Chapter 282 -18

Harmony raised an eyebrow at her familiar.

“Grurrp,” Hyacinth commented from his new throne, having grown larger but not overly menacing, as he occupied Ceza’s chair. He saw the opportunity to sit higher than everyone else and took it.  His joy was a symptom of current issues, for so recently had the woman departed that the staff had yet to move Ceza’s special accommodation out of the Chase family’s tea room.

The Chase elder left without saying goodbye. She had places to be, things to do, a linked partner to fetch, but not waiting a brief moment for a proper goodbye to Harmony didn’t sit well with the royal eraser. Since Cezna’s introduction, Harmony had tried to make herself as pliant, boring, and pleasantly approachable as possible to get the woman to lose interest and leave. The fear after Xera’s drastic transformation was that the woman would stay longer, probe deeper, ask more questions about who the Chase clan’s little genius was linked to.

Disappearing with little to no notice after Harmony had gone full pleasing maid after something interesting happened was almost worse. The Chase clan had stronger, more forceful members they could send, and if they were satisfied with leaving Xera’s gains where they were at, they wouldn’t need her anymore, or the embarrassment that was potentially there if it was revealed she was a necromancer.

“My aunt sends her apologies. But now I can breathe again. I think her domain no longer being able to keep me in place made staying here no longer fun.” Xera talked excitedly.

That discovery happened after Xera woke up well enough to move after a long sleep, one that Harmony monitored, as it was hard not to feel somewhat responsible for her taking on all that trauma. Cezna expanded her domain, and Harmony had to counter with hers, while Xera moved right through them.

That was the curious thing. The girl didn’t have a domain of her own to cancel it; she just walked through the pressure as if it wasn’t there. Having been by Xera’s side the whole time as her body, soul, and skills were adapting, and yet she’d missed the exact mechanisms that caused such an ability was frustrating.

Cezna was certainly surprised, which started those worries about her being too interesting now.

“And how are your levels?” Harmony asked as the tea was being poured.

“Moving up quickly. Having all my skills become modified while getting a new class and profession was disappointing; the skills had been reset to level one, but as I get a handle on them, they’ve each already gained several.”

Which was something Xera had heard of happening once or twice, and usually only just the class or profession among those in her family. Harmony even got info out of Adric that when he became The Lady’s Pet Prince, his skills changed and reset. Xera’s decorating profession became a tidy consultant, and her defender class was now wall before death.

To tidy, remove, erase, had a clear link but was more about sparse and functional living spaces, where the girl threw things away that didn’t spark joy. Wall before death felt like a big giveaway of her secret. “And you have no memories of my training that [Two Against the End] borrowed for these changes?

“That might come with time.” Xera replied.

What would be more embarrassing, the deaths, pain, and suffering, or hours scrubbing different bathrooms and the terribleness of helping Tyler with his experiments? Maybe the worst aspect was the lack of actual training, needing to piece together fragments from old books that matched the results she got, working skills bloody. No world powers supporting and guiding her, just herself. And rotting [Secure Seal] was urging her to keep all that information private.

“Let me know as soon as you get any flashes. That way I can confirm the details. I chose one of my new skills. Did you feel it?”

“Professional one, right? There was a tingling, but it’s not like there was a lot of time between your quickening and selection. Usually, choices are reserved for sending over any new information. I still can’t believe you gained all those levels and a new title; you never did slow down since evolving.”

“I suppose I didn’t, but if you’re sure you're stable, I’ll be making my next choice here, so I can monitor you.”

There was no talking to Marci about her necromancer skills. Who knew what information could get passed around, despite Mayor Bell claiming loudly and publicly that people's secrets and questions would be private. It doesn’t matter how good the necromancer he hired was; they couldn’t have the skills to so finely corral a soulless, who could be bribed with hats.  Bantz was as trustworthy as a man who stole from you could be.  

[Haunting] would be at a disadvantage of being too revealing a skill to use. Hard to train up a skill when it screamed necromancer. She’d experienced being restricted to using [Shadowed Graves] only in the dungeon or a touch at a time, and poor [Claim the Remains of Power] only assisted her work on souls rather than what it was meant to be— a purveyor of stolen power.   Even if the skill gave the hope of finding and shoving a soul into Marci, so it was no longer the risk it potentially represented, Harmony couldn’t make herself select it. When disaster struck, she might step in, but Bantz could suffer from the stolen pride of his stolen glory.

