Chapter 383: The Search for a Word

Chapter 383: The Search for a Word

Early Afternoon - Late Fall : The Library of Eternity, Atlas | Bahamut

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"Two consciousnesses?" *Thump-Thump-Thump-Thump* The rhythmic thump of books being placed on bookshelves filled the air as Hera and I walked down a long path between towering bookshelves. "It at least sounds pretty interesting."

"Haha," I let out a chuckle hearing the hint of doubt in her voice. "It's just an idea I had." -Although of everything I can think of, it's the most probable...-

It had been about a week since we went to investigate Krystallo's rather unusual friend Myaló for having connections with the cult at that point, but our investigation hadn't really progressed since.

"My other guess is that his subconscious mind has just learned to multitask, but.. I have even more doubts with that theory..."

As things were, we had moved investigating him down in priority to try and give more focus to the cult itself because of some recent findings.

But that just led us to my family's archive in the heart of Atlas, The Library of Eternity, where we killed time speaking about the abnormal child while scanning thousands of documents looking for a certain name.

But while it was a name I expected to show up quickly, we ended up having more time on our hands than expected. "Really?" So we theorized. "Considering his soul looked normal and he didn't have a tether or even a trace of divinity, wouldn't that be more likely?"

"Well," I gently shrugged the furred wings of my fenririan form, "I may be wrong, but I don't think so. The timing of thoughts in his subconscious just.. didn't line up right..." Glancing over at Hera, I saw her confused look before hastily continuing. "Think of it this way: the pace of a train of thought will constantly fluctuate based on the reactions of the consciousness, think of emotions, pain, etcetera. However, because these reactions originate from the consciousness, they will cause the same reaction on any line of thought under it, like speeding up thought if you're in danger, or slowing it down if you're relaxing."

"So, because the two separate lines of thought in his mind weren't correlated, you think it's two entirely separate consciousnesses." Seeing me nod, she quickly fell into thought. "That's actually.. quite a fascinating theory... Even if it's a bit creepy..."

"Hah..." I let out an awkward, sympathetic chuckle knowing exactly where she was coming from. -It really is quite unsettling to think about...- It was like the boy was possessed. "My biggest issue with it though is that I just don't know where that second consciousness would come from. You said you were keeping an eye on him, right?"

"Of course, but over the last week there's been nothing. It's almost like he knows he's being watched. He hasn't come in contact with anyone we've deemed suspicious, hasn't gone anywhere odd, and while he acts weird, he doesn't actually talk about anything related to the cult..." She seemed to cringe as a stray thought whizzed through her mind. "Do you think it could be a birth defect?"

But I bluntly shook my head. "If it's something like that, it'd have to do with the soul rather than genetics... Maybe he absorbed his twin at birth, but their souls somehow managed to maintain their own consciousnesses." -Although I have more than a few doubts about that even being possible...-

"It's certainly food for thought... But for now, let's just focus on looking for the records of the god the cultist mentioned... 'Lýkos fídi', was it?"

Over the last week, we had done a deep sweep through the entirety of Eikasía, looking for cultist gatherings, ritual sites, or anything else that was suspicious, even using our auras to scan the system of structures being built underground, but while we turned up empty-handed, one of Hera's associates eventually reached out with some findings.

Just a few days prior, they had caught a cultist amidst a sacrificial offering.

But oddly enough, it was a name that I was already somewhat familiar with. "Yeah, I think so." -The name rings a bell from my time on Earth...- But that kind of connection wasn't anymore more than coincidence, right? "What was the other name they called it? The World Serpent?"

As Hera nodded, she finally turned back to the bookshelves. "It doesn't ring a bell for me, so I have doubts about there being any records, but..." Inside the Ragnarok library, there were records of almost everything of note.

-An old god would certainly be in here somewhere.. but it may be in a deeper layer...- "It's worth looking into, regardless..." I winced slightly as I spoke, feeling a bit pessimistic.

And the longer we walked around the library, one row of books at a time, the worse it seemed.

After a while, we eventually called in one of the caretakers to have her prepare entry to the second layer of the library since the first layer didn't have anything, but the second didn't either.

"Should we try the third and forth?" I tilted my head as I looked over at Hera.

But she just gave me a weird look. "The third layer, maybe, but the fourth was where Bahamut lived for a while. You think he'd give me the keys to his room?"

But that was just the first layer.

"Ana?" The moment the caretaker spoke, the massive wall of books parted down the middle to reveal another mound of books behind it, with a single, sky blue-feathered dragon peeking her head over it.

"Huh? Anthiza? What are you doing here? With guests no less..." She spoke extremely informally, somehow not recognizing my fenririan form. "Are they the new colleagues you mentioned?"

Almost immediately, the towering wall of books behind her parted, and so did the one after to reveal about a dozen dragons peeking over at us, actively sifting through at least a million books. -Holy shit...-

One thing was for certain, if you were to work there, you had to be passionate about it...

But Hera didn't seem to be as awestruck as me, and spoke bluntly. "Unfortunately not. We actually came with some questions."

A couple more dragons immediately popped their heads around their walls of books to see what was going on as she spoke.

"We are looking for information on a god called the World Serpent, or something named similarly. If anyone knows anything or can provide us with any texts, we will pay you up to twenty platinum."

I instantly jolted before using magic to speak in her ear. "I didn't know you brought any money..."

But she just turned smug and looked at me. "Why would I bring money when I have you with me."

"Just because I can make it doesn't mean it's free money-" Cutting me off she pressed the edge of her wing into my face.

"Twenty platinum may as well be twenty coppers for you." Her smile slowly widened as she averted her gaze. "You didn't even notice me spending a couple of royal gold on your dime the other day."

"WHAT?!" I instantly tensed up. "The hell did you spend it on?!"

Her smile warmed as her gaze found its way to my eyes. "You'll see soon enough."

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