That evening, after I said fair well to Luralie, or the cheeky matriarch, for clarification. I decided to turn in for the evening, seeing as it was already on the cusp of evening when we arrived, then Luralie had taken quite a lot of my time, asking lots of questions about the outside world. So, by the time she left, it was the small hours of the evening.
"Cainy, Cain. That pointy eared woman was all sparkly!" Little red said as they danced around my head as I laid in bed.
"Sparkly? Maybe it's because she can use spirit arts?" I offered as I was a bit taken aback by the strange statement.
"What's spirit arts?" They asked, as they floated close to my face.
"I don't know exactly, but she can see you and our little friends. Maybe it's because of that?" I suggested, looking at the other spirits floating lazily in the air, as if they were snoozing.
"But you don't sparkle." They countered, floating in a figure of eight.
"Then, what do I look like to you?" I felt curious as to what spirits see.
"Bright and colourful! And, and you are warm and comfy!" Little red spoke fast and almost tripped over their words.
"Really? How strange." I absentmindedly replied. It was strange to think that I was giving off colour like some sort of LED light strip. But maybe the reason why I have so many spirits around me is because of my magic? Either way, it's a little unsettling to think I was some strobe light.
With the slightly disturbing thought plaguing my mind, I fell asleep. The morning came quickly, in between the self-care I did in the real world before heading back into the game.
I woke up with my eyes still closed, however, the sound of birds chirping reached my ears, as well as the distinct sound of morning military practice, which brought back certain unpleasant memories.
However, the strangest sensation was the pressure on my chest. Opening my eyes to investigate, I saw a head of pure white hair and a single pointed elf poking out.
"Matriarch, why are you in my room? Better yet why are you lying on my chest?" I asked, daring not to move, in case I cause some sort of international incident.
With a groan, the head on my chest moved slightly. "Just a few more minutes." She complained.
'Is this woman really as regal as Zale said?'
"Matriarch, you are putting me in a very difficult position." I replied, hoping that the slight pleading tone to my voice would be enough for her to move.
However, she just made more sounds like a child being told to get up for school. If a vein could pop on my forehead, it would have. 'If you're going to be like that, then I'll play dirty as well.'
I placed my free hand gently on her head and slowly brushed her pure white hair, curling the lose strands over the single ear that was visible. As my hand gentle caressed through her hair, I felt the cheeky elf freeze, and didn't risk to even breathe.
Then, with all the hair tucked neatly behind her ear, I grabbed the ear and pulled. "OUCH!" she suddenly lurched up and tried to escape my clutches.
"Good morning, matriarch." I said, with a smile that didn't reach the rest of my face.
"G-Good morning." She replied, with a slight wince in her face. I wasn't holding her ear with any amount of strength that would hurt. Elves just have sensitive ears.
"Are you done with your prank?" I asked and she nodded. After studying her face for a moment, I released her ear.
I stopped looking at the beautiful elf with bed hair and a sad look on her face, as she rubbed her ear. I got up from the bed and stretched a little before going to the washroom to clean up a little.
After I was finished, I entered back into the bedroom, to find Luralie sitting on a chair, looking immaculate, as if what had happened a few moments before, was just a dream.
"So, why are you here so early in the morning?" I asked, as I took a seat opposite her.
"Why else, to start your training." She replied with a smile.
If I were anyone else, I would have fallen for that lie and thought that this elf was an angel. However, that wasn't the case.
"Ah I see. So, in other words, you're bored." My words once again froze her in place, the same way a child would when their naughty behaviour was discovered.
She let out a robotic laugh after a few moments. "Well, shall we have something to eat first." With a single, loud clap, which seemed to resonate unnaturally throughout the room. The door to my room opened and in stepped elves with trays of food.
Placing a tray in front of both Luralie and me, the elves swiftly left. On top of the silver trays, with a bowl of fresh fruit, and a bowl of steaming vegetable soup.
Elves weren't vegetarian, so I was a little taken back why there wasn't any meat, considering how disciplined they were at training their bodies. But I wasn't a fussy eater, so I didn't mind.
Luralie and me shared our breakfast in silence. It was a little awkward to be sharing a private meal with the matriarch of my hosts, but I didn't let it bother me for long. As this elf had a bad habit of making people squirm.
After our humble breakfast, I served up some tea, as the elves that delivered our food had also been kind to leave a pot of tea as well.
"So, what's your first lesson?" I asked, placing the hot cup of tea onto the table in front of her.
Picking up the cup, and giving it a sniff before taking a sip, she looked at me with a pleasant smile.
"Well, seeing as you can already see spirits, and communicate with them. I think we shall focus on improving your communication skills first." She said, with a little playful look in her eyes.
"Would you care to elaborate?" I asked, swallowing my minor annoyance with a sip of tea.
"Of course." She said, placing the cup back onto the table.
"I assume the way you are communicating right now is by talking normally, correct?" I nodded to her question.
"I thought as much. The only reason why you have been able to communicate is because this child is very smart." She explained, looking at little red. I couldn't help but agree with her, as the spirit was able to learn my name just by hearing mine and Zale's conversation.
"Most other spirits won't be able to talk to you like that, either because it is incapable, or because it is stubborn." This time, Luralie looked at the other spirits that were playing off to one side.
"To be able to communicate with all spirits, you need to be able to speak with your spirit. Only then, can you hear the true voices of spirits." I fell into confusion, as I listened. For one reason.
"By spirit, do you mean what fighters use to empower themselves?" I asked. At times like these, it showed the flaws with language.
With a raised eyebrow, she smiled "No. That kind of spirit is still mana." She explained, and then took a second to collect her thoughts. "I suppose for the sake of clarity, think of the spirit in spirit arts, as the soul."
I fell into a silence as I processed her words. 'In both of my lives, I have never heard of the ability to manipulate the soul. From what I understood, everyone radiates a certain amount of mana from their body. That's the primary reason why spells that interfere with the body directly isn't possible, as that radiation disperses most of the mana from the spell. That's why most healing spells aren't that potent.'
"So, how does someone bypass the effect of the natural mana radiation?" I asked, through furrowed brows.
Luralie was taken aback by my question, but soon a wide smile appeared on her face. "That is such an arcane outlook on things." She covered her mouth with one delicate hand. "But I never said that the spirit energy was anything like mana." She began to laugh, a light laugh.
I sat, watching her, lost in my thoughts. I wondered what spirit energy could be used for and how it differs from mana, which was already a phenomenon.
"Then how do I learn to control spirit energy?" I asked, eager to learn this new area.
"There are two ways. The first and the most common way, is to meditate and commune with the deepest part of your being. Once you are completely aware of who you are, as a being, then you can sense the two halves that make you whole." She explained, and I had to admit, I zoned out a little towards the end. I always found spiritualism a little difficult to get my head around.
"What's the other way?" I asked, hoping to find a way that didn't mean becoming a monk for a year or two.
"To die." She replied with a beautiful smile. It was a mix between her genuine beauty and her practical joker side.
"What do you mean?" I asked, feeling a little threatened, if I had to admit.
"When someone dies, their body and spirit separate and only then can someone experience what the soul truly is." She explained, with a little sorrowful look on her face.
However, I didn't have time to interpret that look of hers as my mind was in turmoil. 'Is what I felt just before my death what she is talking about? Could I have used spirit arts without me even realising it back then?'