you are, Edwin. But how are you enjoying Sheraith?

Oh I dont know. I havent really been here all that long. Getting out from the wind of the plains was nice though.

Youre welcome.

Oh? I didnt realize you were responsible for the weather, he jested, but frowned when he saw Rillahs face.

Wait, what? Are you? Edwin frowned, Who are you anyway?

I told you, silly, she grinned, Im Rillah. We can swap stories about ourselves later if youd like.

Maybe, Edwin noncommittally acquiesced, So weather? I mean, yeah. Its been nice, though still a bit chilly? he shrugged, Its rained a few times lately, thats an experience I havent had for a while.

Spent too long inland?

Edwin nodded, Yeah, pretty much. I lived for a year in the Verdant, you know? Never saw even a drop of rain. That was a really weird experience, and then I come out here and its raining every other day. Feels more familiar, all told.

Youre not from inland, then?

Edwin shook his head, Nah. Im from much further away.

Hmm she narrowed her eyes at him, playfully adding, Ill learn about you eventually.

Edwin softly chuckled, Eh, probably not worthwhile. So you do something with the winds? Are you a mage? he suspected as much, she felt like warm, vigorous winds to his mana sense.

She nodded, laughing quietly, Yep! Ive got a way with the winds, so when their old Weather Mage finally kicked it, they snagged me to help out. They get pretty bad storms, so Im here to help keep that from happening.

Edwin looked at her with newfound respect, How powerful do you have to be for that? he asked.

She just laughed, Oh, most of it isnt me. You saw all these?

Rillah pointed to the inscriptions that filled the majority of the room, All I need to do is magic it up every day and it does the rest, unless theres something really bad that comes around, but thats not so common this time of year.

But youre stuck here in the meantime?

But Im stuck here in the meantime, she flatly agreed.

For how long? he asked.

Blast it if I know. Theyre supposed to be getting some replacement from the capital or whatever eventually, but theyve been saying that for months now. If they dont get something new soon, though yeah. They wont be happy. She let out a soft peal of laughter.

Its as cushy as a cloud here, you know? The position gets an absolute fortune for almost no work, not that I see most of that. Because Im an adventurer, they say that it would just be wasting good coin and it goes right into the pockets of the local politicians, she shrugged. Thats just how it goes, though. And Im not a Hunter so I dont mind too much. You really cant, not if you want to keep your mind.

She looked at the ceiling, It is a nice place, though. Never lived in a proper Tower before, so it was quite the experience for the first couple of weeks. But now? Ugh, I so wish I was back on the road. Did I mention how boring it is here? she asked Edwin, turning to face him more fully, theres not even enough room here for a proper Dance! And people get mad if I go flying in the streets. Not that it stops me, you know, but Oh, Im sorry. I was rambling.

Mmh, Edwin mutely replied with a shrug.

Hm. Youve had enough of this, I think. She withdrew her hand from Edwins arm, and while the effect wasnt instantaneous, the sensation still felt like being emotionally plunged into a pool of cold water.

He gasped, Woah, that was a sudden change, he shook his head, I hate mental influence Skills.

She hummed slightly in agreement, You did a good job keeping yourself composed. Do you have lots of practice?

Unfortunately, he sighed, Ive had to directly fight compulsions twice now, and I like to think Im getting pretty good at it, you know? Apparently relaxation is harder to fight though.

She grinned, studying Edwin with a keen green eye, Theres a story there, isnt there? Ill get it from you eventually. You practically smell like good stories.

Uhhh. Edwin wasnt sure how to respond to that.

Its a Skill! Honest, she tried to reassure him.

There were some awkward moments of silence while Edwin tried to process the new information.

So youre a wind mage? he eventually guessed just to break the silence, based off the feel of her mana, the formations in the room itself and her supposed job.

Hmm you first.

Me?

Well, its not often I meet another mage, she explained, and its always neat to compare notes. Whats your specialty? Ill tell you mine if you go first, she winked.

Edwin returned a smile. Ah, so that was what she found interesting about him. His magic. And here he marginally had hoped it was his personality. But of course it wasnt, why would it be? I mean I dont know if Im that interesting or even have a speciality. Ive got like three Skills that use magic, two of them are evolutions? I started off with Basic Mana Sense, used that to get the Mage path, got Basic Mana Manipulation with that, evolved it into Mana Infusion, then combined Mana Infusion with Packing to get Flight. He shrugged, So yeah.

Didnt you get any evolved magical Skills? Unless youre tier one?

Lets say you go first? he countered, I mean, its not that I dont trust you, its just

You only just met me, she finished, And Im this strange and beautiful figure with natural magic and you think I might be a fey or something.

Funny you say that

Im joking, she said with a smile, and brushed her hair to the side, The System calls it Isochronal magic, and that means what Im good at changes with the seasons. This time of year Im one of the stronger wind mages on the continent- not that theres much competition, her voice lowered into a grumble, and is why Im here.

What about other times of the year? he asked.

Uh-uh-uh! You need to tell me about your magic first. Also, its seasonal. You could probably guess it.

She really liked winking, didnt she? Edwin sighed, I have five tier two magical skills. One is Mana Infusion, lets me make Skills and materials magical, her eyes widened at that but she didnt say anything, Then Ritual Intuition, which lets me get a sense for what different kinds of mana are, Overcharge- which Lefi could tell you all about, and lets me Mana Infuse myself and my attributes, Improbable Arsenal which is like Efficient Space but needs magic, and Basic Thermokinesis, which lets me heat up stuff.

