251 The Magician 9 (1/2)
She felt that too much time burden had been added to her soul. And if she didn't accomplish the rise, then she had to embrace the fall. She warned that there was a point when a climber's soul, unable to properly release previous lives, would become rigid, metaphysically. In such a state, it could grow no more and the myriad methods of rebirth wouldn't grant much beyond some extra useless time. If she succeeded, she wrote that she'd go to a nexus after releasing some emotional baggage.
The post note read, ”You're so full of life and drive. Hold onto that as long as you can. For an old woman like me, it's too much. If I make it to fifth tier, many things will change for me and I'll be able to keep up with you! Stay strong, love Lily.”
Orison looked at Duran and said, ”I don't know what it takes to get to tier five, do you? I think I may have forgotten.”
The boy nodded. ” A domain. It's the field around them that tier fives use to bend law.”
A certain memory lit up. ”Can tier three have something similar?”
Duran nodded again. ”Reborn tier fives usually carry some of their domain with them when they reincarnate and can express it when they are tier three. If they don't become climbers again, it'll disappear after a couple of reincarnations.”
Orison said excitedly, ”Gan has one!... I was planning on setting him up with someone I knew that regretted how they had done things. Do you think I should change that?”
Duran shrugged. ”Depends if he was killed or chose to die. If it was the second one, he'll never become tier four because his own soul wants to be renewed.”
”Are you having any luck with the soul conduit building exercise?” They asked after making an internal decision.
The boy nodded. ”And it's good that you discovered this way. Half of the problem of becoming tier five is the long time it takes to get rid of foreign influences in the body and soul. Chrism never fully belongs to you. A conduit made of chrism isn't bad but it can slow things down with accidental contamination.”
Orison shook Their head in disbelief. ”Why do so many climbers go crazy over getting some if that's the case? I've been told it's almost impossible to become tier four without it. Well, outside of special bloodlines.”
Duran added, ”Or powerful external help. I've heard it too... It's true, that's why. You've spent long periods of time exposed to the knowledge of the afterlife. You've learned things that usually only tier fives can. Spiritual bloodlines and friendly tier fives do what you're doing.
Orison sighed. ”Spiritual debt. It all comes down to that... It's just as well. My inner realm is more gluttonous than you and twice as picky.”
They ended the statement with a friendly fist tap to Duran's shoulder. ”I know your momentum building is going slow but do you have some room in your storage box for more magic items yet?”
Duran nodded. ”Yes. I'm recovering abilities too. If you're ever in trouble, no matter where you are, you can call on me. I have you designated as my charge.”
”I almost ate your spiritual mark when you did that, by the way. I thought some random entity was trying to brand me at first,” They grumbled.
After a meal and some chit chat. Orison took a trance and got busy again. One heavily gold lubricated senatorial meeting later and They had enough of a support to get started on building Evergreen Academy in earnest. Apparently, the Emperor was fully supportive of the idea. Three severed Domain elf heads had helped.
Once They had dropped off Patrick and some supplies, They were surprised to see Master Kretch already there. Not only that, but the old man latched onto Patrick like a withered leach. The old obsidian elf had instantly recognized something in the young Highlander that so many others had overlooked.
Later in the day, the four Summerland elves that had chosen to follow Orison from the villa had joined the effort along with two enchanted golems attuned to Master Kretch and Patrick respectively. A run for materials and supplies later, the process of clearing work was ready to begin. Everything wasn't smooth in Evergreen Valley, however.
Hefty and Mellow had predictably found the only females in the valley and began affectionately harassing them, even the married one. With an apology and some material donations to the goat herders, They returned to the two malcontents. After an epic *ss chewing, They promised to take the two to an upper class establishment at the Centerland capitol if the goat herders or any other female who might show up in Evergreen had no complaints for a month.
”Claudius, I'm leaving you in charge. Nooo, there's no grounds for pushing it at your brother. Corvinus, I need you to come with me to Whiteriver. You are going to be the cushion between me and the legate. I also will need you as a consultant for my audience with Lord Whiteriver, when I get one,” They said.
Corvinus saluted crisply and said with a bright smile, ”It will be an honor to serve as your aid, sir.”
Orison returned the smile and said, ”Go pack an off duty outfit and toiletries. We won't be in official mode the whole time we're gone, after all.”
As Corvinus ran off at a double time, Claudius chuckled and said, ”You better be glad Centurion Calix didn't hear that.”
The magician snorted, ”HE better be glad he didn't hear it. If he pinches a single girl's backside while I'm gone, I'm going to personally tie him to a pole and flail his off... That aside, I have something very important to discuss with you.
”The Obsidian Elf fisher girl you are fond of is very early in a pregnancy. Wait!... Hear me out. It's your brother's but he wasn't in his right mind at the time. She did it as a final kindness for him because she was moved by his suffering and grief.”
After a long pause, Claudius said sadly, ”Then they should get married. My brother is an honorable man. He'll do right by her.”
Orison said with a thoughtful frown, ”Yes, he'll make her very happy. Yes, he'll stubbornly insist on doing the 'right thing' if he finds out but he'll be miserable and you know why. He hasn't been happy since he stopped getting responses from his pen pal. And you know damn well that the things he was talking about in those letters weren't things that he did with his childhood 'sweetheart'.
”You love Yulian and she loves you. I gave her the money to go it alone if she wanted to but she insisted on telling YOU. Not your brother, you. For the same reasons that your brother would insist, she'll ultimately choose him if he does. If you can bear to take her as your wife BEFORE you tell him, both you and your brother can avoid regrets.”
Claudius looked at Orison in shock. ”But that's... How could I... Wouldn't it be wrong? And how do you know all this?”
Orison let spirit shine through Their eyes for a moment. ”I'm not psychic but there ARE things that I know from another 'what if' that's constantly moving further away from its original route. Do you still want her or is keeping a secret for a little while too much a price to pay for a better ending?
”Yes, he'll be mad but he'll get over it once the two of you tell him how you feel. How the three of you decide to handle it from there isn't that hard to manage. Just make sure the kid knows once she's old enough to understand if there's reason to keep it from her at all. That's around seven, by the way. Not someone's deathbed when she's over thirty or something stupid like that.”
Seeing that the man was dithering and would eventually talk himself into a decision that would end up leaving both the brothers with regrets later in life, Orison said, ”Here he comes. Oh, well. I guess he'll eventually ask when he finds out and you're still sitting on the fence. He'll be miserably married to the person you love while you miserably watch from the shadows trying to convince yourself- That was fast!... You ready to go then, Centurion Corvinus?”
The younger brother, who was still trotting up from quite a distance away shouted his agreement while trotting a little faster.
Claudius, gripped in a moment of panic, Growled at a whisper, ”Yes. Yes, I want her.”