An item capable of storing skills does not currently exist in this world.
It's a fascinating idea, but Nubeculas would never allow it. If such an item became widely accessible, then Nubeculas' influence over the people of the lower realm would diminish.
"It's possible—in theory, at least."
Lisa considered inventing such an item. But before anything could be made, it needed a solid foundation to work from. Dark matter is complicated and requires precise manipulation to create something new.
"What's your theory, Miss Lisa?"
I sat relaxed across from her. Though I know the basic theory, it wouldn't hurt to listen. She wanted to discuss it with someone—I know it.
"You wouldn't call it a delusional?" A brittle laugh escaped her. "Even the Academia called it 'blasphemous' when I proposed it."
I control a tug at my lips, as it wasn't the Trivia, it was the Church who called it 'Blasphemous'.
"Why would I say that before hearing your side?" I shrugged.
"What about Nubeculas and the Church? Everyone will oppose it." Her eyes squinted as if she were assessing my actual thoughts through my expression.
"Isn't that a problem for the future? We'll deal with it when the time comes." I met her gaze, unflinching.
Lisa studied me—really studied me—for the first time since I'd entered her employ. I am a nobody: no noble lineage, no legendary feats, just another face—completely ordinary.
Yet she had been shocked when Hekate allowed me to touch her so easily. The goddess had even smiled when I'd patted her shoulder like an old friend.
She had hired me out of sheer intrigue. Hekate had kind of claimed me as if I am special, something Lisa had never heard her say about anyone. Yet, she couldn't pinpoint what makes me different.
I am just a young man with an ever-present smile, hiding something behind it. That mysterious aura made her wary, yet she found me useful. I simplified her life, giving her more time to focus on her work. I streamlined her chaotic schedules, intercepted political nuisances, and even brewed her dreadful coffee exactly as she liked it—black, bitter, and strong enough to resurrect the dead.
Strangely, I guess it is my straightforward outlook on life that might made her trust me.
Trust. The word without even spoken settled between us like a shard of ice in honey. She hadn't trusted since the Archduke's death, since the condolences and empty honors had revealed their hollowness. But I… I asked for nothing. And that, perhaps, was why she now exhaled.
"We know items are created by 'Makers.' " I guess she trusts me enough to share her thoughts. "Most of the items we obtain from 'Scripts' are made by higher-form Makers."
Lisa began explaining her idea. I hadn't expected her to, but it worked out well. She is right, of course.
Makers weren't blacksmiths or mechanics like in stories, but architects of possibility. Their workshops were their minds; their tools, knowledge, and willpower. It is like forging or engineering, but entirely mental—they only needed the right materials and a clear vision.
As Lisa spoke, I nodded, prompting her to continue.
"The basis of skill generation is that one must develop it themselves. Even the most powerful skills originated from someone's effort."
I agreed. No skill was inherently granted—it had to be forged through hard work.
"So when the creator dies, the skill should perish with them. Yet Nubeculas preserves originals under stolen names. Why?"
Her insight was impressive. Skills should vanish with their creators, yet Nubecula, under various godly names, retained the originals. This time, I spoke up.
"Since Nubecula still holds the skills of the gods they replaced, skills should be able to transfer—if one has the right vessel."
"Exactly!"
Lisa surged forward, elbows on the desk. For a heartbeat, the weight in her shoulders lifted. This was the Lisa who'd captivated Hekate: not the grieving widow or the dutiful archduchess, but the woman who'd stared into the abyss of the gods' lies and dared to question—something I'd glimpsed in my dreams.
+
[Your perception is increasing.]
+
The message flickered at the edge of my vision as a fragment of my dream surfaced on its own.
[...She was depressed. Her husband had died in battle, leaving her to raise their daughter alone.
The Archduke had gone to war, but misfortune struck. Those who fought beside him mourned—he had been a good man.
"I'm sorry, Archduchess Lisa. He fought bravely. It was just bad luck."
"Yes. His skills were ineffective against the opponent."
"But he never backed down."
Many offered condolences, but the truth remained: her husband was gone. All she knew was that if he'd had the right skills, he would've survived.
He would've returned to her and their daughter...]
[...Six years had passed since his death. She managed the duchy while her daughter grew up well.
"Mother doesn't need to worry. I'll take care of the Archduchessy when I'm older, so you can focus on your research."
A child of barely five sat on her mother's lap, speaking earnestly. Lisa gazed at her warmly.
"Yes. I'm sure you will, honey. You'll make a finer ruler than I ever was"...]
[...Late at night, a message appeared in Lisa's room.
[The Nubecula 'Hekate' wishes to be your Blesser.]
[Do you accept her as your avatar?]
"No."
It was unexpected. Normally, one would've been overjoyed, but her priorities were different.
[The Nubecula 'Hekate' has opened a private chat.]
[Hekate: Your passion intrigues me.]
A screen materialized before Lisa. The higher being was going to great lengths to contact her directly. She formulated a reply in her mind.
[Lisa: Why is respected god interested in me?]
[Hekate: No need for formality. You remind me of myself.]
[Lisa: How so?]
[Hekate: Curiosity.]
[Lisa: I don't have time for this, respected god.]
[Hekate: You seek answers? I offer truths. Not all of them, but enough to set you on the path.]
[Lisa: Anything?]
Though she had refused, Hekate had observed Lisa long enough to know what would sway her.
[Hekate: Yes.]
"Why me?" Lisa whispered to the empty room. The reply came instantly
[Hekate: Because you're the first mortal in centuries who looked at our 'miracles' and I am bored.]
Lisa had countless questions, but as a lower being, she lacked knowledge of the higher realm. After deliberation, she made her choice.
