Divine Mage

by L Travern

  Helina didn't like that answer and snorted. "Time talked to me in my Vision. And if the universe isn't sentient, how can the world be? You do understand that the World's Writ is real, right?"

  Matthew shook his head. "Besides Laws, there are Truths, and those can be touched by the universe when it wants to interact with anyone." Helina opened her mouth but he raised his hand to stop her. "We can come back to this topic on a later date. For now, let me focus on energies."

  She didn't keep quiet. "If you're wrong about Time, how can you know anything about ener-"

  Matthew had had enough of her insolence!

  "Myriad Arts," he said in a low voice, but it was enough for Helina to shut up and pale a bit. "Spellcasting, Double Element: Time, Space. Legendary Severing Blade."

  On Matthew's hand, an invisible sword made of pure spacetime was created. It had no visible form but a slight distortion to the light, but everywhere present, even Mark who had no control over mana, felt some dread from it as if its very existence was antagonistic to reality itself.

  Helina was so shocked she created a mana shield around herself and stepped back, only to hit a stone wall and find herself cornered.

  Myriad Arts – Spellcasting – Single Element: Water – Legendary Water Condensation!

  Ambient humidity was pulled into a ball of water the size of a fist, floating above Matthew's head. He stopped supporting in in the air, and as it fell down, he hit it using the Severing Blade.

  Where the blade went through, water was severed from the time-space continuum. A kind of long thin blade of water was kept on the air.

  Matthew extended his hand, trying to push it, but his hand went through the water as if it wasn't there, and in fact, it wasn't. It wasn't part of their reality anymore. It was only Matthew's mana that kept it somewhat anchored to the universe and visible.

  That was impressive, but it wasn't enough for what he wanted to do.

  "Myriad Arts, Spellcasting, Double Elements: Time, Space. Legendary Spacetime Transcending Touch."

  Matthew extended his hand again, and this time, his hand touched the water and pushed it away from him. However, instead of the blade of water changing position, it extended. It had been severed from time-space, and so, the Laws of Time and Space didn't affect it, which allowed it to occupy two places at the same time.

  After he pushed for a few centimeters, the blade of water had turned into a block of water, and over half his mana had been depleted. The universe was jealous of its own matter, and it didn't allow things to be simply cut from its time-space. To definitely sever something from the universe, Matthew would need much more power and mana. All he could do for now was to temporarily sever matter from the universe, and while the universe kept trying to bring it back, Matthew continuously used mana to keep the matter away.

  What he did next, though, almost depleted his entire mana pool.

  "Myryad Arts, Spellcasting, Double Elements: Time, Space. Legendary Reality Patching."

  He let go of the Severing Blade at the same moment the new spell involved the water block and reattached it to his reality. The entire block of water came to being and fell on the ground as if nothing had happened.

  However, everyone there felt something they couldn't explain.

  It was like a soundless scream of pain coming from their very beings. Reality had been meddled with right then, twisted in front of their very eyes, defenestrated by a simple Champion mage!

  That sensation took only a split second but it would be forever remembered by their souls. No one had never felt that, and of those presents, only Matthew was likely to feel something like that again in his life.

  A moment after the scream went away, beasts from all over the mountain let out sounds of agony, resonating with the universe. They had felt that pain too, and they instinctively mourned for what they felt.

  As for Matthew, he had less than five percent of mana remaining, and a single tear of blood left his eyes, as his soul had just almost been crushed after being found responsible for such atrocity, while his body mourned for being host to such a terrible soul.

  "Now, Helina Chosen," he said amidst the howls and cries of countless beasts. "If you understand Time enough to do something like this, I'll listen to your theories about what Time is and how sentient it is. Until then, just shut the fuck up when your better is speaking."

  He immediately realized that had been a mistake on his part. He was a being so old that he could count his age in how many stars had been born and died in his lifetime. He had experienced so many things, that nothing should be able to make him impatient.

  And yet, Helina had affected him. Or, more precisely, the brain of a kid in the body he now had, was affecting his mind much more than he believed it should be possible. Kids didn't like to be contradicted, and he had acted accordingly.

  It wasn't a surprise for him; he knew that no matter how powerful his willpower was, it couldn't stand flawlessly against his physical instincts. Although his consciousness resided in his soul, it was through his brain that he could control his body unless he used mana, and the brain chemicals could also affect the mind in return. The issue was that it had been a terrible time for something like that to happen.

  Because the Crusader was present, and if she tried to kill him now, he would be as powerless as a fish in a barrel.

  As his heart started beating furiously, he took a few leons and started replenishing his mana as quickly as he could.

  Meanwhile, everyone was looking from the water on the ground to Matthew's face in complete disbelief.

  * * *

  Helina had felt it clearly.

  The boy had used time mana in the water, and then the blade of water felt inexistent. She couldn't control space mana, but she could feel some different energy mixed with time, and if his words could be believed, it had been the space element.

