It wasn't a door where one needs to find a key to get it opened. But neither was it a door with some sort of puzzle to be solved.

All that was needed was to push it with some strength and it opened.

To the Halls of the Departed.

The words responded. Simply reading it reduced the shiver in my arms. My heartbeat lessened to a trickle and my mind felt like drinking the boiled magical Jasmine Herb I had had once—it felt soothed. But was this door safe? Or was this the part where another horror lies in wait, a trap purposefully built?

What awaited me was another patch of darkness. Possibly reaching far deep. A point of doubt. But this time, at the very least, the faint lights coming from the wall beside the pushed-open door scorched my eyes, forcing me to believe it might not be of adverse implications.

So I didn't have to think twice about it. There might or there might be not. But it was no longer a question that needed me to rethink as many times as needed. To be entirely safe.

Light. That alone was something that necessitated me to jump and take the risk.

I shifted my eyes back to the the room.

Corpse(unzombified)

It appeared as I looked at it's pristine color. Clearly, still visible despite having it thrown as far as possible.

Corpse(unzombified)

And I spared another look just to make sure of it. The magical words' machination brought more depth to it in my eyes. Wrongness was piling up in me again, but I had to admit it—that sheet was beyond my imagination. Knowing I straddled it and held it as if some sort of comfort over the now thought-of-as-corpse door constricted my throat.

I didn't know how it was made or if it was just called that way. Still, the possibility of the former brought a story I wouldn't want to delve into. So I swiftly jumped in the opened door as I cast one, final penetrative gaze at the cloth.

It was either a long fall or a short fall on my feet, a risk I didn't put too much attention to mainly because I was freed of perception. No pain to worry about except of the thought of finding more cloth corpse beyond. If not something much worse.

Yet, just by a hair's breath later, I found myself marvelling for a moment as I felt myself plopped on a flat, chilling surface. On the wall and on my side. But when I realized that I was just but a few inches away from that terrible room, I scrambled to get the door closed. There were no bolts or even something else to bar it. Even so, the heaviness of the door as I pushed it closed was more than enough to assuage my thoughts of it getting opened. At the very least, the light cloth would have a hard time doing so. Still, it might have magic.

I crossed that thought off, still within my worries but something I wouldn't further my thoughts about.

With that, I slid off the closed door, legs wide open on the floor. The wrongness that traversed my body and mind was quickly dissipating away. As if I was given rest after hours of fetching rocks. With the exception that here was colder. Cooler. Much more comfortable than sticky sweats dipped in by the scorching noon.

What cloth is that? The headsmaid's?

I heaved. Even if I was compelled to inspect my surroundings with what the earlier experience told me about, my whole being just screamed some needed rest and a breath. I wasn't even in my actual feeling body—quite obvious as I remained unhurt by the fall. But I was more than exhausted. Strained, mentally.

In any case, darkness still was my company, again. Except for a very dim, circular white light etched on the sides of the door's frame. Small enough to almost be negligible but nonetheless bright enough to expel bits of what the darkness around might hold.

"Oh, a newcomer." A distant voice surprised me, quite far in the darkness in front.

"Ohhhhh, yes yes. Indeed!" Another one echoed his.

That, at least, was what I had hoped to happen. Like some other people the same as me present in this space. Letting me rest my mind longer knowing I have company of the like. And that in a way, their mere voices would deter me to be overly cautious of my surroundings.

But that was a just a figment of my mind. In a way, the best it did was lulling a bit of the remaining fear beating my chest. And to my further relief, some moments of visual inspection on the never-ending darkness brought no wrongness on myself. So I slumped a bit further on the cold ground, letting the rough floor skid past my unclothed back and the light behind me bringing me some desired comfort.

And more importantly.

I let myself smile, remembering the sound that I had heard earlier. Simply willing the words with the intent on what that sound meant made it appear.

You understand your fear, and you know when and how to brave it. As a subject who's faced her fears. You learn of the magic befitting of who you are.

'Primal Spell: Redirection' has been gained.

... If learning magic had been this easy.

I hummed in thought of how easily things happened just by willing things with a thought—especially when just getting fearful of unknown things can possibly be a way to acquire spells. Remembering the years of work I had done just to graze and have mana back then made me chuckle at myself, both in disbelief and excitement. Worse was that I only knew only of it in my death.

The floor finally met the entirety of my back as I slid off the door completely. Cold. Just like the room behind. But not as gruesome as earlier's.

For now, rest... then some magic after.