[Contain Soul] offered up the secrets to immortality. She’d already theorized that if you could keep a soul from dissipating with a viable body and the right planning, you could bring back targets or yourself an extended period of time later. Trapping curses, or shenanigans against the fluctuations between the human and monster parts of people, had [Contain] as a very tempting option. It could easily slot in as a healing spell that Hexio Curie would love.

It was the unknown that called. [Restore History]. Repairing books for Tyler and then the Immortalists was an aspect of herself barely represented in her skills. Restoration was something she forced onto beaten, crumbling texts, and old women looking to remove more than a few wrinkles. She’d grabbed [Shadowed Graves] under the same calling, one of being closer to Hyacinth, and the curiosity stepping into the shadows with him always brought. Here was a key to unlock secrets of the ages.

In some cultures, they roll a die and let fate decide every time. Burn that.

Opening the choice, Harmony selected [Restore History].

One eye kept sight of Xera’s soul, watching how this would affect…

Harmony’s hand went to her chest. Squeezing where her heart was.

“You alright?” Xera asked.

[Eternal Fable’s Heart] quaked in her chest. Harmony slapped a new [Secure Seal] on top of the two she’d applied recently. The bloody thing had seven in The Ascendant Games; it could take a few more.

Right now it was like layering bandages, and she knew there was a better way to use the [Seal], but it would have to do. The heart acting up was only half the pain as her new skill emerged in her. There was no way she would let that hidden divine aspect linked to her [Heart] influence the rising of this skill within her.

This skill emergence was a bit deep. It felt like her soul was coughing up some knotted wreck. Unlike with half-step potions, full body-types were less separate. It was hard to tell if vital body was helping or hindering this skill acquisition, only that it was ripping deep through her slowly and healing in the process.

“I guess I have to do it myself.”

Harmony moved her hand to where she could feel it coming in. It had that sense of history, smelling of ancient books and tomes; [Claim the Remains of Power] grappled through the layers of her existence with connections, breaking the rules. This was her personal skill; it wasn’t supposed to take time and processing like using a skill stone. Gotcha.

Reaching inwardly was like she was digging a deep grave to a long-buried body. The necromancy was there in whatever [Restore History] was going to be. But did she have to dig in her soul to get it? Harmony pushed hard through the deep roots in the forest that was vital body sitting right on top of the skill, causing damage to reach it.

The healing vital body brought was necessary. Breathing felt wet, so Harmony spat out blood to clear the way, ruining the rest of the tea in her cup.

“Harm. Harm! Harm!” Xera was speaking in her ear while propping her up. There was [Two Against the End] in the girl's soul, its stream of connection slipping into her. Ha, and she’d been worried about her heart. Not that the sealed skill had calmed down, pumping as rapidly as it was sending stamina everywhere.

Just have to get the stuck skill out of the soil. The churning spirals of [Mana Rotation] twisted more violently as she pulled the skill out and to the surface. This wasn’t an island growing but a fully functional beast rising to the top with the others, pulsing with power, sending purple lightning into the mana around it in tiny flashes. The link from [The End] came with it like ancient ruins, compared to the shiny new ones around her other skills.

Harmony let out the breath she didn’t know she was holding in. The burning in her lungs from doing it so long finally relieved slightly; so focused had she been on this choice that she’d ignored her body to get the work done; otherwise, the idea of not knowing you were holding in a breath would be ridiculous.  

Xera was shaking her.

“Stop it. I’m fine.” Harmony assured her.

Fine being relative, this had damaged her more than the brawl in Oorty’s Tomb, but there was never the need to use [Stride Before the Fall]. Nothing wrong with practicing a little spiritual surgery on yourself.

“What skill did you choose, [Near Death]?”

Actually, that would have been a fascinating one. Please let that be a future option. “No, I chose…” The words fell from Harmony’s mouth as she internally checked her status.

For the second time, the answer wasn’t what she expected. First, [Ink Heart] became [Eternal Fable’s Heart]. She could trace the roots of possibilities to how that came to be. There was no [Restore History]; in its place was a skill titled [Old Ways], with not a clue in her mind about what it would do.