NOVEL NEXT Chapter 21: [Clarity]
"It sounds like you guys managed to participate in an exciting event today."
"It was certainly a surprise but we managed to pass the tribulation without too much worry." Himeko sipped on her cup of coffee as she spoke with Welt who sat in front of her.
They were currently sitting in one of the dining halls of Herta's Space Station where a few researchers also came to eat after realizing that the disaster that came upon them had finally ended.
After the battle, the aftermath was quickly settled with the help from Asta and Arlan who rushed down towards the Supply Zone after receiving a transmission message from Himeko.
Asta had an expression of worry seeing the increasing amount of damage as she reached towards the body of the Doomsday Beast. But she soon relaxed after seeing that everyone was alright.
"If I only knew something like this would happen I would have stayed at the station."
"Well you had that appointment with the IPC regarding some of our supplies so there was no helping it." Himeko smiled faintly seeing Welt's worry for the crew and reassured him.
"Also just to let you know even if you weren't there with us, you helped us in another way."
"Another way?"
"Right before we encountered the Doomsday Beast, Yuuto mentioned that he had a conversation about some of the troublesome monsters in the universe and you just so happened to talk about the Doomsday Beast."
Himeko recounted that moment with Welt who listened carefully to her words.
"Who would have known that such a coincidence would occur. Where is he by the way?"
"I sent him and Dan Heng to stay at the Express to keep an eye on things just in case. But I also think that Yuuto might have wanted to stay at the Express to rest considering his participation in the fight."
She stirred the cup of coffee she made and thought about how he looked kind of haggard after.
"Yes, so that's why you didn't need to worry much. There was another option that I would have tried to use but thankfully we didn't since I wasn't sure how it was going to work."
"Are you perhaps referring to that lady Yuuto had found with him?"
"Stelle sure is a bundle of surprises."
Welt glanced to his left where Stelle and March were sitting. He was able to feel a destructive energy being contained inside of Stelle who was mindlessly eating the food in front of her.
"Housing the power of a Stelleron inside her body is incredible when we think about its potent nature."
"Exactly, her body must have something that is preventing the contamination from the Stelleron from destroying her body…"
The two looked deeply at Stelle thinking about her condition but then stopped when they noticed that Stelle was looking at them.
Himeko showed her a kind smile and waved her hand while Welt sent her a nod.
"Is he the person that Yuuto talked about before?"
"Are you talking about Mr. Yang?" March saw Stelle nod her head after she bit into her spoon that had rice on it.
"Mr. Yang is very knowledgeable so he's one of the first people we ask for when we need advice!"
March began to excitable talk about Welt and the time he had given her advice when she needed while Stelle listened quietly.
"Can I also ask him some things too?"
"Of course! I'm sure Mr. Yang will be open to answer any questions you have."
Stelle took March's words and noted it down just in case a situation will occur that will allow this to happen.
"So the inactive Stelleron was really housed inside this twerp's body? How did they do it…"
"Twerp?"
Stelle noticed a voice come from behind her and saw a petite woman with long brown hair and purple eyes
Her blank face showed a hint of interest as her scrutinizing gaze looked at Stelle's body not leaving a single spot unhidden.
"Can you move your face away from me…"
"I had even built an entire space station just to house the Stelleron but it's showing no signs of problems when inside this body. How amazing!"
"Who is this weirdo…"
***
While Stelle was being approached by someone, back at the express, a person was lying down in his bed.
His eyes were closed, breathing steady and if a person were to see him they would think that he was sleeping but it was a bit different on the inside.
[...An element… on the opposite scale from… [*Myt****]?]
[...A source that conflicts with this phenomenon… is similar to the [Remembrance]... but also different from it at the same time…]
"What the hell is this supposed to mean?"
Yuuto rubbed his forehead as he sat in a chair while various images flashed on the fragments floating in front of him.
Surrounded by a multitude of bookcases, he was recounting his sudden interaction with Nanook from before as at the time he was busy trying to keep himself from burning from the inside.
The words that Nanook spoke went in his ear and out the next so having the time to understand the words of the Aeon was what he was currently doing.