That was the last thought I had when I drifted off from darkness to itself again.

—–·–—

It was a good rest. One I had appreciated more as I stretched and rolled my shoulder, letting the pop and the feeling of relief register to my body. My feeling body. And that earned a relieved sigh from me to me. Though it was quite wondrous being in a partially-detached state, knowing I wouldn't feel hurt, I know it better myself what the difference between not getting hurt and not feeling hurt.

I was relieved too that the lingering fear I had was now completely gone.

A sleep do more than nip. That was the phrase I would always say after a good sleep. And it held true to my current situation, as if my sleep dreamt the problem away—poofed it away. Somehow, that gave me confidence to look at the vibrant darkness with expectations. No more odd corpse. Odd forms. Odd situations. Just the dark and me and this hall—and some dim lightings.

An adventure.

It was a part of my dreams to walk beyond the confines of the gates, of those walls, of those orphanage doors and windows—the call was so enlivening for me. Knowing that there's no one to chain my choice made the darkness all the more exciting to navigate—even if the darkness struck a chord somewhere in me from time to time and even if such place was something I wouldn't have dare ventured enthused.

To the Halls of the Departed

... At least I hoped. I'm seemingly dead yet not. And the magical words reminded me of that. But this feeling, the way I breathed, the way I could feel fear and be happy and be joyous.

That made me feel completely alive. Made me know I'm still me.

I knew it, the void was but a tale. Death wasn't an end.

So I let myself be plastered with a hopeful smile. "If there is magic, there is life." And I would hold onto that, again and again and again.

That felt better than thinking of what dark secrets was there beyond. I glazed a piercing look at the darkness, up and down, then made sure that the door behind me is barred even of a gap. Or at least I'd feel movement if something nudged it, the best I could do before I focused on willing the sound that woke me.

Soul Assimilation Completed!

Name: Nudius

Class: None

Origin Magic: [Soul Projection Required]

Primal Spell: Redirection

Book of Spells:

Mana Manipulation • Lvl 0

Codex:

⟨Spell Amalgamation⟩

Tomes:

[Tome of Mana Implosion]

There was surprise that held my mind for a moment, then I let myself be lost wondering about the words' implications.

It could be a misnomer or something like a joke. Deception. But that's an absurd deflection of the truth. I have magic. I reaffirmed, casting away any sort of denial that cropped out of nowhere. Which I think was probably my disbelief at work. What can I do? For all those years, we've been trying to even use and get a feel of mana around us. But all the time, it always came short.

And now, here was the magical words. Bringing in words after words I could only think of as magic. My magic.

Would they be in the same situation as I? A thought I think was quite feasible. Maybe we can meet, maybe we won't. In the darkness beyond, perhaps? I mused as I scrutinized the encompassing black in front of me, rubbing my arms that stood cold not with dread but of coldness.

No cloth corpse, still safe, I guessed. Again, like what was beyond this dark halls suggested, it was unanswerable. So now, I remained where I was, musing perhaps I'd find some sort of magic that could help me traverse this blinding color. Fire spell would be best. Not only light but also heat. Though the Fireball had not worked earlier, but it may this time.

Restoring the magical words, I looked further on what the words meant. But this time, with the intent to only will the words I wanted. Barrage of words would only serve as an obstruction on my vision, and that I wouldn't have.

Soul Assimilation Completed!

Clearly, this at least showed that everything was true—there are things that needed some more practice. I tried again.

Name: Nudius

Class: None

Origin Magic: [Soul Projection Required]

...really? I blinked a couple of times at it. A bit taken aback how easy it went. Though there are things aimed better for my uncertainty, I was more keen on how something so ungraspable for me came as smooth as I want it. But then again, I realized. Magic.

A fleeting chuckle escaped me, letting my ears be whet with scarce sound. I got magic!

I let the words fade away again, finally letting go of the doubts I didn't knew gripped me.

Focusing further on my name didn't give any more info about it, but the Class portion told something interesting.

Class: None

One wields power by the way of Mana. To conjure life, cause death, inflict wounds, to heal, to inspire or despair—for everything—it requires one to understand more of what their power pertains. Such, gaining a Class is one way to understand its meaning.

To gain a Class, one must know the fundamental of what you aim to be.

Book of Spells: 1/10

Ether Crystal Bestowment: None

The words promised something almost intangible for me. In a way that it held not a clear definition of what class meant but something more. Akin to... freedom. As if this was something I needed to create the magic I needed earlier. But a quick whispered chant of Fireball garnered only silence.