  To mix time and space in a spell was impressive enough. And to cut something from the time-space continuum like he seemed to have done was against everything she had been thought.

  It was impossible.

  But she had been using her Mana Sense, and she felt it, when that water simply ceased existing in his Mana Sense despite her being able to see it! Even the time mana that had been directed at the water when Matthew used his Severing Blade stopped being in there!

  It was the strangest thing because she could feel Matthew's mana pool emptying, but she couldn't tell where the mana was going, as if it was simply ceasing to exist, which of course, was also impossible.

  When his hand went through the water, it confirmed to her that the water wasn't in her reality anymore, even though she could somehow see it. But when he used a spell to touch it, and the blade of water became a block of water, she felt as if her mind was being blown.

  That water was in a place devoid of spacetime! Or rather, with different rules, for if it lacked space, it shouldn't even exist. Or at least, so she thought.

  And then, when he brought the entire block of water back, and the universe itself reacted to it, she became sure: he wasn't a demon.

  No, he was the Herald of Time!

  She didn't know why he said Time had no sentience, but it didn't matter. Only the Herald of Time, who would one day come to lead humanity in a war against the demons, could have such understanding of time, enough for him to even cut spacetime itself!

  "Now, Helina Chosen," he said, awakening her from her reverie. "If you understand Time enough to do something like this, I'll listen to your theories about what Time is and how sentient it is. Until then, just shut the fuck up when your better is speaking."

  She looked from the wet ground to him, his words only confirming her conclusion. He was her better; he was the Herald!

  She didn't need to understand him. She only needed to obey.

  Without further ado, she knelt on the ground and lowered her head. "Helina Chosen pays respect to the Herald of Time."

  * * *

  Shadow One was about to attack the boy, despite his
possible defenses. He was even more dangerous than she believed! He had to die as soon as possible!

  But that's when the Prophetess knelt and called him Herald of Time, and that changed everything.

  She knew one in there could feel it, not even the Prophetess, but Shadow One could. The invisible thread of inverted mana that came from the Prophetess, connecting her soul to the First Temple, had just sent a massive spike of energy to it.

  The Prophetess declaration wasn't an empty one. Names in this world had power, and the name 'Herald of Time' had special meaning to the Prophetesses. If Shadow One killed the boy now, they would find out, and war between the Temple of Time and the Immortal Crusade would follow.

  Now, that wasn't a problem by itself, but no matter how much the Timelords tried to pretend otherwise, they were allies to the Prophetesses and had a great interest in the Herald of Time. If both the Temple of Time and the Timelords joined against the Crusade, things would get tricky. Other enemies of other Crusade might decide to rebel then, and this would cause the Fire Continent's Immortals to intervene.

  If they intervened and found out that Shadow One had been responsible for the war, both her and the Queen would have to pay with pain and blood. If only she hadn't secretly sent a message to the Queen while in the fort, there would be no tracing back to her, but that was already done.

  For now, she kept her plans of disposing of him in the White Sea, for once there, no one save an Immortal would be able to track his death back to her!

  She looked at the Prophetess with a cruel smile. For making things difficult for Shadow One, the Prophetess would beg to die soon enough.

  * * *

  Mark and Sara had found it impressive but had no idea what they had just seen or heard meant.

  They only knew that their master was even more impressive then they believed, and felt their respect for him grow by leaps and bounds.

  * * *

  "Now, as for the energies," Matthew said after a few moments, ignoring Helina because he had no idea what the Herald of Time was supposed to be. The beasts were calming again by now. "Both natural energy and mana can be turned into matter, but mana is much easier and requires less quantity than natural energy. On the other hand, matter can only be turned into natural energy, and because of the Laws of the universe, doing so is absolutely impossible unless one uses Origin Energy."

  Humans creating atomic bombs using technology in any world with an abundance of Spiritual Energy, or its variants like mana, was impossible. Only on the Solar System, where the Laws of the Universe worked differently, could such a phenomenon happen.

  Matthew still had no idea why it was so, but he refused to believe he wouldn't ever be strong enough to find out!

  Chapter 36 - Death's Shadow Mountains

  Chapter 36 - Death's Shadow Mountains

  "Origin Energy?" Mark asked.

  "A kind of energy of a higher tier than mana," Matthew replied. "No one in this world has access to it. You only need to know it exists." He paused to wait for new questions. When none came, he continued. "It might sound as if natural energy is more powerful than mana, but natural energy is inflexible, especially its relationship with mater. Mana, however, is different. It can't divide an atom, but it can soften and change matter in many other ways, including changing an atom of a type into another, which allows a mage to turn air into water, for instance, or to change the properties of a rock to make it easier to melt.

  "On the other hand, natural energy is exactly as its name suggests, natural. Spiritual Energy, or mana, is what allows the supernatural to happen. Mana reacts to a mage's will to shape reality however he wants, even allowing him to sever reality completely if he's powerful enough!"

  "And what about warriors?" The butler asked.

