"Yep. It's a cursed wound, alright." Olem let out a grunt as he examined Davi's shoulder. "Seriously, are you trying to get cursed or something?"
Davi gave a lazy shrug. "It does help increase my curse resistance." He pointed out.
"It is true, having your body be hit with curses will increase your natural resistance, but that doesn't mean you should do it." Olem took a needle and held it between his massive fingers, then skillfully sewed up Davi's wound, stitching it back together. "Mages with fire resistance don't just set themselves on fire over and over again."
The trip back to the guild base had been shockingly calm. Gormay had left to go drop off the Spell Sword he held, and Merlin also wasn't anywhere to be seen, though Davi suspected he knew the answer to that. Miranda took them back to the base, and the others were all able to go do whatever they wanted, but he had been dragged to Olem's room and forced to have his body inspected.
That was where he currently was, with Olem sewing his shoulder up, while Ghost kept taking sneak peeks at his chest and abs since his robes were gone. Clause was also in the room, fixing his robes, which was why he wasn't wearing them.
The wound in question was actually two. The first was on his shoulder, and the second one was directly over his heart, which had already been treated. Both had been the spots he had been stabbed at when he fought Blank. Her cursed knife had left wounds that potions or healing spells couldn't mend.
Just as when he fought the kitsune, these wounds would have to heal naturally. That was why curses were so feared, especially during wartime. The scars they left negated healing spells and potions, and they healed far more slowly than they should.
"I can't believe that those Spell Swords had a cursed weapon." Ghost muttered while shamelessly running her hand over Davi's stomach.
"I actually took the weapon." Davi reached into his vault and pulled out the dagger, causing all three guildmate members to flinch and jump back.
"Why do you have that?" Olem hissed out.
Davi gave him an odd look. "It was a cool weapon?"
"Put that thing away before it curses someone!" The golem growled.
Clause stepped forward and reached out with gentle hands. "Relax, Olem. I've used cursed weapons before. They're dangerous but not that dangerous. Especially one like this." He took the knife out of Davi's hands and brought it to his eye to look it over. "The curse is a low-tier one. It didn't cling to Davi, meaning it isn't strong enough to stay active forever and runs out of juice fairly fast." The man pricked his finger and then chuckled as the curse tried to seep into him but wasn't able to affect him, as his resistance to curses was simply far too high.
Olem and Ghost still shuffled away, putting distance between Davi and the old man. "Cursed items are still creepy." Ghost shuddered. "The vibe they give off is so weird."
The knife had a constant cold, dark aura that seeped from the blade. Clause didn't seem to mind it and twirled it between his fingers. "Any idea what you'll do with this weapon, Davi?"
"Not really." Davi shook his head. "You said you used cursed weapons before? Does that mean you also can use curse magic?"
Clause rubbed his chin with his free hand and practiced a few jabs with the knife. "Cursed weapons are filled with malice and hate. Good curses come from the elves. They hate us humans, and so when a human uses an elf curse, the malice is great. Cursed weapons created by humans aren't as good since we don't know true hatred. A blessing and a curse stand on opposite sides of each other. Blessings come from the Angels and the Almighty, while curses are thought to be inflicted by Demons and the Devils; however, that isn't true. Demons and Devils are naturally masters of curses, but King Sylas created the first ever curse. To use curse magic, a person has to naturally know pain and suffering and be able to feel that emotion."
Clause took the knife and brought it to his palm. He stabbed into it once more, and a strange buzzing sound filled the air. The room seemed to grow colder, and a dark aura appeared around the knife and began to spread, creeping over Clause's arm.
"Knights don't use cursed magic. That's what they say. After all, curses are considered to be dark and evil, and this is because it's true. Even cursed weapons have a darkness in them, and holding onto something imbued with that much malice and hate can cause it to lash back at you and begin to infect you. To unlock the ability to use curse magic, you have to be able to let the curse of a weapon seep into your body and bond with it. Those who can't manage will find themselves devoured by the curse. Those who can manage are the ones who have suffered and wish to inflict the suffering on others."
