After scanning through them, I came across the books that says the Priestess is usually seventeen years of age when she will be summoned, same with the chosen Familiar. So I naturally assumed before that if her chosen Familiar would be Aeron, then I can use that to estimate the time I have left.
I counted with my fingers.
I'm twelve now so...
I should have around five years left before she arrives.
But what if it's not Aeron?
What if it's someone else?
If I go with that kind of thinking then estimating her time of arrival would be unsure.
In the first place, none of the books mentioned if the Priestess would be summoned before the destined Fallen one realizes her fate or during.
It's safer to say that it's the latter.
But that's more unsettling on my part because it means —I would have began losing control of myself even before she arrives...
That seems more of a plausible as a reason why she would be sent out to hunt down and kill the Fallen one with her chosen Familiar accompanying her.
Foolish Aerra! I have been such a fool!!!
I ran my hand across my face in dismay.
Again, I scanned another book.
This one contains the poem:
She seeks to be noticed as she had been before. Oh she watches in envy. Stolen she claims and soon she wishes the priestess away, all might think it's just petty. But as men around the priestess grow in number, hate consumes the Fallen more. For all those men that adorned the priestess were all hers once before.'
I have long been dwelling on this one poem that talks about the Priestess being surrounded by men that has once adorned the Fallen one.
I flipped another page and realized it says 'Anonymously created by some commonfolks to immortalise the legend and in reverence to all the priestesses.'
I stared blankly at the opened book before me, jaw dropped. This poem was biasedly created for the priestess.
How did I ever overlooked this?!
It might even be a song for all I know! A hyperbole or a mocking sentiment of the people about the Fallen, perhaps just to emphasize the contrasting side of how the Priestess is well loved while the Fallen is not; depicting it as a figure of a fallen maiden, forgotten by mankind.
Oh god! How stupid can I be!?!
For all these years—!!!
For all these years I believed the men that I will meet in my life will be somewhat stolen by the Priestess and that it will cause my downfall or something apt to it.
—STUPID?!
I dropped the book down and began to repeatedly slam my head vehemently against the hard surface of my desk.
Stupid Aerra. Stupid!!
Leon barged in and saw me going at it.
"MiLady?!?!" he anxiously called out in shock.
I stopped and turned to him. "I'm alright. Please leave me alone" I grumbled.
He seemed reluctant but stepped out the room.
I wasted years of believing about a foolish reason how I might become the fallen.
Good thing I decided to review these books.
I went on scanning everything else that contain texts about the prophecy and the legend but found no other helpful information.
I planted my cheeks down on the reading desk and stared blankly at the stack of books I was able to compile beside me.
I realigned my thoughts and reviewed the information I know now.
In this world, magic is a vital thing that overruled the existence of science unlike from my previous life.
A ritual of summoning for the centennial Priestess will be done with the septal church deciding it when to hold that aforementioned ceremony.
So until then I have no way knowing when it will happen.
My only lead is that the Priestess is commonly around the age of seventeen based on all the records. And a Chosen one with the ability to transform into a weapon will become her Familiar. It seems they usually have the same age.
Also according to the texts, dark magic comes as a concomitant effect from summoning of Light magic for the Priestess to posses. But if basing from my morning lecture today, the dark elements have long been in this realm with or without the ritual of the summoning.
Somehow that's contradicting each other!
There's this book that mentioned that dark elements will eventually linger and possess that one person with a corrupted heart where strong magic resides. Someone who has two memories: the old and the new. That would become the Fallen one.
So if dark element in its very nature is invasive, as my governess said, and a shift in balance can tip the entire equilibrium then I wonder... if that notion is applicable only to the entire realm or to a single individual alone.
Still...
Something is missing.
Alright, time to study the elements next!
I sprung up and returned all the books.
This time, I went to stroll the shelves about books that contain the origin of elements.
But after almost an hour passed of searching, none provide the exact information I needed.
Oh wait—!
There's that one book— the one Syreon gave me.
I went back to the shelves and searched for books about the four different writing systems in this land. Most especially the set of the third and the fourth.
I already know the first and the second set.
I'm familiar with the third but I need a guide just to read the characters since one character can depict many different meanings depending on the accompanying words that surrounds it.
it's that complicated.
I hurried back to my room and took the book Syreon gave me. Scanning through the pages, I was able to discern a chapter that talks about Elements. I sighed in relief to realize the first three set of alphabet was only used in the aforementioned chapter.
I stormed out of my room. Leon seemed puzzled but he kept following behind me in silence.
I hurried back to the library almost running but then paused when Leon was about to follow me in. I blocked his path, with a foot by the door, halfway closing it before him. "I still need to be alone. Don't allow anyone to come in... please?"
He bows his head, "Understood"
With that, I closed the door behind me and strode across the library and towards the table where I left a pile of books.
I sat down, opened the book Syreon gave me and began to extensively decipher what I could.
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((A/N: Now I need to show pictures I made in relation to this scene but webnovel doesn't allow pictures yet. I'm really in a pickle! So let me just share the links. This really sucks! Anyway, here they are:
https://w.tt/2Rz0hZx
https://w.tt/2G8g8gv
Tell me if the link won't work!))
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I scanned my eyes through what I was able to gather and just reviewed it.
So the Null is a part of the Dark magic after all...
I raised my hand to my eye level and blankly stared at it.
Faram instilled a dark element inside of me...
I remembered when the veins of my hand turned black, appearing like black crawling vines on my skin.
The shift of balance... has weigh in the favor of darkness.
"..."
I snapped back to reality when a door knock emitted.
Leon's face pops out from the slit by the doorway as it creeks open. I sat few steps away from the door so Leon had to raise his voice just to call out to me. "M'Lady! The young master says he seeks to have an audience with you."