  "Don't you have access to mana too?" Matthew replied. "Warriors are mages, only with a limited area of influence, your bodies. Such an area of influence also needs to be used differently than how a mage casts spells, but that's all. For instance, if a warrior can freely affect his body using mana, and he learns a teleportation martial ability, doesn't it mean he can freely teleport behind his enemies and kill them? Why are warriors considered much weaker than mages, then? The answer is simple: a lack of knowledge and weaker skills!"

  If his previous demonstration made everyone impressed, his words now opened a whole new world for all of them. Indeed, if warriors were nothing more than mages that could only affect their own bodies, they could do wonders in battle!

  The silence that came was broken by Lo. It was the first time he spoke since they left the fort gates. "But to teleport, doesn't one need to affect the targeted area using mana? And doesn't one need to be an Overlord to do that?"

  "Yes and no," Matthew replied. "It depends on the skill being used, and on the understanding of the Laws of Space that one has. It's easier to teleport affecting the destination with mana, yes. And the minimum mana requirement would indeed only be reachable by having an Ultimate mana pool, which is only accessible by Overlords. But an Overlord warrior could still teleport without affecting the targeted area if he understood the Laws of Space well enough."

  "There's no Overlord warrior in the world," Lo said.

  "For now," Matthew replied. "And I was only giving an example. There are plenty of other ways for warriors to contend against mages. Which, of course, depends on knowledge." He smiled. "But as everyone knows, knowledge is expensive. The free class is over, whatever more I have to say on these topics are for the ears of my disciples alone."

  "If money is the issue..." Lo started.

  Matthew interrupted him. "I'm not selling my knowledge yet. Sleep well, everyone. We have six days ahead of us until we reach the White Sea, and even we mages might need the rest. Helina," he spoke to the still-kneeling woman. "You're on watch today."

  She raised her head. "Yes, Herald!"

  Matthew stopped himself from shaking his head. He would have to be very cautious about this Herald of Time thing. As long as they apologized for trying to kill him, he wouldn't pass up a title that might increase his standing with the Temple of Time. But first, he had to know what a Herald of Time was supposed to do. What if they wanted to sacrifice him to appease the Laws of Time or something? He had seen crazier things in his life.

  Intent on providing his infant brain with some rest that night, so he would have better control of himself for the days to come, he lay on the ground, placed some alarm wards around him, and was soon sleeping soundly.

  * * *

  In a place filled with nothingness, a sound invaded.

  It was a knock so muffled, seemingly coming from somewhere so distant that only a miracle could bring it so far.

  But it was enough for the woman floating into nothingness. As much as she wanted to keep her mental training session going, she had never been interrupted before. Her children wouldn't do it now unless the First Council convened and concluded that it was absolutely necessary.

  She opened her eyes and let a slip of mana out of her body. With that, she came back from the empty space it had been in, slipping into a dusty wooden room. It was the inside of a cozy cabin, with furniture that might be seen in a grandma's house: a sofa, an armchair, a fireplace with a few 3D projectors above it, a rug made of the fur of a Saint beast.

  She smiled when she saw the rug. That had been an old enemy of hers, but she had triumphed over it in the end.

  For a moment, she thought about what appearance she should show. A Saint like her could easily change her appearance at will, her mortal shackles long removed from her body. But even so, whatever appearance she showed would be remembered by her children, and teachings would be deduced from it. Last time, she showed a grandmotherly appearance to match her cabin, and she became very amused at her children's reactions. It was good for them, too, as they realized time wasn't something to be conquered but to be respected.

  With a simple spell, she cleaned the room. With another, more complex one, she checked the River of Time for what had happen
ed in the world while she was gone, focusing on the First Temple.

  The lesson from her last appearance had already been forgotten. Only women with smooth skin, boasting their ruling over time with their appearance, could be seen nowadays.

  She sighed in disappointment; it was no wonder no new Saint had appeared from the Prophetesses for such a long time. They didn't understand anything. However, it was also a victory that they had a few Overlords among their rankings, and that their temples had multiplied while keeping her fundamental teachings to heart.

  If she was being honest with herself, she had to admit she didn't like to show an old appearance either. She liked the looks of admiration she got when she showed smooth skin, perfect hair, white teeth, and everything else a revered Saint should have. But for her children, she would once again endure the looks of confusion, and even some of the repulse, that would come to her.

  Her body turned into an old, wrinkled lady, with a homely smile. She didn't go as far as walking incurvated, for no mage would. Her clothing was a plain white tunic. She opened her cabin door.

  Five Prophetesses had one of their knees to the dirty ground of the forest outside. Their heads were lowered, and their right fists were closed, touching their left breast, where the symbol of the Prophetesses could be seen drawn over their black tunics.

  "Rise, children," she said with a comely voice, and they obeyed. When they looked at her, she saw from shock to pity, repulsiveness to curiosity in their faces. "Yes?" She asked with a smile, despite feeling a bit sad on the inside.