Suddenly, the black aura grew still, and then dozens of cracks formed along it. There was a loud shattering sound, and the black aura cracked and broke. Clause pulled the knife out of his hand, and the aura around the blade died down, and it grew still.
He let out a sigh and handed the knife back to Davi. "What you just saw was what happens when you can't bond with a curse." He gave a cheeky grin and pointed a thumb back at himself. "So basically, no, I can't use cursed magic. I'm pretty good at using a cursed weapon, for it is just like any weapon, but actually using cursed spells isn't something I can do. I can take in the curse and handle its negative effects, but I don't hold the malice or desire to hurt people that is needed to unlock the new school of magic. It requires a darkness in your heart, and I just never really was the type who gets joy out of hurting people."
Davi glanced back down at the knife in his hands. It felt strangely heavy now. Cold even. He could feel the curse inside trying to seep out and cling to him. He debated stabbing himself just as Clause did but decided against it.
From the sounds of it, it seemed like curses worked similarly to his Way of Self Iron. A mage would force the curse from a weapon or other object into their own body just as Clause did and then direct that force out of their body and into an attack using their own malice and power. When they got strong enough, they'd reach a point where they could use their own hate to create curses naturally.
"So, many knights can't use curse magic themselves since they're good people, I guess, but they still use cursed weapons?"
"During times of war, people will get desperate, and it can bring out negative emotions, which are required. Some people can learn to use curses without using cursed weapons as the basis. The process I showed you was the shortcut, which, as explained, involves using the curse within my own body and expelling it outward, akin to a Mana Strike. Some rare prodigies, however, are filled with so much hate and negativity or have a permanent curse inside of them already that they naturally learn to use these curses all without ever holding a cursed weapon." Clause hummed. "Also, in a way, it's just easier to use cursed weapons for Knight Gear."
Davi's eyes widened in shock. "Knight Gear can be made out of cursed weapons?"
Clause laughed at his baffled look. "Knight Gear is made by smashing together elven-grade enchanted items and human-grade enchanted items, having a master enchanter fuse the two objects together, and imbuing it with the Circuit lines of the King, who holds Haru's power. This created weapon is so great that it breaks the laws of magic and allows a Knight to use a second type of magic. Unlike Core Masks, they don't need to cheat either. This does have a small issue, however. Elven items are scarce. Most of the elves turned their own kind into weapons. We still don't know why Sylas did this, but that's the issue. There were only so many elves, and many of those weapons were lost, while the rest were shoved into vaults. The elves also laid another trap inside their vaults. They knew humans would be greedy and try to grab the elven weapons they created, and so the elves took regular weapons they forged naturally and filled them with curses and low-grade enchantments to trick the humans into picking them up."
"I'm guessing these cursed items are the ones used in Knight Gear?"
Clause nodded. "That's right. Humans wiped out the elves, and we figured out ways to get around their cursed gear and use it for ourselves. There are a lot more cursed elven items than there are enchanted elven items. Knight Gear is hard to make, and since the enchanted gear is often so rare, it usually only goes to the nobles. Specifically, the branch families. The rest of us Knights who manage to gain a title get Knight Gear forged out of the cursed items!"
"That seems dangerous…"
"It is!" Clause chuckled. "It's cheap and easy to produce, however. Cursed Knight Gear also works just like regular Knight Gear, though the curses backfire on the user and harm them as well, and they're not as strong. Still, the King would rather reserve the good stuff for the nobles, while we commoners are lucky enough to get Knight Gear at all, even scraped-together leftovers. My good old hammer is a cursed Knight Gear, and it works just fine!"
"That doesn't sound fair, though?"
Clause gave a soft nod. "Life is rarely fair. The nobles get the good stuff. The king could decide not to arm us with Knight Gear; however, if a disaster breaks out or a powerful monster appears, it is better to have Knights with cursed Knight Gear. Besides, as long as you don't get a shitty curse or are strong enough, you can manage it."
