Chaos is known as the being that never became a star. It is everywhere and yet nowhere at the same time.
Neither good nor evil, the ultimate expression of nothingness. The antithesis of the cosmos, creation itself.
Although Chaos claims to be the very state of existence from which the first entities appeared, it cannot form into the entity it wants most.
So it has been cursed to stay in the form of a dark and shapeless void. Floating between existence and nonexistence.
Longingly watching as stars are constantly born and lives are lived. The seeds of malice had been planted, flourished and transformed Chaos into the purest form of evil.
Erica was convinced that this girl was really a novice with how easily she agreed to showing her cards. She had not even heard yet was Celeste's actual problems were, but Erica thought she might as well make a mental note of the problems Celeste herself wasn't aware of. That was the least she could do.
As for the actual demonstration, it was mildly disappointing to say the least, though Erica kept her poker face. She had already seen this sword before. It was certainly nothing new. But maybe the method of conjuring the blade was a bit unusual. It appeared as though blood was being drawn from the girl's body to form the weapon. And true enough Celeste confirmed that it was indeed blood magic. When she further mentioned that she had not read any fantasy books with blood magic before hence her lack of other abilities, Erica couldn't help but make a mental facepalm. Did this girl not have any imaginative bone in her body? She stopped at that thought. After all she wasn't supposed to be making fun of others. This was definitely an eccentric case she had to deal with though.
Before Erica could comment, Celeste followed her explanation with a rather silly question, and Erica figured this was probably as good a time as any to address her first problem.
"I'll have to stop you there honestly. I know I said how much I could help you depended on how much you were willing to show. But it's actually quite troubling how open you are. I suppose I just don't feel I've done anything to earn this level of trust. It... puzzles me."
"Your contractor must have told you that there are some rather unpleasant beings in this world. You would do well to be more guarded about the secrets of your magic if you seriously wish to survive. Allow me to demonstrate by politely declining to answer your question. But who knows. Perhaps if you try hard enough today, you might force my hand to show you something."
The conversation probably took an odd turn from Celeste's point of view. Being told to do something and then suddenly being told not to. But Erica couldn't do all the thinking for her. At this rate she might be mistaken as someone trying to take advantage of a poor newbie.
Celeste's updated state of arrangements sounded much closer to what Erica imagined a contract would be like. This was good news. The last thing she needed was worrying about unnecessary drama involving lives and high stakes. From here on out, proceeding is solely of Celeste's own volition and not because she was forced to.
"That's good to hear. No one wants any unneeded load or pressure on themselves. Magic is supposed to lighten your problems and not make them worse."
Despite looking a little tired, Celeste seemed eager enough to begin as she easily transitioned to asking about what exactly they were doing that day. In Erica's mind it was a bit of a strange question though since the very reason they were here was because of Celeste's request. But perhaps she was just wanting more specific details.
"You asked me to help you become a better mage. I believe I explained on our first meeting why that was... difficult to promise and guarantee. Still you insisted, and so today the main agenda is figuring out if there's some basis for your belief."
"We have a lot of space to work with here and are also away from prying eyes. So let's see it. What exactly is your magic and what kind of help do you need to improve it? How much I can assist will depend on how much you are willing to show."
Erica turned around and clapped her hands once as the person she was expecting finally arrived. The girl was just on time but she was panting. She wondered if she had difficulty finding the place and was in a rush. Well, that didn't really matter now. What was important was that she was finally here and Erica could finally fulfill her end of their little promise, or at least do so to he best of her ability.
"I'm glad you made it. I've just been enjoying the view. We're quite fortunate the weather is nice and clear."
As she was going out of her way to arrange this little session for them, it would have been terrible if factors beyond their control spoiled the occasion. Erica wanted to be sure they could proceed smoothly. Fortunately the weather reports of this time were almost always accurate. There had been a few showers here and there in the past days or so, and rain would have made the rooftops unnecessarily dangerous.
"So, did you manage to get in touch with your magical friend? I expect some things are a little clearer to you now. Not that I can't explain things myself, but I'm sure it would give you more peace of mind if what I say and what your benefactor said matched up."
