Silence gripped the room, each of us had a different reason for our silence, but neither of us gave the other the reason why.
'I remember when I was about to die and had all but accepted my fate. I remember being completely overcome with rage and feeling a strange energy coming out of me. Maybe if I can try to recall that feeling, I can understand spirit energy.'
Without losing momentum, I closed my eyes and tried to recall that fateful day. I started to recall the face of a man with silvery hair, laughing like a maniac. At just his face alone, I began to feel rage bubbling up through my veins and my hands clenched into fists.
Taking a deep breath, I was able to bat his smug face away and focus solely on what I felt. And what I felt was embarrassment, as I looked at my pitiful self. But pushing past all my emotions I felt something sitting under it all, a strange alien, yet familiar power.
It rippled the space around me, similar to mana, but this power cried out to the world, and seemed to demand an answer, but I couldn't tell what.
I explored that question this energy asked, no matter how many times I repeated the sensation, I couldn't put it into words. But I started to feel this strange energy reverberate through my body and a thrumming spread through my mind, until it slowly grew in intensity until it was a pounding.
With the loud drumming blocking out every single sound, even my internal voice couldn't break through this loud, intense sound. Then, the drumming blended into a single, all-encompassing sound that seemed to pull my attention towards something. But I couldn't understand it until a strange question bubbled overtop everything.
"Why do I live?"
Even after the question was asked, the sound wouldn't fade, it was as if it demanded an answer. But I couldn't answer, it was something that I had been asking myself in this life and my last. I have never felt like I belonged, I knew that I didn't have the worst life in the world and still had everything that I needed to live. But I was lonely, I never had anyone, no friends, no family and no romantic partners. Even my relationship with aunty Jean felt more of a comfort for the lonely.
So, why do I live? Because I can? For myself? To find meaning? Each of those replies floated through my mind, but they didn't fit right and seemed to fizzle out.
"I don't know." That reply resounded in my mind and seemed to counter the overwhelming sound in my mind. And left a silence in its place, but it was peaceful and for the first time, I felt completely relaxed.
After drinking in this peace, I didn't want to let go, but I knew that this couldn't last forever, so I opened my eyes and saw a wide-eyed elf looking at me. A face completely enveloped in surprise.
"H-How is that possible?" Luralie whispered in disbelief.
I furrowed my brows and looked at her, I didn't really know what she meant.
"W-What are you?" she asked, with a voice mixed with confusion and horror.
"I am me. I don't know what you mean?"
"I am me. I don't know what you mean?" I replied, taken back by her question. I felt strange as I spoke, like I was speaking outwards and inwards both at the same time.
I shifted in my seat feeling a little uncomfortable by the way she looked at me. But then, my vision shifted as I moved, like I was on drugs. As I looked down at my own body, I saw something strange. It was as if there was two of me, one sat just above my actual body and was mostly transparent.
*Ping*
[Soul arts: level 1]
Souls are the true essence of a being, and you have learnt to commune and harness the raw essence of life. Soul arts are considered the higher form of spirit arts, as it isn't restricted to spirit contracts.
Resistant to most soul attacks and soul possessions.
"How is your spirit out of your body?" She asked, bringing me back to the room, as I was flabbergasted by the notification screen.
"I-I don't know."
"I-I don't know." It was then, that I realised that both of me was speaking at the same time. My physical body and my soul.
"I've never seen this happen before. It's like your spirit is trying to escape your body." Luralie said aloud, looking at both of me in complete shock.
Her words helped me realise that I felt a connection between my selves. It was difficult to describe, it was like a thread without being a thread. If I had to describe it, the most accurate thing would be like a wireless device connected to another.
With that thought in mind, I began to focus my mind in pulling my soul back inside of me, hoping to become one, once again.
It took a minute, but it was my soul, so unlike learning magic, it was far easier to manipulate. As my soul settled back into place, my vision returned back to normal and felt more complete.
"Test, test, test." I spoke, testing to see if everything had returned back to normal and judging by a single voice speaking, I took it to mean that I was successful.
"Now that you have returned back to normal. Tell me how you did that? I have been practicing spirit arts for hundreds of years and have never encountered anything like that before. Even my master, who was considered the apex of the arts on the continent, wasn't able to do something like that." Luralie seemed to have regained her composure, however, her trembling hands that griped the fabric of her dress, told me otherwise.
"I am unsure myself. If I had to name it, then I'd call it soul arts." I replied. Although this was a game, there is no concept of skill acquisition like what happens when you learn a skill. So, you have to use vague terms to explain things and hope they don't ask more questions.
"Soul…arts?" She tested the words, rolling them around in her mouth. It was clear that she understood the words, but not what they meant.
"Yes, I feel like I can manipulate my soul freely. Though, I'm not sure how it compares to spirit arts." I added, quoting loosely from the skill description, though, I decided to leave out the fact that it was a superior to spirit arts.
"I see…" She once again fell into a thoughtful silence. The wrinkles on her brow didn't suit an immaculately beautiful face. However, the person in question didn't seem to care at the moment as her mind was spinning a mile a minute.
After, a near minute of silence, she let out a deep sigh. "Well, that doesn't change much. I will admit that I was surprised, but I still think that learning about spirit arts would be beneficial to you." She said, readjusting in her seat, to take a more dignified pose.
"Of course, I'd still like to learn from you." I answered, and she smiled in response, probably thinking that I had no need from her lessons anymore.
"Then, we will start as soon as possible. Zale will be held up with other affairs for a while. So, you don't need to worry about failing in your pledge." She said, rising from her seat, seemingly impatient to begin.
'Such an impatient woman.' I smirked. 'Though, if Zale is busy, then I'll have nothing to do until then.' I concluded as I too, stood up from my seat and followed behind Luralie, wondering what other pranks she has in store for me.