Davi frowned. As usual, there was something about the system he didn't like. Arming people with weapons that could backfire, who were, of course, all commoners who made it to the position of Knights, didn't seem fair.
If a change had to be made, a person would need to be strong enough to cause it to happen. Just as Blank had said, power is what is required in order to decide the story that you are in. Only with power was Davi confident he could reach an ending to the tale that he desired.
"You okay?" Clause frowned when he saw the look in Davi's eyes.
"I'm fine." Davi nodded and stood up. He took the robes Clause had been working on and slipped them on. "I'm going to go find Ragna. I need to train."
"Already? You guys just got back?" Ghost complained.
Olem let out a snort and turned to look out a window. "One of them is already hard at work."
Outside the train, in the center of the junkyard, an intense battle was taking place. Ragna wielded Greenie, the mimic having transformed into a large glaive, which the muscled man lifted and twirled, blocking the bolts of lightning fired his way.
Sieg stood across from him in a new outfit that Clause made him. It looked like his old one, and Clause had recreated Ken's outfit, which had changed only slightly. He had actually made Ken's a while back after she burned her clothes away. Unlike Davi and Olivia, Clause didn't seem to think they needed new clothes.
In Sieg's hand, he held a bow of crackling lightning. His spears were on his back, but he didn't draw one and instead pointed his hand out, firing bolts of electricity.
Electric Bow was a spell that Sieg was very familiar with. It was simple yet strong. It allowed him to create a hunting bow or a greatbow out of electricity. The hunting bow was unique because once it was made, he could fire off weak bolts of lightning all without saying a new spell name. This effectively allowed him to attack without speaking, meaning he could focus on other spells. Of course, such a thing required a cost and a Vow.
The hunting bow could only be used to fire off these weak bolts, each one actually having less firepower in them than a basic Row-level spell, and thus they weren't that powerful. He also had to hold the bow and fire it as if it were a real weapon.
The greatbow, on the other hand, was far stronger. It also held a Vow, one that significantly increased its attack power. The Vow made it be oversized and limited its attack to a single use, unlike the hunting bow, which could fire off multiple shots. The greatbow also required actual ammo, which is why he carried his spears around, as they were what he launched out.
Using these two styles, Sieg was confident he could win most fights. Ragna wasn't like any fighter he was used to, however.
The mustached man casually blocked each bolt of lightning like it was nothing. Sieg gritted his teeth and kept firing his attacks, faster and faster, yet none reached Ragna.
This wasn't the first time they sparred. He fought the man when he first joined the guild and had been praised since he was the fastest recruit who was able to leave a mark on Ragna. That wasn't good enough for Sieg. He felt his competitive spirit start to flare up. He was far from taking the fight seriously, not using his Core Mask or Armor spell, but he also didn't want to reveal his hand in case the information got back to Evelyn somehow.
Sieg gave a slight smirk under his mask, and suddenly his bow advanced in size. It rapidly grew until it was the size of a massive greatbow, and without skipping a beat, Sieg drew one of the jagged iron spears from the sheath on his back. He aimed at Ragna and unleashed it.
Ragna easily dodged the arrow, ducking down, and the spear tore through the trash heap and fired off in the direction of the ocean. Sieg went to grab another arrow from his back, but before he could, Ragna zipped forward and swung his glaive out. It stopped inches from Sieg's neck, and the blonde boy winced.
Ragna kept his arms steady and held a small grin on his lips. "It seems, once again, you have won!" He chuckled.
Pressed into Ragna's side was Sieg's tail. The scaled limb jutted out from behind the mutant and had wrapped around his body the moment Ragna reached him, tapping Ragna in the side barely a second before Ragna's glaive met his throat.
Sieg took a shaky step back and shook his head. "This isn't a win for me."
"It's not? We agreed it was first contact?"