It had been a few days since their last meeting and plenty of time for Celeste to sort out her thoughts and ask the questions she needed. Erica hoped those days didn't go to waste.
Erica respected people who wanted to broaden their horizons and not just stick to what they were good at. It takes more than just a bit of courage to go for something like that. Succeed or fail, you would at least come out with experience and be a better person than you were before. Perhaps in a way Erica was looking for a similar experience when she decided to come to New Paris.
"I actually came to look at their dessert menu, but if an aspiring master chef recommends their latte, then I suppose I'll have to give it a try too."
Erica gestured for Ai to lead the way and she followed closely behind the girl. It was certainly a trendy looking cafe. It was no surprise that plenty of the patrons were on young side, likely students as well. Her eyes glanced over at the menu displayed outside if there was any particular item that stood out.
It wasn't something she needed to think too hard about. She needed to try her best so that normal people didn't get wind of magic. But at the same time she needed to practice magic to improve. Thus it was important to be prepared with locations where one can practice without the average person unwittingly stumbling upon where she was.
The Louvre was one such place where the conditions she needed were fulfilled by quite a number of spots. Most of the more well-off citizens of New Paris stayed away unless they really had to pass through there for some reason. As for the local slum dwellers, they knew better than to stick their noses in the business of upper class people who do show up, because them dropping by there often meant something dangerous or unsavory was afoot.
Frankly, Erica with her looks and hair would normally stand out too much walking around there. So whenever she took a stroll in the area, she had a long coat on and a hat to hide her features. Today's destination was the rooftop of a certain abandoned building. It was one of many places and for today's agenda, she was willing to give up this one location to meet some certain obligations.
She stared at her watch. She was a little early for their meeting but that was fine. Hopefully they'd find their way their without too much problems. Walking over near the edge of the rooftop, she stared at the view. She was about ten stories up. The roof of the buildings next to this one were just close enough to hop on over if anyone felt like it. But for now she was the only one up there for at least the entire block.
The girl had stood up and Erica guessed she was probably done playing that one. Or perhaps she had other business elsewhere. Speaking of which, Erica herself was supposed to be heading upstairs. Suddenly Ai asked if her school was nearby, further introducing herself as a cooking student.
"I go to St. Elbandia or at least I properly will in the next term. Since I arrived at such an odd time, I've only been sitting in on some classes for now. They told me it was fine to attend whatever classes I liked in the meantime."
Come to think of it, she had not sat in one of the cooking classes yet. Well, it wasn't as though she was that interested in cooking herself. If anything, she would be attending just to have a chance at sampling some student creations.
"I suppose your specialty is Japanese food? Did you come to Paris just to hone your skills or were you thinking of learning other cuisines?"
All that talk about cooking reminded her that it had been quite a while since she last sampled Japanese sweets. She wondered if Ai was any good at making them.
"I was on my way upstairs to check out the cafe by the way. Have you ever been there?
For someone who didn't seem to have a high opinion of men, she owed a lot to her father. It sounded like he was the very reason for her love for gems. Was he perhaps the exception to her dislike? Erica decided not to pry further.
As if on cue, the food was finally served and it helped to draw their attention. She wasn't sure what the dish Noel ordered was called but she could distinctly spot some seafood and chicken in it. The seafood pasta served in front of her looked really good too. The smell was heavenly.
"It looks even better than the pictures. Genuine French cuisine is really something."
Back in America, a lot of times the food in the pictures looked much more appetizing than the real dish itself. Not that they were bad, but you could tell the images were enhanced just a bit. Taking her first bite, it really felt exactly like what she was looking for. It was something good and flavorful but light. If the main course was this good then she was looking forward to dessert.
"Oh before I forget, would you like to exchange numbers? I'd love to talk to you again some time."
She slipped her hand into her purse and pulled out her phone. At the same time she signaled to the waitress to prepare and serve the dessert as well.
Erica somewhat regretted bring up that topic as when Noel proceeded to elaborate, she realized that the girl's backstory was rather heavy. It was the kind of trouble you'd here about from corporations with shady backgrounds, but calling it that would be impolite so Erica didn't comment on it. Noel seemed very intent on fighting back against the system however. She did come off as a rather strong-willed girl.