[You have chosen Hekate as your blesser. You are now her avatar.]
[Hekate: I knew we were alike.]
[Lisa: It is an opportunity I couldn't ignore.]...]
The dream fragments dissolved, leaving only the present: Lisa's breathless excitement, the crackling place, and the unspoken realization that we'd crossed a threshold tonight.
The idea of a skill-storing item had come to Lisa after her husband's death. If he'd possessed the right skills, he might have lived.
Hekate, drawn by her determination, chose her as an avatar. Known for her mythological research, Hekate shared knowledge of the higher realm—including how they adopted the names of past gods as successors.
Lisa leaned closer, her fingers gripping each other. The lamplight caught the flecks of gold in her black eyes - eyes that hadn't burned with this intensity since before the Archduke's death. This was more than academic curiosity; it is the first time she'd dared to voice her heresy to living ears rather than parchments.
I closed my eyes, not just to think but to hide the knowing glint in them.
"If transferring skills is possible," I began slowly, drawing out each word like a card player revealing a winning hand, "and if we find a way... instead of passing a skill to another person, we could transfer it to a storage item."
"Then we could wield it like any other tool," Lisa finished, her voice barely above a whisper.
Her nod came automatically, but then her shoulders tensed. But there was a major flaw.
"Miss Lisa," I said, "you know that skills, once manifested, become a part of one's soul." I pressed two fingers to my own chest "Dark matter doesn't just shape them - it binds them, integrated into their souls."
Lisa's teeth worried her lower lip until a bead of blood welled up.
"Yes," she admitted, dabbing at the cut absently. "Extraction would be like tearing out a piece of someone's soul. The shock alone would stop their heart."
"Precisely." I leaned back, the chair creaking ominously. "Which explains why there are no duplicate gods in the Higher realm's pantheon. Their predecessors didn't just retire - they were consumed whole."
Lisa's research notes fluttered as if caught in an unseen breeze. She already has studied this far and now she is trying to come up with a way so that people wouldn't die during the process. Hekate's presence lingered at the edges of my perception, her amusement like static electricity along my spine.
After a calculated pause, I put my hand on my chin and again closed one of my eyes to think. "If I may propose an alternative approach..."
Lisa's head snapped up so quickly that a pin slipped from her braid. The metallic ping as it hit the floor seemed absurdly loud. For a heartbeat, I saw the woman she'd been before widowhood - that brilliant, reckless scholar who'd once challenged three of the only known dragons associated with the crown, to a logic duel and won.
"I don't have any solution in my mind to prevent death," I admitted, watching her the little hope she had in her eyes disappearing. The lie tasted bitter - I knew twelve methods from my dreams, but revealing any would raise questions I couldn't yet answer.
"However," I continued, tapping the flawed schematics spread across her desk, "we're putting the cart before the horse. Even if extraction were possible..." I let the sentence hang, "I think we should consider the storage item first."
" Would do you mean? "
She was uninterested at this point, I could tell, but then I spoke with a smile.
" If a skill becomes one with a soul it means it requires soul-like surroundings to exist, then how would it be stored in a storage item?"
Lisa again lifted her head and then opened her mouth to say something but there was nothing she could say.
Lisa's breath caught. "The storage medium! Of course!" There was a surge of realization in her eyes. "A skill separated from its soul would dissipate without a compatible vessel!"
I hid a smile behind my hand. This was the breakthrough moment I'd seen in my visions " My research would have been useless. "
Well, I wouldn't call it useless. It was supposed to be one of the greatest invention done by a lower existence, but whatever she thinks.
"Arthur," she said suddenly, closer than I'd realized. Her scent enveloped me, something uniquely Lisa. When had she moved so close? Our faces were now close enough that I could feel her breath.
" What theories do you have in mind? "
I smiled and tilted my head to the side.
" This is the first time you said my name, Miss Lisa. " The realization sent an unexpected warmth through my chest.
*Meow*
"Tch".
Lisa always calls me without using my name, it was the first time she said it out loud. Even Hekate was surprised, Persephone clicked her tongue at that.
-What is it?
I asked Persephone what happened but she didn't reply. Lisa realize the situation and leaned back to sit on her chair.
"I— That is—" She fumbled for composure, straightening her posture.
Cough " I am sorry. I was too excited. "
"It's alright. It was a rare sight. "
" Your idea was intriguing. I will look into it. "
" Then I should take my leave to prepare materials for the next class. " I rose smoothly and headed towards the door. As I was walking Lisa spoke my name again.
" Arthur. "
" Yes, Miss Lisa. "
" Address me as Professor."
It was an unexpected reminder, I also have never called Lisa anything other than 'Miss Lisa' since I have been here, except when we are in public. At some point, she stopped reminding me about it.
"Of course, Professor."
"And Arthur." Just my name again, but laden with something fragile.
When I turned, she wasn't looking at me but at the broken quill in her hands.
"Thank you."
Just those two words and Persephone's psychic laughter prickled at my temples.
"Oh, you've done it now," she purred. "The Ice Queen's cracking."
I ignored her, focusing on Lisa's bowed head. "Merely doing my job. It is my job to help you." Another half-truth. My real work had barely begun.
" Yes, go do your job. "
" I will. "
The walk to my quarters took me past the Hall of Portraits. The Archduke's stern visage watched me from his gilded frame. I paused just long enough to meet his painted eyes.
+
[Lower Existence 'Lisa Hart' trust in you has increased.]
[Affection of Existence 'Lisa Hart' is increasing.]
[Affection 15 → 25]
+
The message shimmered with unusual brilliance. I exhaled slowly, feeling the pieces click into place. Right on schedule.