Kydone saying something, to someone she didn't really know and without being questioned, left the twins even more speechless.

"Right, I mean at least give me the option to leave if it is just going to be a waste of time," Eldrian replied, Kydone nodding with enthusiasm.

"Really? That is your stance, isn't that a little childish?" Evules asked, really confused on why Eldrian was so irritated by this. An hour wasn't really any time at all. It wasn't an entire day, it was just an hour. Not much can be done in an hour, even if one worked as hard as they could.

"Maybe... I just don't like how it was a waste of time, something that could have been avoided if he simply said the truth."

"That... Well, that makes sense..." Evale replied, herself also irritated by that part. While Fanon didn't technically lie, they could see the corruption from the walls and a lot of it. Seeing it really didn't do anything. It was too widespread to allow them to determine its growth point, having no accompanying information also added to the uselessness of the hour.

The group talked a bit more on this, but quickly the conversation shifted to where to should stay for the night. This conversation quickly became heated as Evules wanted to go to a brothel, Evale scolding him for even thinking of that.

Evules pressed on how he might die and he deserved some special treatment for his last night. To which Evale countered that he mustn't soil himself in such places. With Evules countering again that it wasn't something dirty but beautiful instead.

Eldrian instead had a hard time imagining what these brothels would be like. He just couldn't understand how they would cater to all races, mostly centaurs, and demi-humans. The latter he could think of, the former not at all. He stayed as far away from this argument as he could, wishing to save the little innocence he might still have. Mostly he didn't want to see a centaurette prostitute. He didn't want to become confused when looking at other races, he really didn't.

When he found a seemingly decent inn with few people inside, he asked why they didn't just stay there. Evale quickly jumped on his suggestion, leading to Evules sulking and asking Eldrian why he hadn't sided with him. They could both have been enjoying their possible last night by now, if he had. Possibly many other nights too.

It took Eldrian some time to escape from Evules, who pressed on how good fort brothels were. Luckily once Eldrian had managed to escape time quickly passed as he dived into the rejuvenation book again. Absorbed in the things mentioned and discussed within it. He couldn't put it down and had to force himself to log out when the day started IRL.

Logging out was made even harder knowing that he was going to have a full day of training with Constantin. Luckily a small part of him was excited for this, not just for learning more but also for being able to discuss things with Constantin.

...

"Corruption? Yeah I've heard of it." Constantin said during one of Eldrian's breaks.

"Do you know how it spreads, or how we can stop it from spreading?" Eldrian asked between deep breaths, tired from the routine he had just finished.

"Not really, I just know plenty of rumors on it. The most famous one is that it was created and spread by the dark gods, though this isn't true. None of the AI actually spread the corruption... Though they had indeed created it"

"Wait, what? The AI actually created it?" Eldrian interrupted, completely caught off guard by this. This knowledge quickly caused him to believe the mission was going to be far harder.

"Well yes, it was necessary to allow for the development of monsters and other stranger races that wouldn't come into being in normal circumstances. Just having magic in a world doesn't make it that everything can exist, certain conditions must still be met to allow for their evolution."

"Wait, what evolution? And what do you mean just magic?" Eldrian pressed.

"Well yeah, all the beings in ANW weren't just created. Rather the AI created environments for them to come into existence. Similar to how GAIA created a galaxy where magic exists, without actually having made magic. Just having manipulated what might be possible until results came from that."

"So then... Do you know how it works? Do you know what the corruption is?" Eldrian asked even though he was quickly losing hope in getting any answers.

"No, just like with magic, it is hidden to us. It is part of magic, a different kind of magic to what we are exposed to. But still part of magic."

"How the hell do you guys make so many things without being able to know how it works?" Eldrian asked in exasperation. He really couldn't understand how ANW was ever created if everything remains unknown to its creators.

"Well, that is because we made it in the hope of understanding the unknowns. Instead of answering the unknowns, it created even more. All our attempts had resulted in similar cases, the AI were never meant to be gods. But that is how it worked out." As Constantin said this both sighed, Constantin in defeat and Eldrian in exasperation.

"What did you actually manage to figure out by making the simulation, by making ANW?" Eldrian asked, knowing that learning was the primary goal of the entire simulation.

"That magic exists," Constantin replied in a joking manner, though it was indeed basically the main thing they had learned. They had many more theories and speculations, but this is the only thing that really struck out and stayed. That things they thought were impossible was actually possible, and hence many things had to be reconsidered.

Eldrian sighed again upon hearing this, suddenly thinking of what he had been reading and wondering if Constantin could answer that. "Do souls exist?" Eldrian asked, not believing so himself.

He always felt it was just linked to religion, that it wasn't a part of humans on earth. He couldn't understand how souls would exist. If they did what necessitated their existence, were they limited to humans, or did all animals have souls? However, his belief was starting to wane the more he learned of ANW, the more he learned of magic.

"I think so, most others don't. It is one of the things that are still up to debate. Mageia is also still actually just a concept, an unproven theory. While you have given concrete explanations, this isn't enough. We need to be able to duplicate your results and until then it will stay unproven." Eldrian was quite shock hearing that mageia wasn't accepted. He had thought that all those that learned would quickly accept it.

"The case with souls is similar. We have yet to actually prove it, though in this case we also haven't found anything that supports that it might exist. But I believe they must, the natives of Gaia certainly believe souls exist. A great many magic types even rely on it, and since all things in the simulation mirrors reality -at least in some twisted manner- then it must exist. Like magic, it might be far more hidden on earth, but I am certain it must also exist here."

Again Eldrian sighed, "What do you mean then? How can you believe it exists if you haven't managed to actually find any evidence?"

"Well, it will link some of the theories I am working on. Though it isn't the only thing that can link them, it seems to be the most commonly mentioned one, and the only one that is also supported by evidence from ANW."

...

Back in the game, Eldrian delved right back into reading until the time came for them to meet up at the keep. By now he had made it to Tier 3, Anthise. Reading the following pages became harder and harder as Eldrian had to contemplate the meaning of each paragraph. He could no longer trust his instincts from earth, souls became more and more a focal point of the passages.

He still was not sure if he should believe they existed, and even if they did he had no idea what they were. Were they ethereal forms hidden in each person, or were they like mageia? Part of you but intangible, something you can never see but can sense if you train yourself?

According to the book, all types of energy -and indeed magic too- was linked to the soul. The trick to seemingly rejuvenating it all, with little effort and great effect, was to rejuvenate one's soul instead of the body. This was just a theory mentioned by the author though and not proven.

Eldrian simply couldn't understand this. While he could talk himself into believing souls existed, and he could conceive how they might, he didn't truly believe this. He also didn't think that that was where everything came from.

Yet this book was adamant about it, even though it was unproven. This caused Eldrian to find the words on the pages more and more confusing. He was starting to feel like he should move on to the book based on Floga. Hoping that that book wouldn't delve into belief and allow him to just enjoy his reading.

Though one thing was extremely strange. The book was on nature, not belief. Meaning that while on earth believing that souls existed generally meant that the person was religious, in this world it was deemed a fact. Something natural, not related to the gods.

Realizing this caused Eldrian to not be able to pick up the other book, his mind simply stuck on this fact. I might really be wrong... But I just don't understand what souls are? The only thing I can think of is that it is consciousness. But, that doesn't have a form...

Eldrian also realized how this could also be the reason why some people were incapable of using magic. If it was not a matter of willpower, but rather the attunement of one's soul, then it would make sense how no amount of effort can overcome it. How no change in mindset, belief, training, nothing would be able to allow someone unable to suddenly be able.

Maybe I should just ignore how and what it is, and just accept that it is?