"Similar to the [Remembrance] but different at the same time… Is he talking about my powers? I knew that I had some sort of connection with the [Remembrance] since I dealt with memories but is there something more?"
"And what the hell is that blurred name he said?"
Yuuto waved his hand and the scene replayed once again and he listened closely trying to decipher the name.
[*Myt****]?]
"Yeah, all I hear is some sort of static or buzzing sound."
Resting his back into the chair he gave out a sigh as he had been analyzing this whole moment for quite a while.
–FLOOF
"Hey, do you know anything?"
Closing his eyes, he felt the movement of an object on his head and grabbed it before it moved anymore.
Resting in his hand was the book that stayed in his mental library and it began to wiggle out of his fingers.
"You've been living rent free in my head so you should at least show me something. Like maybe a new power other than [Archive]~?"
–FLOOF
"What do you mean you did something already? I don't recall you doing anything you neet book."
–FLOOOOF!!
"Okay calm your horses or else you might get wrinkles on your pages."
Despite his not noticing, Yuuto just had a full conversation with a book which would have attracted a few strange glances to go his way if he did this outside his library.
The book shook its cover as if it was irritated before it finally stopped and opened its pages to show Yuuto.
He watched as tethers of prismatic white flowed out and dyed one of the pages in its color.
"I guess you only like to show things when you feel like it huh." Yuuto smiled as he waited for the light to subside.
–FLOOOF?
"No? So you mean I unlocked this somehow?"
–FLOOF!!
"I see…"
Yuuto turned silent when he noticed the light finally fading and grabbed the book to see what he had unlocked this time.
[A fog of thoughts and rain of sensation. Symbolic objects dissolve like paint within their shadow. History, knowledge,spirit and language are soaked, drenched, and distorted in the deluge.]
[But open yourself to this roaring river where veiled objects become seen and the truth becomes uncovered through clarity from the night's darkness.]
"Okay what is up with these types of encrypted texts… I swear can't you just give it to me in simple terms..."
–FLOOOF!
Yuuto's mouth twitched when he saw the book wave it's cover in a way that said 'Nope!'.
At the top of the page was the word [Clarity] and Yuuto began to touch the page to learn more about it.
"[Clarity] is it. This one is completely different compared to [Archive]."
He closed his eyes and tried to feel this different sensation and tried to understand its use.
"So it's a skill that helps with exposing something that is 'veiled'. So things that are hidden I'm guessing."
Yuuto activated [Clarity] and a prismatic white hue surrounded his body. His surroundings that were originally plain with its marble color suddenly turned bright as shades of different hues entered his eyes.
"Woah…"
He was mesmerized seeing how from each bookcase a different color was being let out.
A light green to a deep blue to also a heavy crimson red, all these colors began to float in the air and caused the library to grow even brighter with their light.
"Exposing things that are veiled…"
Yuuto mumbled before he moved towards the floating fragment that contained the memory of his interaction with Nanook.
He moved his finger to reach a certain point of the conversation and waited for Nanook's words to flow through.
[...An element… on the opposite scale from… [*Myt****]?]
"...[Clarity].."
Seeing that he found the moment, Yuuto activated [Clarity] and the prismatic color hovered over the fragment.
–THUMP THUMP
Bursts of waves escaped the memory and Yuuto was able to feel sensations of rain dripping into his surroundings which was something odd considering he was in his metal library.
The prismatic color suddenly pulsed alongside the memory and Yuuto was able to see an instance of black smoke rise from the fragment before it disappeared entirely.
[...An element… on the opposite scale from… [Mythus]?]
"Mythus..?"
Hearing the clear punctuation that wasn't present before, Yuuto continued to mumble this name as if he was trying to imprint this so he wouldn't forget it.
"I should go to the archives and try to learn more about this."
He waved his hand one more time and all the fragments flew back into their respective bookshelves. Having Yuuto disappear from the library.
***
In a place that is deep in an unknown place in the universe and is obscured from the views of anyone. A single entity was floating in darkness and its long tendrils waved around as if it were an organism from the sea.
[...****y]
The being noticed a peck of light enter its space before it quickly disappeared after being consumed by its sea of darkness.