Master Bright's words are turning over in Rain's mind.
'So, the gods, or at least the seven known gods, weren't involved with creating humans. They almost sound as though they were...surprised. How curious. My Lineage description mentioned Creation, capitalized, as though it was a sentient entity. Could Creation be responsible for the emergence of humans? No...that doesn't make much sense either. Even if academics don't know about Creation, it seems like the gods did. If Creation was responsible for humans, wouldn't the gods have been less surprised by their emergence?'
He goes back and forth about the merit of whether humans could be connected to one of the three beings he saw referenced in the runes of his Trial. The more he thinks about it, the more he can come up with all kinds of explanations for why the gods might have still been surprised. Ultimately, there's no way for him to be whether the mysterious entities had a hand in humanity's birth...not with the information he has.
Rain glances at Master Bright, who seems to be lost in her own thoughts as well. If he wants to learn more about the unfamiliar names he read, asking her is his best shot for the time being. After all, that's one of the main reasons he asked her to drive him to the Academy...to have time alone for potentially sensitive questions like this. Making up his mind, he looks over at her as though something just occurred to him, and he tries to keep his voice casual.
"Say...Master Bright...you mentioned before that there are beings other than the gods and their children that we don't fully understand. Who are they?"
She spares him a brief glance, and there's a puzzled expression on her face. She's silent for several moments, seeming to contemplate something. Eventually, her expression becomes neutral again, and she shrugs before responding in a flippant tone.
"I mean, do you expect me to sit here and give you a comprehensive list of every referenced entity that's not a god or one of their children? Can you narrow things down a bit?"
Rain feels a rush of surprise...he had no idea that there are so many otherworldly entities besides the gods and their children.
'Although, I guess it makes sense. She just told me that humans fit that categorization, and they were spread across multiple realms. Of course humanity isn't the only example, I'm just biased because the Echo is my main connection to the other realms, and it seems primarily associated with the gods.'
He glances at Master Bright, who is looking at the road in front of them with a patient expression. It shouldn't be too suspicious for him to narrow it down by asking about the most powerful entities. The way Chaos spoke to Fate and Death, and talked about Creation and Destruction, he expects that those three are at least daemon-level entities.
"Oh, sorry...I didn't know there were so many. Uhm...maybe just the most powerful ones, I guess – beings close to the gods' level."
Master Bright's mouth seems to twitch up slightly, as though she's suppressing excitement about something. She makes a 'hmm' sound for a few seconds, then answers hesitantly.
"You know...I believe I've seen reports on runic accounts dealing with entities that strong, but I don't remember much else about them. Those beings are outside my area of focus. For a fellow enthusiast and Rim kid, though, I guess I'm willing to use my database access as a researcher to send you papers at the Academy. Unfortunately, I don't have the time to be digging through literature outside my specialty with such a vague search criteria. If you were interested in something more specific, like a name, then I might be able to help."
Rain groans internally.
'What a bust...how annoying...'
Knowing that there's the kind of information he wants, but it sits just outside his reach, is more than a little frustrating. Of course, he could take Master Bright up on her offer, but then he'd have to give her specific information...he's been a little hesitant to say the mysterious entities' names. However, an alternative occurs to him.
"Thanks, Master Bright, I really appreciate it. You know, speaking of being able to read papers, will I be able to do that at the Academy? They probably have access to that information as well, right?"
She glances over at him again, sparing a couple seconds to study him with a neutral expression before returning her gaze to the road.
"They should, yeah. That's one of the perks of being there. You can probably find a professor willing to help you. Just give them something specific to search, like a name. They can use the Academy's database access to find relevant academic research papers for you, just like me."
Rain purses his lips in frustration.
'So, I'd still be in the same position...I'd just be partially exposing myself to some professor at the Academy instead of Master Bright. I don't know much about the Academy, but I'm pretty sure that I don't want to risk standing out too much. I need to cultivate a reliable but mediocre reputation there, enough to be seen as a viable ally without becoming overly noteworthy.'
If he wants information on the strange things he read in his Trial, then at least in the short-term, Master Bright is probably his safest bet – any surprised with her won't affect his interactions with other Champions. The question is, does he want to take the risk at all? It's possible that what he learns may help him understand his abilities better. Beyond that...he's just plain curious, enough that Unhinged is in danger of making his decisions for him.
'That'd be disastrous...'
He's beginning to think that the best way to deal with his annoying Quirk, aside from working on remaining calm, is to try and quell any budding urges or impulses before they reach a critical level. That way, at least he can somewhat control the fallout.
'So...how do I approach satisfying my curiosity about the three entities in the safest way?'
He's fairly certain that he shouldn't mention Chaos by name. Not only is it the most relevant to him personally, and therefore the most risky, but it's also the least likely to yield answers. After all, Chaos is associated with his Lineage and Bloodline. That means it's probably related to the gods, and Master Bright has already emphatically confirmed that there are no such beings known to academics on Earth.
By contrast, Creation and Destruction could be known entities. He was still wary of mentioning them before, but since Master Bright implied that there's an ocean of entities besides the gods that he's never heard of, it seems far less dangerous now. In all likelihood, there's something known about one of them. What are the odds that three of the five beings mentioned in his Lineage are completely unknown?
As Rain stares out the window of the moving PET, contemplating the best course of action, Master Bright's voice shakes him from his thoughts. She sounds mildly annoyed.
"You know, if you have more things you want to discuss on this drive, you'd be better off talking than daydreaming. We're already halfway to the Academy, and I'm not going to make a habit of doing this for you."
He returns his attention to her, and sees that she's giving him a disapproving glare between glances at the road. Making up his mind, he gives her a sheepish grin.
"Sorry, Master Bright, I'm just thinking about everything you've already told me. It's all pretty fascinating. If you don't mind, I think I will take you up on your offer to send me some academic papers. When you get a chance, could you forward any of them that mention the name 'Creation'?"
There's a subtle flash of shock in Master Bright's eyes that Rain fails to notice. She glances at him with a curious expression, and responds in a light tone.
"Sure, I can do that for you. What's this name from?"
Rain keeps a calm expression and responds in a casual tone, looking back out the window, as though he's already lost interest.
"Hmm? Oh, I'm not sure really. I've heard it before, but I can't remember where. I always assumed it was just one of the gods...you know how education in the Rim is. When I didn't notice it among the seven names that Aron listed, though, I got a little curious. Maybe it's one of these many other entities that you mentioned."
Silence settles between them for several moments as Rain contemplates the next questions he wants to ask with his remaining time. However, he soon becomes aware of the PET slowing down and stopping on the side of the road. Confused, Rain glances at Master Bright, preparing to ask if he's run out of time already.
To his surprise, she's already fully turned in her seat, staring at him. Her stormy grey eyes are alight with mischief, and she's wearing a wide smile across her beautiful face. It's the same wolfish grin that he saw before, right after she almost manipulated him into enlisting. He entire face seems to emanate a glow of self-satisfaction. As she catches his gaze, her smile transforms into a smirk, and she speaks in a smug tone.
"Well now, Rain...how about you cut the shit and tell me what you know?"