Sieg let out a dry laugh. "If this were a real fight, I'd be dead. Your damn body is so reinforced naturally that I doubt my tail would have been able to pierce you with a deep wound. Even if I did, you'd have killed me before you bled out and could have healed. This is my loss. Once again."
Ragna let out a loud booming laugh and planted his glaive into the ground. "Are you on about that again? It feels like you're never happy, no matter how good you do."
"It just feels like it's never enough," Sieg admitted.
Ragna let out a hum, and he stared at the masked boy, seeing someone else for a moment. "Sometimes you remind me a bit of a son." He snorted.
"Your son?"
Ragna's smile almost faded for a moment, but he forced it back on. "Whoops. Yeah, I have a son. He's about your age now. Uses a bow also. He was pretty good. Like you, he always complained that he was never good enough." Ragna looked out at the sea, watching the waves rise and fall. "It's good to want to strive to do better. Nothing wrong with that. Remember to slow down from time to time and spend as much time as you can with the people who care about you. Be happy for what new strength you do get, and don't take your training for granted. I'll be here to spar with you anytime you want, but don't act so down when you win. It makes you sound like a seriously sore winner. Think about how the others feel." Ragna snickered.
Sieg let out a sigh. "There's something I need to do, and to reach that goal, it requires that I take another step forward and become stronger."
"Of course. Everyone has goals they want to reach." Ragna clapped Sieg on the back, nearly knocking the man over. "I'll be here every step of the way to help you when you need it."
"My goal right now is to surpass you." Sieg shook the arm off of him and turned away from Ragna. "I'll become strong enough to beat you. That's my next step. Only then will I be closer to reaching my final endpoint."
"Even better!" Ragna gave a thumbs-up as Sieg walked away. "It's the teacher's job to make sure the student surpasses them. Not just you, but every other guild member in our team should all become stronger than me!"
Sieg rolled his eyes and marched away. Ragna was, at times, annoying to deal with. The man was friendly, just like his brother. It frustrated Sieg because in another world, he'd have loved to befriend Ragna.
This wasn't that world, though.
This was the world where he would eventually turn into a monster and die—a world where he would be known as the villain who killed Evelyn Lunar.
Meanwhile, near the front of the train base, Olivia sat outside reading a book. She rested on the ramp that led into the hangout room, though she didn't actually go inside, instead enjoying the air.
The book she was reading was the one Crowe gave her. She did her best to memorize all the tips and rules of alchemy that it gave her. Soon, she'd be ready to try to make her first potion. The book itself also went into detail about the creation of alchemy and how it was first made by an elf who served under Sylas and was intended as a way of-
"This is so freaking boring!" Ken dropped back onto the ramp and kicked her legs up. "Why can't we do something cool!"
Olivia frowned softly and turned the page of her book. "I didn't ask you to hang out with me outside." Ken Yuan was also with her, the redhead whining every few moments like a needy cat.
Ken huffed and rolled over onto her side to look at Olivia. "You've been stuck in your room for days before the last mission. It's good to see that you're out now." Then, in a softer tone that was shockingly gentle coming from Ken. "How are you holding up?"
Olivia set her book down and shrugged. She looked up to the sky, watching the clouds pass above. "I guess I'm doing well. I'm trying to get stronger. I'd love to reach the level of strength that you and Davi are at."
Ken snorted. "I'm stronger than Davi."
Olivia chuckled at her remark. "Maybe you and he should have a match."
"Maybe." Ken frowned as the words Sieg had told her came to mind regarding Davi. Don't let Davi near Evelyn Lunar. Even she knew who that woman was. She was a very powerful Knight, discussed a lot in Rossum. "I had something I wanted to ask."
"Yeah?" Olivia glanced back at Ken.
"What's up with that witch outfit you put on?"
