Volume 4, Chapter 73 – Spirit Channeling and an Experiment

On the way back, Fia took the opportunity to call Claire to go with her to the Holy Tree. Yelido’s mention of Divinity had given her an idea. Those who possessed it were blessed by the world and were not affected by its curses. So, if Claire had Divinity, could it lessen or even make her curse disappear?

Although there was no theoretical basis for it, there was no harm in trying. Fia wanted to see how outsiders would react to Claire after she had entered and exited the Holy Tree, to judge if there was any effect.

For this, preserving an observation group and a control group was very important. Fia achieved this by choosing her route. There was more than one path from her palace to the back gate of the Royal Castle, and the guards on the roads were of similar strength. By observing the difference in their reactions on the way there and on the way back, she could conclude whether there was an effect.

Of course, this experiment was very rough; many variables were not controlled. But since there was no theoretical basis, Fia only held a one in ten thousand hope. To make a big deal out of it might make Claire feel disappointed and ruin her mood, so she didn’t tell her the reason she was taking her to the Holy Tree.

It was worth mentioning that when she had sent Mizuki back to her resting place, Fia had discovered that her residence, like the Third Consort’s, was not only far from the center of the Royal Castle, but also only had two servants. Although for Mizuki, who had lived alone in the deep mountains in the past, this was already a very luxurious treatment, considering her possessed-like reaction after the Holy Tree Dance, Fia felt it was safer to take her to her own palace to rest. That way, even if something happened, she and the maids in her palace could react in time.

As for the residence, Fia didn’t know if she was overthinking it, or if it had been so from the beginning, but the palace Yelido had built for the Eldest Princess seemed to have been designed with the possibility of many people living in it in the future, so there were a considerable number of luxuriously decorated empty rooms. Not to mention Mizuki, it would not be a problem to even house all the official witches from the Witch Hall.

「Silvar is indeed the foremost power in the northern continent. Even the ordinary Imperial Guard can restrain their fear when they see me.」

Claire, with two single-handed swords at her waist, glanced quietly at the guards on both sides of the road while communicating with Fia with a smiling [Message] spell.

Although the ordinary [Message] had the disadvantages of a short transmission distance and being easily interfered with and eavesdropped on by those with ill intentions, the Royal Castle had the [Citadel of Silence]. No one could use magic to eavesdrop, so when Fia and Claire were very close, it had become the best way to communicate.

「Have I latched onto a big shot? Little Fia is not only cute and powerful, but also the Eldest Princess of Silvar. I wonder how many people want to be your… your lover. Ah~ ah~ to have found a petite and wealthy girl as a lover. I won’t have to worry about not having enough money in the future. I’m being kept by you, little Fia.」

「You’re not short of money at all, Claire,」 Claire’s teasing tone had already exposed that she was just joking. Fia answered with an exasperated [Message]. 「Besides, these things are just external to you, right? You don’t actually need them.」

「Oh my, even I am a creature that needs to eat and drink. There are some luxury goods that can’t be bought with just money. You have to have both money and power in hand to enjoy them. But that being said, if you don’t like it here, Fia, I can always leave with you. How about I raise you, little Fia? Ah, by the way, His Majesty has already agreed to us being together—」

Fia clearly felt Claire’s voice pause in her mind. She quietly turned her eyes to observe her. Although her gentle face remained expressionless, a slight change, as if she were shy, could be seen, especially in her clear, jade-green eyes, which had already drifted in the opposite direction.

「Do you know what your father said to me? He said you are not yet an adult and reminded me not to do anything out of line. He might as well have written ‘you can’t sleep together’ on his face. It was so blunt I didn’t know how to respond.」

Reαԁ оո KаtReаԁiոɡСαfе

「By human standards, I’m already the age of an old woman. I don’t need to care about these things, right?」 Although there was only a slight change in Claire’s expression, the voice that sounded in Fia’s mind was one of reproach. This contrast made Fia smile. 「Besides, it’s just a few years’ difference. It doesn’t make a difference. We just have to be a little careful—」

「No. That’s something that can only be done after marriage. I was too indulgent with you before. I can’t let this continue in the future. As an older sister, I think a girl who can’t control herself is useless. Mmm… in the future, I’ll have to have Anastasia supervise you in your room.」

No, no, having Liti supervise would be more reliable than Anastasia. And speaking of not being able to control oneself, when she used the pendant, hadn’t Claire been very cooperative?

Of course, Fia only thought these things in her heart. She felt that if she said them out loud, Claire might really lock her out of the door and adhere to the rule of only allowing her in after they were married. Claire was the type who, once she got serious, would inspire awe, like a normally gentle and good person suddenly getting angry, which was terrifying.

