"They are not all that insignificant, My Lord. As a matter of fact, the events after the Empress turned 17 are the precedents of the instances wherein Ekshralon was activated for at least six, at most eleven, diers straight. It was accompanied by Her Highness being reduced to a state of comatose for the duration of the activation."
Sarakiel suppressed a groan, bewildered of the situation that was becoming more and more strange. Not to mention, the spells involved were previously unknown to him. Duke Helian embraced a busy silence while he organized the thoughts in his mind.
'I initially deduced that the spell lingered simply to cover up Her Highness' past wounds. That deduction came from my observation of Eshkralon's mana activity. It hasn't consumed any fresh batch of mana for the past couple of aethras. What is going on?' He merely thought of the inference that he arrived at.
Usually, Sarakiel found it fascinating to learn novel information apropos his craft and the complications that came with it, yet he appeared wholly distressed in his contemplation. He could neglect the weight of the duty that was assigned to him, but not the nagging incertitudes at the back of his mind.
'There is a myriad of things that I want to be enlightened on. However, I do not even know where to start asking.'
Surveying the tensed shoulders of the Duke, Sura wondered on how she could offer up her assistance.
"My Lord, do you have any queries? We wi-"
Ultimately, she decided on reminding him that he could quell his curiosities by interrogating the twins. Nonetheless, the maid discontinued her response, considering that the Duke was not listening. She just heaved a heavy sigh and waited for Sarakiel to take action on his own.
Duke Helian lowered his head, bringing up his index finger to touch his chin synchronously. There were details that he couldn't grasp that kept him high-strung.
'Just how do these wounds and diseases unfold out of nowhere? Is it a side-effect of the immortality spell? Or is it a different spell? There are minuscule remnants of innumerable spells left on Her Highness' body, probably due to the experimentation. It has been too far in the past that their histories are no longer traceable. There's still the issue of the immortality spell not being able to cure the damages that befall upon the Empress. Also, on what diers did she have no wounds? What happened in those moments?'
He bit the nail on his thumb out of frustration, disregarding the strength of his bite.
'Be that as it may, what's mightily vexing me is that Ekshralon already desisted in consuming mana for more than nearly two aethras ago. What is it? What is happening?!'
As his tongue perceived the metallic taste of blood, a plausible scenario prevailed in his chaotic thoughts.
'Did it, perchance, became animate?'
Sarakiel suddenly jerked his head up, bewildered of the conjecture that he formed.
'Animated spells are one in a billion. A whole generation could live their lives without descrying one. Surprisingly, I did encounter three of them in the short window of a mensith - The invocatory spells of the angels and possibly Ekshralon. To conjure an animated spell, one must give a certain amount of their blood, depending on the grade of the spell, to the corresponding magic circle. For all that, what if it is dwelling inside the body of someone who had been revived?'
It's inefficient to brainstorm by himself when there was a person who was as well-versed as he was in the specificities of spells, standing ten feet away from him. Hence, the Duke hurriedly met the gaze of his commander to seek Mikhail's opinion.
"My Lord, how would you describe a parasitic or animated spell?"
Thankfully, Percival aptly deduced what Sarakiel was attempting to realize. The simplicity of the question did not surprise him at all.
"Well, a spell of the parasitic type can permanently reside in any matter, regardless of whether they have a life force or not, until their eventual destruction. This type of spell has no will of their own, as opposed to an animated spell. Anima-"
"Stop with the textbook explanation, My Lord. I want to learn about the discoveries you made in your research." Sarakiel interposed on Mikhail's speech, his tone slightly indicative of his urgency.
The commander complied pronto, unperturbed that the study he conducted in secrecy was brought to light.
"These two types are in the highest tier grade of spells, making them the rarest of the rare. Generally, parasitic spells are on the borderline of being classified as curses. On the other hand, animated spells are technically curses, but they are regulated with the sole sacrifice of blood. They can coexist in the same body. Though in two separate identities, unlike other spells that can be combined. " Mikhail spoke with not the least bit of faltering.
Sarakiel appeared to ponder on the answer, albeit briefly, before responding with a query.
"What's your verdict in a healing spell evolving into an animated-parasitic one?"
"At the outset, the attributes of mana exploited in both of these spells are in leagues that are poles apart. The probability of evolution is close to a fracture of a percent. Unless an interaction capable of catalyzing a change in their nature happens, that percentage isn't going to increase."
"So it's possible then?" The young lad spoke with uncertainty even though an answer was given.
Mikhail narrowed the scrutiny that he had on his subordinate, clearly disappointed on the course they're taking. It seemed that the Duke had not recovered from his earlier mishap. Percival then trodded the floor, his heels sonorously hitting the wooden panels, en route Sarakiel.
"Sarakiel, it's clear that you are still distraught from the argument you had with Lady Kishnar. You are not doing a good job in deliberating information properly and correlating them with one another." The commander uttered as he halted his steps at an arm's length in front of the knight.
The matter of violence against children was a long-standing, uncured trauma of the Duke. If it was any other normal dier, Mikhail would have let Sarakiel off of his incompetence, yet it was not as such. They were on the job and hanging on a thread with the Empress' life.
With his eyes shaking in lieu of being discovered, Duke Helian stared at Percival. The latter exhaled, acknowledging that the former's action couldn't be helped.
"Vraxhen Riol Ferashnevrin is an animated spell and Ekshralon is parasitic. If Ekshralon was exposed to the several aethras of Vraxhen consuming blood, then it's a no brainer that Ekshralon will evolve. Parasitic spells cannot function without the caster feeding it with mana. Hence, if there is an available supply of an alternative, it will obviously make use of the blood that Vraxhen collected. We've previously speculated that immortals have an indispensable supply of blood at their disposal, instead of being independent of it. Isn't it a perfect condition for Ekshralon and Vraxhen?" Mikhail explained, absent any pauses, his personal take in the development of the spells.
Sarakiel slowly nodded his head, the fog in his mind languidly clearing up. The push that he needed now presented by Mikhail.
"I see. In exchange for providing it with blood, Vraxhen appointed Ekshralon to be the spell responsible for healing Her Highness. They metamorphosed into a single animated-parasitic spell. Yes, thank you, My Lord. The limits of what a human could heal, I can see it."
It was a vague response, to say the least. Still and all, Duke Helian gave the impression that he knew what to do.
"My Lord."
Sarakiel turned his gaze at the Empress with an afresh conviction as he called out to Mikhail.
"What is it?"
"Do you remember Ierathel's gift?"
"Ierathel? Do you mean the Angel back in Ikdes? What of it?"
"I'm planning to use it here, to cure the Empress."
It might be that the pair was merely too careless. However, they were oblivious that they're blurting out classified info afore two people who should not be privy of it.
"Tara, did you hear that? He said Ierathel." Sura whispered in a voice inaudible to the three men.
"Yes, Sura. Those pesky judgmental creatures sure are annoying. We have to interfere with Sarakiel's plan."