"You should definitely get back at them for it. I'm rooting for you."
Noel didn't look too pleased talking about it and so Erica tried to look for an opportunity to change the topic. She took note however that Noel mentioned her father going poof, which was an odd thing to say. She could have said he died or left or even went missing. Unless she intentionally wanted to be vague about it.
"Well, like I said Mother is the one running the company. If I'm not mistaken she took over from Grandfather years ago. And as far as I'm aware, she has everyone in the company under her thumb, men and women alike. She's kind of amazing."
It wasn't too hard to guess whom Erica got her wit and cunning from. Though it also came in a package with ruthlessness and a dash of sadist.
"As for Father, he's in a completely different field. He doesn't actually talk much about his work but in simplest terms, he's a scientist involved with the government. So you can understand why all the secrecy. It's for the family's safety too."
"And yes, before you ask, that is the story we're supposed to be telling people when they ask about what he does for a living. Not like I can tell you anything else, since he doesn't tell me more either way."
This would be where Erica got her secretive and cautious side. Keeping things under wraps and telling people only what they needed to know was long part of her daily life.
"Did you have any other dreams besides running the family business or has that path always been decided for you?"
The recommended pasta for the day was of the seafood variant. Erica didn't bother trying to pronounce it and just pointed it out to the waitress. For dessert, she went with a classic chocolate mousse and a fruit tart to be served later. The waitress repeated her order, which Erica confirmed, and then left momentarily to have them prepared.
Noel wasted no time starting some small talk and inquired where exactly she was from. For a moment Erica considered trying to make Noel guess, but eventually decided against it.
"California. Mother runs an information technology company there. She's a little old fashioned though and has yet to officially expand the business outside of America, but she does maintain a lot of connections all over."
"If you ever decide to pay a visit, I'd love to return the favor and show you around."
Noel did mention their chain of jewelry stores could be found in other countries outside of France. She wondered if they had a store back home too.
"I don't think I mentioned it earlier, but I do find it impressive that you've already taken over the business as a student."
To be honest that was weird considering her age and if their business was as big as she described. Typically the previous generation would still be manning the helm. Perhaps Noel's family was running into challenges of their own.
Erica expected the girl to be a bit at a loss being put on the spot like that. And that was fine. She would take her time picking apart what made Celeste tick and figure out what she really wanted from her. But to her surprise the timid girl brought out a lot more words than she expected. The girl was noticeably stressed after her little outburst. She was probably holding it in all this time.
Honestly there were a lot of complaints mixed in there. Whoever she entered into a contract with, it definitely didn't sound like the same one Erica knew. It sounded like they did Celeste a pretty major favor too, apart from simply granting her powers. That in itself was strange because on Erica's part, the "reward" would come after she had collected grief seeds and not before. Celeste's contractor was rather sly to give the girl the "reward" upfront and put her in debt instead. That being said, despite her distress at the situation, she really only had herself to blame for not raising more questions to her contractor despite having a lot of them.
"A veteran? I was just being careful. Didn't you at least get a warning to keep your usage of magic discreet? That was probably the first or second rule they emphasized."
She actually chuckled a bit at this one as she wasn't really aiming to be perceived as a veteran. Was two weeks of experience actually enough to be considered one? The impression she was aiming for was capable at best, but it was nice to be thought of so highly despite it being unintentional. Erica couldn't help but want to humor her a bit. The girl might not be aware of it, but it was her actions that allowed Erica to get a better grasp of their situation earlier and conclude that it was well within her capabilities to resolve.
"I understand. You have quite a few problems. And honestly from what you've shared so far, you won't get your answers from talking to me. Really the best advice I could possibly give you is to sort things out directly with your patron. If you haven't caught on to it, then allow me to enlighten you. They approached us because they need something from us. You're quite wrong to think you're on the inferior side with no say."
"As for the specific help you need from me... Fine, I accept."
