"Are you saying... there's a—connection—between 'Grief Seeds' and 'Soul Gems'?"
Kyoko expression was not just stiff; it was full of disbelief and... a plea.
She was praying to hear the answer she wanted most from Lancer mouth. At that moment, Lancer slowly opened his mouth.
"I don't know."
"Really?"
"Really."
Did Lancer know?
He had known for a long time; it was information he was almost certain of. If "plot knowledge" might have discrepancies, his research into Soul Gems made him 90% sure. But he wouldn't say that now.
"Precisely because I'm not sure, I planned to research your Soul Gem to see if I could achieve some breakthrough based on my research of Grief Seeds."
The atmosphere in the car turned quiet again. This time, Lancer didn't intend to break it. He could help with some things, but not others.
He could perhaps counsel a warrior whose hands trembled after battle, but he was powerless to help a young girl with a conflicted heart.
Since the body collapses if the Soul Gem is moved too far away, Lancer drove Kyoko straight back to his home. Unsurprisingly, Olga Marie, wearing plain glasses engraved with special thaumaturgical circuits, was sitting in the living room flipping through her lesson plans.
When she heard the sound of the lock turning, she initially looked excited, but as the door opened, her expression gradually returned to normal. When she saw Kyoko Sakura following behind Lancer, her face turned completely cold.
"Mr. Lancer, I didn't realize that after having Director Fiore, you'd not only move on Miss Leone, your maid, but now you won't even spare little girls?"
Olga Marie words made Kyoko freeze, and her expression became quite "subtle." Lancer face, however, completely fell.
"If anything, Leone started it. And my relationship with Fiore isn't what you think... Never mind. Sakura, don't listen to Olga nonsense. Come to my lab first..."
"Oh~ The lab..."
Lancer really didn't know how to respond. Normally, Olga Marie seemed fine, but as soon as other women were involved, she became extremely aggressive toward him.
He wasn't sure if he should even be angry about it.
Does Olga Marie really like Fiore that much? It seems she's grown quite a bit...
But despite his frustration, he had to explain.
"I told you about the unique nature of Soul Gems, right? They can't be too far from the body. If you're worried, come to the lab with us..."
"Fine."
Before Lancer could finish, she agreed immediately. After tidying up her lesson plans on the coffee table, she stood up decisively and looked at Lancer sideways.
"Let's go."
Seeing her fluid, practiced movements, the corner of Lancer mouth couldn't help but twitch.
Was his integrity really that untrustworthy?
"I'll go in bit by bit. If you feel uncomfortable, tell me immediately."
Looking at the serious Lancer, Kyoko nodded with a red face.
"...Okay."
After receiving her confirmation, Lancer lit up the Runes on the floor. He then began using his mana to tentatively contact her Soul Gem. The room fell silent. Although the lights were on, the faint fluorescent glow emitted by Lancer mana kept both girls, including Olga Marie, staring intently.
Time passed slowly. Olga Marie finished her prep work and turned to look at Lancer.
Although Olga Marie family primarily researched "Astrology," they had studied other fields, especially Spiritualism. She naturally knew how fanatical the Einzbern family was regarding "Soul" research, yet they still had no substantial breakthroughs.
Even though she was a "ghost" and could touch physical objects, she wasn't a "materialized soul" in the true sense, because her existence relied entirely on Lancer mana. However, using this as a starting point, she had begun researching soul-related magecraft and was naturally curious about the "Soul Gem."
A pure soul is actually invisible. Even ghosts only manifest after obsessions mix with things like demonic energy or mana. Because of this, a pure soul is incredibly fragile and requires a physical vessel or body for protection.
Taking the soul out and sealing it up is indeed a decent method. But since those negative emotions can enter it, there must be a specific mechanism...
In his left hand was the fire-like red Soul Gem; in his right was the dark gray Grief Seed.
After carefully bringing the Soul Gem close to the Grief Seed, Lancer eyes widened.
He pushed his "Eagle Eye" ability to its limit, meticulously observing every tiny change between the two gems.
But soon, Lancer set Kyoko Soul Gem down and closed his eyes to sense carefully.
Although he felt a bit sorry for the soul inside that "Grief Seed," Lancer had no choice. He mixed his own mana into the filthy aura and began merging it into the Grief Seed in his hand.
Inside the originally dark gray Grief Seed, faint, weak blue threads began to appear.
"The Grief Seed... how is that possible?!"
Kyoko Sakura, witnessing the change in the Grief Seed, stood up abruptly.
Previously, she thought Lancer was mainly experimenting with her Soul Gem. When she saw the primary target was the Grief Seed, she had breathed a sigh of relief. But seeing the actual transformation of the Grief Seed, she felt her worldview take a massive hit.
In her experience, Grief Seeds never did anything other than turn blacker.
But right then——
Phew!!
Exhaling sharply, Lancer clutched his head. His mana reserves weren't that large to begin with, and having to set aside a portion to maintain Olga Marie form made his already scarce mana even more stretched. It was only because of his high recovery rate that he could manage; any ordinary magus would have collapsed long ago.
"How was it?"
Olga Marie asked directly. Lancer gave a confident smile.
"I haven't found the solution yet, but it did prove my previous guess—the 'Soul' still exists inside a Witch's 'Grief Seed'!"