Thats it? Well, I wasnt expecting that, is all. Quite the impressive collection, I have to say. What about Flight?

Havent evolved that one yet, actually. Only got it a little while ago.

Aw, a liddle tier one are we?

Hey! he protested, Lefi is tier one too.

She smirked, Well I suppose he is. But youre both children to me. Clearly I am the most mature one in this building.

Really? What about I forgot her name. The Assistant.

Pierash? Well, maybe. If you count being boring and uptight as being mature.

Wait, that wasnt what you were doing?

She rolled her eyes and swatted Edwins arm in response, Oh, shush. Youve known me for less than three hours, you should not be so

Quick-witted? Edwin supplied.

Precocious, she settled on, then frowned, Wait, no. That doesnt translate well with Polyglot.

Its a bit strange seeing the guy who raised me look younger than I am, she continued, but thats how it is sometimes.

Wait, Lefi? Hes older than you? At long last, confirmation that Lefi was in fact older than his abnormally young appearance.

She shrugged, Dont really know how old he is. Depending on when you ask hes either older than the Adventurer program itself, was one of its first participants, or might just be about twenty years older than you or I. But hes looked the exact same for the last fifteen years, and acted the same way too. Rillah shook her head, He hasnt changed a bit.

So then, youve known Lefi for fifteen years?

Ever since I became an Adventurer. Well, he helped me become one.

So that means you were what, Yathals age when you met him?

She thought for a moment, That seems about right.

Howd you become an Adventurer so young? he asked, but immediately realized he had made a mistake when he saw Rillahs reaction.

Hmmm lets wait until we know each other better for that, kay?

Edwin shrank back, Sorry. I didnt mean to pry.

Hey! Hey. Its okay, she tried to reassure him, not wanting to hurt his feelings, Look, how about you can ask me any question you want and Ill try to answer, okay?

That didnt help him when it came to feeling bad, but whatever. He sat in silence, thinking for a short while before finally deciding.

Can you teach me magic stuff? Edwin settled on.

Why do you think I was trying to talk to you? she winked, But you gotta help me in turn, deal?

Edwin shrugged, Sounds good to me, I guess.

But that can be another time! Tell me, how was your trip? Lefi always exaggerates so much, did anything interesting happen on the road to you?

Well, there was this spider.

By the time the two of them finished talking, it was late. It was quite possibly the most positive human interaction that Edwin had had in literal years, and he was exhausted. The human interaction had started shifting from enjoyable to just draining at some point, but Rillah either was another extrovert, or had some kind of Skill that gave her social stamina and seemed just as cheerful and bright as she had been to begin with.

She yawned and stretched, giving Edwin a slightly sleepy grin, Well that was nice, but I think its about time for bed, yeah?

He nodded in reply- he was still marginally recovering from not sleeping the night before, but he was essentially fine, Are the rooms all all the way at the bottom?

She nodded and rolled her eyes, The towers really old, but pretty much all of its masters could fly. They liked to show off their superiority by making everyone climb endless stairs if they wanted to get to any of the magic stuff, whereas living is all done at the bottom.

Also, Im pretty sure the tops been knocked over a time or two, so yeah. Sleeping in the bottom.

I guess that makes sense. Still, its a lot of stairs to have to go all the way back down.

Or take the fast way! she called out, and fell backwards into the stairwell.

Edwins stomach lurched, but before he even really thought through his actions, he had sprung up and jumped into the void.

Vertigo set in immediately, but he wrestled the impulse to the side as he activated Flight and

Oh. Right.

Of course she could fly too. She was a wind mage, more or less, and had even said that she could during their conversation.

However, he had expected her flight to be strictly magical, like his was. Maybe a mantle of winds or whatever that wrapped her and allowed her to float effortlessly. He was not expecting to watch a pair of massive wings spring from her back- so that was why she left it bare, that made sense- filling up most of the airspace with burnt orange, yellow, and red feathers.

He managed to Tether himself to the side before he could slam into her, but she slowed down as well, rising up past him and making her wings outright pass through him.

Aww! So noble, trying to save me from my own jump?

I wasnt he trailed off. Shut up, he muttered, much to the laughter of Rillah as they floated down a too-tall tower.

And so, Edwin found himself on a proper bed for the first time in nearly two months, studying the ceiling. For all that it had been an exceptionally long and exhausting- in every sense- day, he still felt it was overall a success.

Hed found someone who he could stand and that could stand him, not that it was too great of an accomplishment for someone who clearly both just liked everyone and had likely been asked by Lefi to help Edwin out of his shell, just like with Yathal.

He was perfectly in control of his own shell, thank you very much. He didnt need to be pulled out like some scared little kid.

Another part of him said he shouldnt complain about so much personal attention from a pretty girl, but the year and a half hed lived with Inion put that part of his brain firmly under his control.

In any case

Edwin sighed. It had been a nice day. He would stick with that. Tomorrow, hed visit Inion and see if there was any good way to try and smuggle her into the city- maybe she could hide inside a water barrel or something- and maybe start learning a bit about magic from Rillah. Maybe he would stick around for a bit longer, he thought. It wouldnt be awful, at least.

He could enjoy this.