As the conversation paused, Fia began to observe the guards on both sides of the road. In the first few days after she had arrived in the Royal Castle, the guard had been quite lax, with almost no one to be seen on the roads. It was a clean and peaceful scene. However, since the incident of Prince Schain’s coup, the number of guards had increased. Now, there were even two guards standing at intervals on both sides of the flowerbeds. The grand Royal Castle had become more solemn and majestic, making one subconsciously pay attention to their words, actions, and attire.

Although these guards were five or six meters away from Claire, their eyes still showed a clear look of fear when they looked at her. It was just that their duty did not allow them to make a move. Even the individuals with relatively poor psychological quality would at most just sway a little, their wary eyes following her until she had walked some distance away, at which point the fear and tension in their eyes would gradually disappear.

After observing nearly twenty people like this, Fia withdrew her gaze, quietly turned her eyes, and looked at Claire, who was walking beside her in a dark-colored dress and a snow-white shawl. Even on a cloudy day with thick clouds, nothing could block her skin, which seemed to be emitting a faint silver glow. Her slender calves and ankles, outlined in a graceful curve by her white stockings under her dress, and her slender waist and full chest, which were still prominent even in a conservative dress, were all filled with fantasy.

It should be said that Fia was not admiring her lover. She was just observing if her body had become smaller. This morning, Claire had fought Yelido and had consumed a large amount of mana, enough to show her demonic form. According to the rule that her body would shrink after using ‘non-recoverable mana,’ her body should have shrunk a little.

Unfortunately, after carefully examining the curve of her chest—Fia was a head shorter than her, so she didn’t have to deliberately lower her head to observe her protruding profile against the light—and comparing it with the image in her mind from the last time, Fia did not find any change. She deduced that the change was probably too small to be observed with the naked eye.

Claire’s ‘non-recoverable mana’ was much more than she had imagined. At least, the battle with Yelido was not enough to cause a visible change in her body.

Come to think of it, this was understandable. If she had changed so easily, in ten years, she would have long since turned from an older sister into a little girl.

If she hadn’t known that Claire’s body would recover, Fia would have surely been glad. But now that she knew that her mana would be restored, a small hint of regret appeared in her heart. The image of holding a white-stockinged little Claire on her lap still lingered in her mind—it wasn’t that she liked the young type, but that the contrast of the older sister Claire suddenly becoming small was refreshing.

Soon, Fia and Claire passed through the back gate of the Royal Castle. As they were traveling with Fia, the several Sixth-Rank magic-casters at the back gate did not stop Claire. One of them, an old elf with a full head of white hair, even respectfully called Fia “teacher.”

That should be a “student” who had been guided by the princess when she had been one of the managers of the Three Main Towers. She had been busy with all sorts of things lately. First, Prince Schain’s rebellion, then the conflict with Yelido. She still hadn’t been to the Elf Towers.

I’ll go when I have some free time. There’s no need to be in such a hurry.

Rеаⅾ оո KatRеadiոɡСаfе

With [Flight], they crossed the hillside covered with flowers and grass, shrouded in a holy light, and arrived at the base of the Holy Tree. At this moment, Yelido was looking up at the tree, his furrowed brow looking exceptionally grave.

“You’ve come.”

“Mhm. I’ve already sent Mizuki back. I want to bring Claire into the Holy Tree as well… that should be no problem, right?”

As she didn’t know his thoughts, Fia used a questioning sentence to ask for permission.

Yelido lowered the hand that was stroking his chin and turned around, his stern face making it seem as if he were angry.

The Fia who had spent some time with him knew that this was just his expression when he wasn’t speaking. It should be a habit he had developed from being in a high position for a long time—a king needed this kind of natural authority.

“Since I have acknowledged your relationship, I will not stand in your way again. After you become queen, she will be the queen consort of Silvar, and will naturally have the right to enter the Holy Tree. There are monsters inside. If anything happens, it will be safer to have another strong person by your side. Alright, go in. I tried to enter when you were sending Mizuki back. The tree seems to have sealed its connection with the outside world. My blessings are still there, but I can’t get in.”

Fia quietly breathed a sigh of relief.

“Then the matter with Mizuki…”

Yelido’s brow rose. He glanced at the silver-haired Claire beside him before slowly giving his answer.

“I know some ancient elf language. What she meant was that the Alexia family is a blasphemer. Although I am not clear on what happened in the past, she was clearly possessed by another soul or will when she said that. I am more inclined to believe that the Holy Tree Dance she is restoring is a spirit channeling ritual, allowing a stronger will to temporarily possess her. There is surely a hidden story here. What happened in the past…”

By the end, Yelido was already muttering to himself in a voice that was difficult for an ordinary person to hear.

A spirit channeling ritual?

He had explained it very clearly. The so-called spirit channeling ritual was to let a stronger will possess one’s own body. In the Human Alliance, Fia had seen similar things in old entertainment works, so it was not difficult for her to understand. The people in those stories always let the souls of their ancestors and sages possess them to give them the strength to overcome difficulties. And in horror stories, spirit channeling had a bit of a ‘reanimation’ flavor, with these people telling of past tragedies from the perspective of the dead, pointing out the culprit.

