[Attention! You're getting close to classified information.]
[Overcoming magic protection: 60%...]
"Does even the system feel resistance?"
The ghostly figure spoke up:
–Once there were more than just ruins here. This place held knowledge that could not be destroyed... only hidden. The witches were afraid of them.
Calcium tensed: –What kind of knowledge?
The figure slowly raised his hand, and images appeared among the sparks:
– About the ancient gift. About a master who knew how to weave fate into writing.
"The Tattoo Artist of Stories?"
– They couldn't let this knowledge spread, so they distorted it. They tried to make it their weapon.
Elmar frowned: –But if the witches wanted to use it... why didn't they just master it?
The figure froze.
–Because they couldn't.
The words cut through the air like a knife. Calcium squeezed her palm, where her tattoo glowed.
– This gift cannot be stolen... – the figure turned to her: – But it can be... destroyed.
The tower shook. The magical signs on the walls began to fade, as if someone from outside was trying to break the connection.
[Defense overcome: 80%...]
–You're the one who woke him up again, right? – The figure spoke faster: –Then remember... the witches won't try to take him away. They'll want to…
Suddenly, the air split like broken glass. The figure wavered.
Calcium rushed forward: – What do they want?!
But before the ghost could finish, his silhouette disintegrated, and the tower shook as if a wave of magic had fallen on it. Calcium felt the ground give out from under her feet.
– It's time for us to get out! Elmar shouted, grabbing her by the arm.
But Calcium didn't move.She understood the main thing. The witches don't want to steal her power—they want to destroy her.
The tower hummed like a living thing in agony. The symbols on the walls blurred, disappeared, and the air was filled with increasing pressure, as if the world itself was trying to push them out.
Calcium felt it in every cell of her body.
But instead of fear, she was overcome by something else—rage.
"They want to destroy my gift? Do they think they can erase me like they erased others?"
The tattoo on her palm flashed.
[Mana is at its limit. Exit is recommended.]
[Hostile interference detected.]
Elmar tugged on her arm:
–Calcium, to hell with it, if we stay...
– No! – She snapped.
She won't leave empty-handed. Gritting her teeth, she turned to the wall and, despite the pressure engulfing her, touched the ancient signs with her palm.
[An attempt to copy information...]
[Mana is unstable.
Overload risk: high.]
"I don't care!"
The pain hit her mind, as if someone was ripping out her energy by force, but Calcium held out. The signs wavered, flashed one last time, and then a flood of information flooded into her.
Images, phrases, fragments of history that witches tried to erase.
And at that moment, everything changed. She felt something inside her gift change.
[You have gained a new skill.]
[??? – information is blocked. Unlock: 0%.]
"What?..
But there was no time to think — the tower began to collapse.
– Calcium! – Elmar tugged at her again. She gritted her teeth, but backed away.
With a loud bang, pieces of the ceiling began to fall, and they rushed to the exit. As they tumbled out, the tower shook for the last time... and plunged into deathly silence.
Calcium was breathing heavily. She didn't understand what exactly she had just learned.
But I knew for sure: That was just the beginning.
Calcium stood in front of the ruined tower, trying to control the trembling in her hands. The cold air burned her lungs, but her thoughts were much more disturbing.
She got something. But what exactly?
The tattoo was pulsing with blue light, and the system notification was still ringing in my head:
[You have received a new skill.]
[??? – the information is blocked. Unlock: 0%.]
"What the hell? Why is it blocked?"
Before, her system didn't hide details from her, but now... the knowledge is there, but she can't use it.
Elmar leaned on one knee, breathing heavily.
–Do you even realize how stupid that was? – He exhaled angrily: –We could have died there.
Calcium shrugged, but there was tension in her voice.:
–But we're not dead. So it was worth it.
Elmar snorted angrily, but he didn't argue anymore.
She thought about it.
"If the witches want to destroy my gift... then they have something to fear."
The question is, what exactly is it about her power that scares them so much? She slowly unclenched her fist and looked at her tattoo.
And at that moment, the system notified her again:
[Side effect: Mana instability.]
[Caution: overloading may cause loss of control.]
Calcium paled: "What?"
Calcium clutched at her wrist, but the tattoo continued to throb, as if something inside her was looking for a way out.
[The system recommends immediate mana stabilization.]
[Available methods: 0.]
She gritted her teeth.
–What now? –Elmar noticed her intense gaze.
Calcium inhaled slowly: –I don't know yet.
Every word made it clear that something strange was going on inside her.
"I can't control this..."
And it scared her.
For the first time in a long time, she didn't feel confident. If her power gets out of control... what then? But she knew one thing for sure:
There were answers. Somewhere. And she'll find them.
–You look like you're about to faint. – Elmar crossed his arms over his chest, examining her carefully.
Calcium snorted, trying to hide the trembling in her fingers: –I'm fine.
But it was a lie.The mana inside her was behaving like a wild animal trapped in a cage.The system was silent, offering no solutions.
"Damn it… If I don't find a way to stabilize it, then..."
Calcium shook her head. No. She would not allow herself to be weak.
–We need to leave.
Elmar raised an eyebrow: – Do you have any idea where?
– To those who know what kind of knowledge it is. Whom the witches feared as much as they fear me. The wind stirred her red hair, and there was a steely gleam in her eyes.
The answers are waiting ahead.
The sky above was gradually darkening, and the stars were already beginning to twinkle above the horizon. A cold wind was blowing from the west, brought from lands where no human had ever set foot before. Calcium and Elmar walked in silence, and every step in the foggy night made her heart beat faster.
Knowledge. Secrets.
Every word she heard in the tower was now like a tentacle that reached out from her mind, not letting go. She could feel her strength starting to go beyond normal. There were more and more questions, and the answers became more and more confusing.
Soon, they came to an ancient forest full of ancient trees that stood like guardians of time.
–We're almost there. – Elmar said, looking around: –I know the place where they're hiding.
"Are they...?"
Calcium shrugged her shoulders. Her gaze was focused, and her breathing was slightly rapid.
– Are you sure these people can help?
Elmar nodded, but his face remained composed.
–I've been there before. Their knowledge is ancient, and not all of it is related to magic. But these people know what was going on in the world when the witches began their hunt.
He walked forward, confidently moving towards the medieval settlement hidden in the forest.
With each step, Calcium felt her strength grow, as something inside her seethes and strives to break free. The tattoo on her palm glowed brighter, and with every pulse she took, she could feel the system trying to regulate the flow of mana again. However, this stabilization was not enough.
[The magic field is unstable.]
[Excess mana threatens critical overload.]
//To be continued, please like and save.