Chapter 53: Maze

Chapter 53: Maze

Chapter 53

A thousand different thoughts swirled in Kais head as he read the notification.

Has that really happened? Are the spirits real? Are they gods or something else?

This discovery changed a lot of things, but, before any of that, he had to take care of a more pressing issue. Elder Soluli was getting impatient as he kept ignoring him.

Did you hit your head hard, kid?

Kais gaze focused on the mayor, activating Acting as a reflex. Im fine. He massaged his head.

Soluli gave him a long stare. You just flopped to the ground for no reason?

I must have fainted when I saw all that blood, Kai said looking down with an embarrassed smile and showing his still-bleeding finger. He could hear a few snickers from the group of kids.

Im so sorry, elder. He performed an awkward bow to the great tree. May Yatei offer me guidance.

He was about to join the other seventh-year-olds that completed the ceremony when the elder grabbed his arm.

Nothing else happened? Soluli asked, then added in a lower tone. Have you checked your notifications?

Evident confusion appeared on Kais face. Notifications? He made a slight pause, moving his eyes around as if reading something. No nothing. Should something have happened, elder?

The mayor gave him a suspicious look, but eventually let go of his arm. No, nothing. Go back to the others. May the spirits forgive your blunder.

Despite their taunting whispers, Kai was glad to put a wall of kids between him and the elder. He wasnt 100% sure he had fooled him, but when the truth was so outrageous, people rarely chose to believe it.The original appearance of this chapter can be found at Ñøv€lß1n.

A half-blood kid, who isnt even from Greenside, receiving a blessing from the great spirit? Who would trust that? Who would want to believe it? Much easier to think he was a wimp that fainted at the sight of his own blood.

Telu gave him a consoling pat on the back. Im sure the spirits wont be offended. It wasnt your fault.

Kai gave him a distracted nod, he was sure the spirits werent angry.

Elder Soluli finally roused from his thoughts to address them. Silence. His voice resounded with authority. The ceremony isnt over. You have sworn the oath and asked for Yateis guidance. Now its time to see whether you are worthy. His gaze casually lingered on Kai, more chuckles came from the other children.

You must find your way out of the great tree's roots on your own. If Yatei judges you worthy, hell show you the way.

The group quieted at the news. The amused smiles were replaced by worry. They had done dozens of turns to get here. Kai was also surprised, but with his stats, he could climb over every root even if they were wet and slippery. The other kids had only reached Red , barely stronger than normal children, there was no way they could do the same.

It is not necessary to exit at the same place we entered. As long as you make it out you can follow the edge of the root meadow till you see us, well be waiting for you there. If you have faith in Yatei and have trained diligently you need not worry.

Just like that, elder Soluli and the hunter marched toward the root arch, ready to abandon them without a second thought. As they were about to disappear into the maze the mayor stopped and turned around. Hopes rose from the children, but the next words quickly squashed them.

I almost forgot, if you make it out in under one hour, it will be the sign you have the favor of the spirits. Most take a little less than two hours, not everyone can be chosen by Yatei after all. His gaze hardened. If you take more than four hours well come to look for you, but that would not be a good sign for your future.

After adding a time limit to make things more fun, the elder was gone, leaving the group of children to look around with lost expressions. A girl was the first to react, running after the elder, maybe she hoped it was all a big joke or that she could follow them out.

She came back a few seconds later looking defeated. Theyre gone. She muttered with disbelief.

The words triggered a reaction from the rest of the group. Kai watched from the sidelines as chaos unfolded. About a third of the children quickly decided to make a run for it in the hopes of getting lucky. Having a timer looming over their head didnt help anybody to maintain their calm.

Of the remaining two-thirds, most began arguing about what they should do. A smaller group sat on the ground, looking about to cry. Finally, Kai noticed three kids from old town staring at him from the sidelines. They seemed to be enjoying the show with smirks on their faces.

One silver that the test is rigged and they already knew beforehand.

That would have been the easiest money of his life, unfortunately, there was no one to take the bet. The trio noticed him watching them. Kai continued to stare, putting on his most irritating smile. When they saw he didnt look intimidated by their numbers they seemed about to march over, but one of the three stopped the other two.

It was the same kid who had looked at him scared in the square, the one who had tried to confront him a few weeks ago. He whispered something to his friends and they all left after throwing one last dirty look in his direction.

At least the boy learned something. Not sure if its the right lesson, but better than nothing.

Name: Kai TylennRace: HumanProfession: NoneStrength: 8Dexterity: 10Constitution: 13Mind: 14Spirit: 16Perception: 11Favor: 10>13

Telu broke the silence. Your skill must be truly powerful. Is it Tracking or Orientation?