As if to seal the deal, she closed her hand on the grief seed Celeste had place on her palm earlier. She was suspicious earlier, but from the way this girl couldn't keep things together, she was more likely to be a danger to herself than to Erica. There was no need for her to take any more extra precautions than the usual.
"We can talk more when we get to that cafe. I'm surprised you kept drinking that one."
It was interesting to hear that Noel was a first year too. Perhaps her estimate of their ages being similar wasn't too far off. But having already heard of Noel's background, it wasn't too unusual after all that a girl of her talents was just a freshman. Erica being who she was, she would be the last one to be skeptical of someone's ability with respect to their age. Some way somehow, Noel felt a lot less cold compared to their initial meeting and even suggested working together sometime. Erica wouldn't say no to that.
Upon hearing Erica's affirmation of wanting to grab something to eat as well, the jewelry heiress led them to a rather out of the way but formal looking restaurant in a not so traversed corridor in the mall. From the way she interacted with the waitress, it seemed she was a regular here and Erica could sort of understand it was a good place for having business meetings away from prying eyes. She even asked for a private cubicle for the both of them.
"I can't say I've eaten in a place like this before. I like the ambience."
It wasn't you typical fancy restaurant at least, though judging from the pricey menu, it was definitely the sort of place that only those well-off would visit. This being her first time there, she was curious about what their bestsellers and most recommended items were and so she called over the waitress to assist her a bit with choosing.
"I'd like something a little light. Are there any specialties that you can recommend? Oh and I'd like to sample your dessert menu as well."
The waitress nodded and turned the menu to the page featuring their salads and pasta selection. While Erica listened to her suggestions, she looked up at Noel from time to time, curious about what she typically ordered here.
At least her apology seemed sincere. Erica had no intention of further pressing the issue after that. The more important matter at hand was the single grief seed before them and what they should do about it. Surprisingly, Celeste chose this time to act a little more boldly.
Erica unconsciously tilted her head a bit upon hearing the girl's unusual proposal. From the way it was worded she was implying that giving up the grief seed was a huge sacrifice on her part. That was a strange thing to say because as far as Erica was told, grief seeds were collected to obtain rewards, ergo there was no real loss if one had to give them up other than an opportunity to get something nice. It was hard to believe the straitlaced Moira was lying. Thus Erica could only conclude two things. Either Celeste drew the short end of the stick and was given a troublesome contract that required collecting seeds or she was a Magi, their "rivals" when it came to collecting seeds, and their agenda was a bit of a mystery.
Thinking back, she was never really given a warning against assisting other magical beings. And anyone collecting grief seeds was ultimately doing good for the world regardless of their motivations. Thus the only thing holding her back from accepting this proposition was her hesitation to act when things were uncertain and doubtful. The first step then would be to clear up those concerns.
"You need them badly? That sounds like a troublesome contract you signed up for. I hope whatever you got in return was worth it. And I feel terrible about taking the grief seed from you in that case."
"As for your request, I know almost nothing about you or what you already know. It's rather impossible don't you think, for me to help you in any way without understanding and getting to know you better."
"I won't pretend to be an expert in this field. Even if you spilled all your secrets to me, a total stranger, there's no guarantee that I can actually be of any use to you. That's what it means and entails, making that proposal of yours. So I'd think about it some more if I were you."
"On the other hand, if this is just some excuse you thought up of to hang around me more often or if you have some other motive, I'd much prefer if you come clean about it now."
If there was anything about this exchange that would be disadvantageous to her, Erica was determined to bring it all to light. Even with her own contract, she had a lot of things to say and protest about. But in the end, she found the terms acceptable enough and proceeded. This girl had to prove herself if she wanted to keep associating with her.
So Ai was from Japan. At least her guess was pretty close. Unlike the Japanese-American people Erica knew however, this girl was actually born and grew up there judging from her minimal mastery of English, let alone French. It must have been a challenging experience coming here a long way from home.
"It's been almost three weeks I guess. I've been taking this opportunity to familiarize myself with the city while I've still got the time to do so. My first week here was quite troublesome in a lot of ways."