"Audience?" I chuckled.
Aeron might be getting sarcastic for being hindered by Leon from stepping inside the library.
"Let him in" I hollered as I closed all the books.
Aeron came marching in with both brows heavily furrowing in obvious annoyance. "Since when have I not been allowed to be with my twin sister?!" He muttered loud that even as I walked further in and towards the shelves to return the books, I can still hear him.
"Over here!" I shouted. He followed me in.
"What is happening?" He crossed his arms.
"What do you mean?" I replied, side glancing him as I place the books back properly on each of their shelves. Aeron kept following me a little from behind.
"Why are you again reading all these books?" He took the book out which I just returned and read it with his eyes. "What are you studying the advanced writing system for?"
"You're seriously asking why I'm studying the alphabet and syllabaries?" I murmured. "Isn't it obviously? I haven't mastered the third set yet so I'm trying to be adept with it."
"Yeah but what for?" He looked more concerned than curious.
"I'm trying to read the book Lord Syreon gave me." I answered, walking towards the next wall of bookshelves.
"And who in the world is Syreon?"
"Levi's older brother!"
"Oh... he has a brother?" Aeron muttered to himself with a finger curled under his chin. "Oh right! I remember now! The one on the wheelchair!"
I pushed back the last book back to its shelf and faced Aeron. "So how about you? Why are you looking for me?"
"My magic training is over so... I was wondering what you're up to."
In translation, he's checkin up on me. Still not very honest but straight forward.
"Don't you have somewhere to be today?" I walked pass him.
"I have actually but I'm waiting for Levi first. Kain is coming along too!"
I paused and looked at him. "All of you are going out today?"
He nodded in a grin. "Yeah! It's the harvest season, after all. We plan to help Eriol with the harvest for his orchard and farm. It might take all night long too because of the harvest moons. But we can try to at least help until sundown."
Oh. So that's what they were whispering and exchanging notes earlier for.
I found myself waiting for him to invite me too but he didn't. Probably because of security reasons again and the concern of me getting abducted by Faram. So I just went back to the study desk and took the book Syreon gave me and wrapped it with my arms close to my chest.
"Good luck then! Have fun." I beamed at him.
I'm glad he's at least enjoying his time with friends.
Harvest moons are the time of the year where the two moons are at its brightest, providing enough light even at night. It usually arrives every end of the summer before winter begins. It's the best time for the great harvest for our people.
"MiLady, you have another visitor" Leon peeks from the doorway.
"Let him in."
Eriol steps in.
"I knew I'll find you if I try searching for Aerra!" He walks towards us and messed Aeron's hair.
"I thought you'll go on ahead?" Aeron pushes him off and began to fix his hair in place. It doesn't seem to make a difference since he has tousled curly hair anyway.
"I decided we should ask her to come along" Eriol jerks his head to me. "Do you want to come along? We'll be helping with the harvest"
"What?!" Aeron interjecs, "No! It's too dangerous for her!" He added, stomping his foot down in protest.
"She's been locked up in this castle for almost about a month now, kiddo." He says, placing a fist at each side of his waist. "Besides, Faram is the kind of predator that patiently watches and waits. He will strike if no one is expecting. He doesn't like needless bloodbath and chaos. So we can be sure he won't appear if we surround Aerra all the time with lots and lots of people."
"What's up with you two always sounding like you admire the guy? If he's a sneak then she is more likely to be taken away without us knowing!" Aeron argued.
"We will all keep an eye on her! She'll be fine. Plus she has her butler tailing her around so extensively. I'm sure he won't let her out of his sight." Eriol shrugged. "Even you won't let her out of your sight."
I wanted to say something but I don't think they would hear me out at this point so I just pulled a chair and sat down, waiting for them to make up their mind.
"Still, you said it yourself, Faram is strong. He was able to dissolve your Meistership connection with Aerra. If he can erase such thing, what is a simple challenge of taking her from us would be?"
Meistership?
"W-wait! Hold on just a minute here!" I stood up. "What the heck are you two talking about?"
"It is as what you heard. You used to be a meister of Eriol. He could sense when you're in danger then and respond accordingly but that night, when you met with Faram, all of it was lost along with your memories of him." Aeron stated, facing me. I glanced at Eriol as he just stole his eyes away.
"But aren't you his meister?" I asked, confused.
"We both are. But you were the first."
"Oh..." I honestly can't wrap my head around that idea.
I wonder what type of weapon he can transform into though.
"It seems like Faram has found a way to revoke the bond between meisters and their Transmuters. So since I can no longer sense if you're in distress, this becomes a problem." Eriol stated. "The only way I could redo the link with you is if you can trust me— completely..."
I didn't reply.
That's kinda hard...
I barely know him...
I bowed my head down and wondered...
I do trust him but only because my family trusts him.
Perhaps how I trust him now does not still fully equate to how I must have trusted him before.
It's not like I don't want to trust him completely.
It's just...
"And what do you know about Faram?" I digressed.
Suddenly the door creaks open. Leon's head peeks out again, "M'Lady, you have another visitor"
"Just let him in"
We all looked at the door as Levi closed it behind him.
"Good afternoon" he greeted. His eyes regards me kindly. "Why the heavy atmosphere?"
"We're talking about Faram" Aeron pulls a chair out and swivelled it around, sitting on it with the back of the chair facing front.
"Hmm. I'd like to hear more about him too." Levi pulls a chair from one of the study desks too and sat down, one leg crossed over the other.
We all turned and looked at Eriol.
"Is this story telling time all of a sudden?" He chuckled. His sneer still plastered on his face.
"You better not joke around." Aeron frowns, "This is serious."
"Okay okay! Where to begin?" Eriol shrugged.