Scratching my head, I opted to make sense of the other words there are.

The Book of Spells told wonders at first glance, something where the Fireball that I needed must truly belong. I tested my imagination again but it also failed. Hmm. But thinking critically about what the words' connection to the class was, it appeared that perhaps one needed a spell to form a class. Ten of them. And, at the same time, perhaps finding a crystal was another step to gain a class. Focusing on either phrase didn't conjure more words so I didn't have an immediate answer. Something to learn about.

Willing some words out of the 'Origin Magic' part didn't give any sort of clue at all. So it just hung there, in front—

Origin Magic: [Soul Projection Required]

—unmoved by any of my wills. What was even a soul?

My rueful hum livened the still place a bit, pondering ways on how that Soul Projection can be acquired. It didn't sound fancy. For now, I willed the following words that's more interesting.

Primal Spell: Redirection • Lvl 0

Imbue mana to form a transparent, one-feet wide sphere to redirect light physical objects.

"Ohhh..."

I ohhed in awe, then grinning shortly after. My first magic. Although the description seemed sparse and sounded common, it was still something I was happy about. And I just had to use it right away.

But that was the question. How do I cast it? Putting my palm out then willing the spell did nothing. Chanting the words sounded like a bluff. Trying to be intrinsic was amazingly useless as well. Even the meditation that helped me realize I had mana only added to the silence. Once again, I realized that the magical words won't easily conjure what I wanted. Maybe the floating words is only its magic.

I scoured my memory of how magic worked, of how mana is used, but that only brought bits of information such as: Magic are of mana. Mana is of nature. Mana can be imbued to one's body. Magic can be dangerous. Magic are fancy. Mana was source. Magic and mana work together. Together, more fancy.

My conflicted look waded back through the spell's definition, finding some form of nuance from it. An admittance that I knew nothing of mana let alone magic. Still, I gazed at it with expectations. Sooner.

What the next words only cemented the idea that I couldn't cast the spell yet. But at least, I had an idea on how to.

Book of Spells:

Mana Manipulation • Lvl 1

One can not be born of Mana. One bask not of its limitless definition. But if anything, one would prove they know how to bring Mana into something wondrous, unexpected, and changing. Manipulate Mana by your will, for perhaps, in time, you'll learn of its promises.

Use Mana Manipulation to retain more mana into your body. Core[0%]

I skipped past the first paragraph, not wanting to get my hopes up with its mystified implications like the Class did.

The second paragraph—as scantily as it had provided—was what allowed me the conjecture why I was having no result using the spell. I had no mana. Well, if zero percent referred to it. Which is very likely.

Though there was no mention of how to manipulate mana, if that 1 beside the spell's name was better than the 0 of the Redirection spell, then I probably already know how to.

Basically, through meditation. I just have to feel my surroundings and do what the meaning of the spell, use Mana Manipulation to retain more mana into my body.

Codex:

Spell Amalgamation • Tier 1

Allow Spells to be combined with one another.

Tomes:

[Tome of Mana Implosion] -

• Protection Knowledge

Has partial understanding of damage directly through mana. With the right spells, you may be able to conjure a Thread of Protection against Spells that damage through mana. Especially those that kah-boom!

Finally, I regarded the extended meaning of the last magical words. Fascinated how spell amalgamation would work. What would happen if I mix fire and water? Would it explode? What of fire and earth? Would it explode too? Those were the things I imagined it could do. But for now, I halted thinking more.

As for the tome, I immediately knew how I'd gotten it. The meaning made me conflicted yet thankful for. It would be useful if such instance befall upon me again. Maybe that would help if I face the Northers again, with much hope for surviving.

Still, I didn't find any ways how to use them. Willing more words from each of them was of no effect either. So I could only stare at the words and stitch in scenarios how those magical words would be used.

For now, I had to try how that Mana Manipulation works, or if my assumption that meditation might be what starts it.

I stared intently at the darkness for a while and found nothing that traced my skin. No shivers which meant no cloth. Which also means no further danger yet... I hope. But there's nothing I could do, so I scooted tighter against the door, making sure it is barred of even a gap. Breathing in, I shook my head off the drawn figures on what lies beyond the darkness in front. Instead, I shifted to a comfortable position. I felt safe now. The lights near me more than enough to deter such thoughts. Now, I just have to make the magic work. See where I was and leave here.

Then make that Fireball happen this time.