It wasn't coming to a foreign country that was difficult. Erica had her fair share of traveling around the world and was actually a bit used to it. But New Paris was a little different. Fortunately she met someone who turned all that around. She could only imagine the struggle she would be enduring today if she hadn't.
"I'm thankful for the people I met here. They really helped me out. I'm sure you got a lot of help yourself. There are a lot of kind souls in this city."
From what Erica had seen so far, the Paris folk didn't strike her as unfriendly or unwelcoming.
It had taken her a while but after so long the other girl finally brought up the grief seeds. Her words betrayed her inexperience, or perhaps she just wasn't very attentive or perceptive about things. It seemed Erica really needed to spell it out for her, but at least the danger had already passed. She honestly wasn't expecting to give a lecture today and didn't want to if she could have avoided it.
"I'm glad to know you're actually aware of how dangerous they are. But this is the sort of knowledge you should keep in mind at all times and not only when everything's over. Terrible things can happen when they're left unattended."
"If we had parted ways without you ever bringing them up Ms. Celeste, then I would have been quite disappointed."
Erica smiled and opened her purse, and the grief seeds Erica had collected emerged and floated on her free hand.
"Although I guess I find it a little funny that you still had any doubts about me being a normal person. Would a normal person really not bat an eye at seeing someone else's wounds glow and close up by themselves? A normal person can't see grief seeds in the first place so it would have been impossible for them to pick them up."
Suddenly the grief seeds on Erica's hand would float up, causing her to pause. They were only just talking about how dangerous these seeds could be and already something unusual was happening. It seemed the seeds Celeste collected started floating up as well and they began to gravitate to each other, forming and combining into a single grief seed before floating back to the ground between them.
It was really quite a surprise. Erica waited for a few seconds, but thankfully the single seed had remained motionless after that and she couldn't sense any other activity from it. Perhaps it was trying to say that the group of skeletons from earlier counted as a single Youma and thus only had one true seed. This was her first time seeing such a thing though and it was fascinating.
Unfortunately that meant dividing the seeds up between themselves was no longer possible. Erica obviously wanted it. But she wondered if Celeste wanted it just as much.
"I suppose for all the trouble you went through, you would like to keep it? Though I honestly can't say I don't have any apprehensions about entrusting it to someone who was a little careless about properly collecting them. No offense meant."
Erica raised an eyebrow as the girl tried to refuse her offer of getting her patched up. As if accentuating the point, her visible wounds and scratches suddenly began to heal before Erica's eyes. Her first thought was that it was such a very convenient power. With something like this up her sleeve, it was no wonder she could afford to utilize such a reckless style of fighting. Really that was quite something.
"Hmm. Well, I suppose that was presumptuous of me. It's quite clear you can take care of yourself."
Sliding her finger across her phone screen, she canceled the ride just like that. Her main reason for calling for it in the first place was in consideration of treating the girl's wounds with haste. But now that it was unnecessary, it would be much more discreet to just get out of there on foot as they were trying not to draw attention to themselves after all.
The girl introduced herself as Celeste but before they could continue their conversation, the flustered magic user quickly excused herself and sprinted outside. She returned with a bag that Erica recognized as the one she used earlier to smack one of the skeletons. So it was a personal belonging and not something she just picked up somewhere. She wasn't done yet though and this time rushed back inside the projection room. She then returned with a cup of tea in hand, no doubt cooled beyond what would be typically acceptable for tea, but for some reason the girl had a more relaxed expression as she took a sip from it. Erica shook her head and sighed.
"I assume you've got everything you need now? Good. Change of plans. Since you appear to like your tea so much, I feel bad that you have to settle for a cup that's gone cold. The nearest cafe is not too far from here. Let me buy you a fresh one."
Erica turned around and started walking, leading the way. It seemed she had run into a rather strange one. Though to be honest somewhere at the back of her mind, she was already expecting that most people involved with magic were probably eccentric in some way. Of course Erica wasn't an exception.
The skin LIGHTS OFF was made by JAWN of WICKED WONDERLAND.
HALATION was created by KOJIHIME. Images belong to their respective artists. All codes and scripts belong to their respective coders. Please DO NOT take anything without the owners' permission.