Is this random chance or my Favor is starting to pay dividends?

Kai gave a non-committal answer and continued to pick their way at random, crawling under a root and climbing over another smaller one. Their progress wasnt fast, but they were inexorably getting closer to the exit, rarely if ever backtracking.

Was the randomness of it all that allowed his Favor to make a difference? Gaining 3 points was not a little, but he had already had 10 and he had never noticed anything so unusual.

His luck might have been slightly above average. Finding a teacher with Virya and, more recently, the merfolk ship stopping in Greenside right when he returned home. However, it wasnt like Virya offered him the apprenticeship for free or buried in expensive resources to help him grow, quite the opposite. He had to fight tooth and nail for the right to remain there and never got any of the mystical potions or treasures he read about.

The same went with the merfolk, he had been the one to propose the deal and spent three days working every single waking hour and pushing his skills.

Apart from that, he wouldnt say his life had been particularly lucky. Perhaps if he had had lower Favor it could have been even worse. It was impossible to say.

Focusing his thoughts back on the present, it might not be only his Favor at play. He had received a blessing from Yatei, but what did that mean? Was there something else apart from the 3 free points? The Guide had not told him anything that indicated that, but he was not working with complete information.

Could the great spirit take the blessing back? Did the oath he swore bind him? His gut wrenched at the thought, cold sweat forming on his skin despite the heat. Did he get himself into something bigger than he thought?

No, even if the oath is binding I only swore to honor Yatei with my actions. That could imply he could take back the blessing if I fail him, but its such a vague promise I wont condition my actions too much even if I have to keep it.

This brought him to the last topic - the spirits were real. The thought scared him.

What ar.

Were almost out! I knew my grandma was right when she told me to stick close to you. It must not have been even half an hour. Telu said, almost jumping in place from the excitement.

If they stood on the tip of their toes they could see beyond the lower roots. Climbing over their wet and slippery surface covered by moss was still a hazard. As soon as the roots got small and they could look over them the rest of the way would be a breeze.

Their time was probably closer to twenty minutes. Instead of happiness or satisfaction, Kai immediately worried this would attract too much attention.

Come, this way. He said, using Mana Sense to judge the path that would lead them away from the exit.

Confident in his abilities, Telu followed without hesitation. He felt a bit bad about that, but it was for the best. He needed to waste at least a dozen more minutes.

Ill bring him out in under an hour.

Kai went back to the question. If the spirits were real, what were they? Were they gods? And if they were all-powerful, why did they allow the Republic to take over the archipelago?

On Earth, knowing his life expectancy wasnt long, he had read a lot about religions and the afterlife. He had never found something that particularly convinced him. Now he had proof something otherworldly existed on Elydes. The written words of the Guide on a notification were an undeniable truth. It didnt get more clear than that.

Kai looked around as if expecting to see a sign they were watching him right at this moment.

The spirits of the archipelago were talked about in a neutral or positive light. They were the shield that protected the archipelago from beasts and natural calamities. Rarely were they depicted actively harming someone even in legends. But if they were real, what about the gods of the Republic? He never cared about it, but he remembered the Merian Republic worshiped a pantheon of seven gods.

Did this mean Elydes was filled with hundreds of gods? Were spirits and gods the same thing?

The implications were frightening. Gaining the strength to be free from the whims of other humans already felt like an insurmountable mountain to climb, if godly entities were thrown into the mix

I better get back to training and studying.

Only after he learned more could he make the best decision. For now, there was nothing he could do. He was losing himself in hypotheticals. It was better to focus on what he could do, he had a maze to get out of.

Around 40 minutes into the challenge, Kai stopped using Mana Sense to sabotage their progress and headed in for the most direct exit. After leading them in circles, he had a pretty good mental map of the place.

Weve made it! Telu excitedly said as he ran the last few meters over the outer circle of roots almost tripping. Do you think its been an hour yet?

Kai shrugged. Only one way to find out.

Maybe he should have waited a bit more, but after he discovered gods were real, the petty politics of the mayor felt insignificant. They were almost on the opposite side of where they entered, maybe that was his luck too. Following the edge of the meadow they soon saw the elder together with a small group of kids. The three from old town were present together with a few of the ones who decided to make a run for it. Of the big group, there was no sign yet.

It seems the Yatei is truly merciful and didnt take offense at your actions. Elder Soluli said as they got closer.

Kai forced a relieved smile with Acting. I trusted in the will of the spirits.