Rеaԁ оn ΚatReαԁіnɡСαfе

It sounded rather magical, but in a world with magic, it was not incomprehensible. Fia had even already formed a rough outline of the matter in her mind.

In the past, the Alexia family, representing the royal family, had, in order to consolidate their power, found an excuse to eliminate the maidens who had divided their power, and had burned everything related to them. The maiden at that time, in her despair, had cursed the Alexia family through the Holy Tree Dance, that the tree would wither because of their atrocities. Now that Mizuki had restored most of the dance, she had thus contacted the resentful soul of the maiden stored in the Holy Tree, which was why she had shown such hatred towards Yelido.

A perfect explanation.

Although she thought so, Fia was not so arrogant as to think that her casual guess was the fact. She continued to ask.

“Then should Mizuki continue to restore the Holy Tree Dance in the future? I feel that with her state, it’s better for her not to continue.”

“No, let her continue. If we can communicate with the will that is controlling her, we can find out what happened back then and deal with it. To put things aside will only make the trouble more troublesome.”

“Then I will restore the dance. It’s too dangerous for Mizuki.”

“No,” Yelido refused almost without thinking, his red eyes filled with a teaching tone. “The royal family should not put themselves in danger. Besides, you are the crown princess, Dofi. I would rather let your younger sister Liti do it than let you restore the Holy Tree Dance. It is no longer the dance that anyone can try.”

“My strength is greater than Mizuki’s, and I am more capable of dealing with emergencies. Father, you are underestimating me too much.” She was not trying to argue with him, but to persuade him. Fia changed to a more compromising tone. “How about this, I will first learn the Holy Tree Dance with Mizuki. When the progress reaches the step she has currently restored to, each time we begin, I will have Claire watch from the side. Her strength is above the Eighth Rank. The maiden of the past could not possibly be stronger than her. This way, there should be no problem, right?”

In the end, soul strength increased with mana. With her soul strength, could the maiden of the past really override her own soul and control her? Fia had learned about the soul a long time ago. When two souls were in the same body, if neither was the original owner and both were in an unstable state, then the weaker soul would be rejected by the stronger one and eventually perish. She did not think her soul would be inferior to a maiden who had been eliminated.

However, Yelido still refused flatly, his tone firm.

“I said no, and I mean no. If I have to have you restore the Holy Tree Dance, I would rather put this matter aside and not solve it.”

“As long as I prove my strength—”

“It’s not a matter of strength.” Yelido, his golden hair loose, turned his back to her. “This matter ends here. It’s time to try and enter the Holy Tree.”

Rеaⅾ оո KаtReαԁіnɡСаfе

Fia still wanted to say something, but Claire, at this moment, lightly placed a hand on her shoulder. At the same time, the voice of a [Message] entered her mind.

「Yelido is your father. He will not let his own daughter take risks. Even if you are stronger than him, it’s the same. He can’t take that bet. Try to understand him from his perspective for a bit. We can try the Holy Tree Dance secretly when we go back… but can you actually dance, Fia? No wonder your body is so flexible, even I can’t compare.」

It’s not because of dancing that I’m flexible; this body itself is just that good.

This body’s softness and toughness were second to none. And as long as it was a muscle that could be controlled by her surface consciousness, Fia could control it freely. In the past, when she had been alone in front of a mirror, she had tried to support her body on one leg while raising the other above her head, a very difficult move—there was no pressure at all. As long as it was a move a person could do, she could do it.

Worried that her Father would sense the mana fluctuations, Fia did not answer Claire with a [Message]. She quietly raised an index finger to her lips, giving her a shushing gesture, then stepped forward with an expressionless face and came to the base of the Holy Tree, which was taller than her.

“Give me your hand.”

Although she knew he had just been thinking of her, the feeling of being flatly refused still made it difficult for her to pull a straight face and act as if nothing had happened. Like a rebellious daughter, she extended her hand to him impolitely.

However, even so, in his heart, this was an exceptionally new and nerve-wracking scene. He stared at her fair and delicate palm, hesitated for a good while, and then held her wrist with his white-gloved hand. The force was so light it was as if he were touching a fragile item. Fia even had to look with her eyes to be sure that he had indeed held her wrist.

Whether it was his expression or his actions, there was a clear stiffness and awkwardness about this king, as if he had never held his own daughter’s hand.

How pitiful…

Was the former princess that cold?

With a hint of pity in her heart, Fia thought for a moment and then took the initiative to hold her pitiful father’s hand. Then, just as when she had brought Mizuki into the Holy Tree, she used her own mana to connect with the mana from the tree and activated the teleportation.

In an instant, a brilliantly golden grand hall appeared before her and Yelido.

As expected, it had failed.