"Oh, it's from my Polymorph skill." Olivia flicked her hand and brought the screen up, allowing Ken to read it. Unlike Determined, this skill wasn't altered or changed in any way. "Basically, once a day, I can transform. It doesn't last long and has a crazy long cooldown, but it's pretty good since it gives me a full revive."
"And you made it look like a witch girl's outfit?"
Olivia shrugged. "It just sort of came out like that." She admitted.
Ken frowned. "You should change it."
"Huh?"
"The witch outfit is good and all, but it's so close to that Evelyn girl's." Ken turned away and rolled onto her other side. "Doesn't suit you at all. Make a better outfit or something."
Olivia gave the other girl a confused look. Ken was sometimes a bit odd, just like Davi. She shook her head and turned away. "So," she awkwardly trailed off. "You think Merlin and Miranda are the same person?"
Ken hummed. "Yeah. Same outfit, same hair color, and same eyes. They're the same."
"I wonder how that works."
"Likely using Yin-Yang switching," Ken said boredly.
"Huh?"
Ken rolled her eyes. "Didn't I tell you about Yin and Yang energy? Men have Yang, and women have Yin. It's a type of energy, or rather a feeling of their energy, that is buried deep within their body. Within us is a realm that exists. This realm is there to hold our Cores as well as Lines of Qi. The energy this realm gives off is what allows it to absorb and hold mana as well as create something akin to a soul. Both the body and soul are vastly linked, and so the type of energy determines the body. Those with a soul full of Yin energy possess a female body, while those with Yang have a male body."
"I get that, sort of, not really," Olivia said sheepishly. "When you talked about it, you mentioned joint cultivation, which was giving someone else your energy? Like a man and a woman having s-sex?" She squeaked out.
"Yin and Yang can connect to mana, and that mana can be inserted into someone." Ken yawned. "When Yin and Yang collide, it creates an effect that causes brand new mana to be created, which then refills both users. Think of it this way. Cup one has water, and cup two has water. Both cups give each other half their liquid. They're the same, but during this transfer, brand-new water is created. Enough to fill a third cup, the new water is then split into one and two, giving them more to contain, and, in order to keep up with the surge of new liquid, the glass itself grows. Now imagine that as a person. A man and a woman screw and trade energy, and both grow."
"Okay? So how does that explain Merlin and Miranda?"
Ken turned to look back at Olivia, letting out a huff. "You're chatty now? Basically, in Rossum, transforming one's own natural energy is possible. They have pills for it and even techniques created. As I mentioned, the soul and body are connected. If you change the soul of someone with Yang energy into that of one with Yin energy, they'll transform and become the opposite sex of what they were."
"Whoa? Seriously? So, like, a boy can become a girl and vice versa?" Olivia asked, a little amazed.
"That's correct. It's not super common, but not rare either. I myself was born with Yang energy but decided to convert into a body suited for Yin at an early age." Ken bragged. "The female form suited my tastes far more."
"That's cool! Can you freely change?"
"No, I had to use a pill. Luckily, just taking one was enough. I'd need to take a second one if I ever wished to return, though; I'd never make a mistake like that." Ken casually flipped her hair. "I'm far too beautiful."
"I agree!"
Ken blushed slightly and turned her nose up. "Don't say dumb stuff out of nowhere."
Olivia just giggled. She was about to say more, but before she could, the space in front of her rippled. "Finally." The time she had been waiting for was here.
A zipper formed into the air and slashed down, opening up. Pock and Laerton stepped out. "Oh! Hey Olivia, hi Ken!" Pock waved when he saw them both.
Olivia stood up and looked at her captain. "Captain Laerton, I have a request." She said, suddenly speaking in a serious tone.
Laerton raised an eyebrow. She had just returned from another captain's meeting, being forced to go to them constantly now, and she wanted nothing more than to sit down and drink a cold beer. Hell, she'd take a hot one also…
"What is it?" Laerton asked.
Olivia gave a bow of her head and took a deep breath. "I'd like to borrow Pock and have him take me to the Shining Sentinels' base!"