Volume 7, Chapter 54 – Vessel for a Soul

Anastasia’s state isn’t right.

Fia’s brow was tightly furrowed as she walked down the bright corridor. The rapid footsteps echoing in the silence clearly conveyed her inner urgency.

If spacing out while walking with her this morning could still be attributed to poor rest, then failing to notice Fia getting up from her lap and not hearing her call multiple times was enough to confirm that something was seriously wrong with Anastasia.

Considering Anastasia’s recent proactive behavior, it was likely she was also aware of the abnormality occurring within her. It was now highly probable that the current Anastasia was also in the process of being exchanged. At this point, Fia was quite certain of it.

The return of the original Anastasia was good news, yes. But for it to happen at this moment, coming too quickly… she couldn’t treat the current Anastasia as if she had never been here, nor would she allow Anastasia to return to that ruined world. Creating a physical body was now imminent.

As for why Anastasia, despite noticing something was wrong, hadn’t said a word—it was probably to avoid worrying her.

Regardless, she must hurry to create a vessel capable of housing a soul.

Her thoughts racing to this conclusion, Fia stopped walking.

A large door appeared before her. The two official witches guarding either side immediately bowed.

“Lady Fia, what brings you here?”

They likely wanted to ask why she came to the Witch Hall at ten o’clock at night. Fia understood the unspoken question but didn’t offer an explanation. She gave a slight, expressionless nod.

“I need to see Laplace. Is anyone else inside?”

“Only the Knowledge-Seeking Demon General and Lady Lianne.”

“Open the door.”

“Yes.”

The two witches promptly pushed open the massive door, over four and a half meters tall. As outside air exchanged with the warehouse air, a strange odor filled with dust and the smell of burnt metal assaulted her senses.

The interior of the large warehouse was just as before. One corner of the vast space was piled high with various metal materials. At the center floated a large, dazzling prismatic crystal, roughly the height of two people. Even though it was night, the warehouse was as bright as day. Strangely, the white light wasn’t piercing to the eyes; even ordinary people with minimal mana could look directly at the radiance emitted by the Witch’s Heart Core.

“Lady Fia?”

“Coming alone at this hour… is something urgent?”

Exclamations from Lianne and the Knowledge-Seeking Demon General sounded in succession. Laplace remained silent, only a slight flicker of white light indicating it had noticed Fia’s arrival.

“I have mastered [Sacred Relic Analysis]. We can begin creating the vessel.”

Fia walked straight to Laplace, looking up at the entity floating in the air.

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“Laplace, when can we start?”

“The Princess truly came for vessel creation. I am ready at any time. However, as you know, mastering [Sacred Relic Analysis] doesn’t mean it can be immediately put to use. We need to find several test subjects to verify feasibility first… Also, your state seems… not quite right. Are you being too impatient? Isn’t your attendant still improving her strength, not yet reaching the 6th tier?”

“Time is limited. Give me the conclusion directly.”

Anyone could hear the urgency in Fia’s voice. The Knowledge-Seeking Demon General and Lianne exchanged a glance. Finally, Lianne, in her form of a swirling black mist, spoke.

“Lady Fia, has something happened on your end?”

“I suspect the exchange involving Anastasia has been moved forward. We must hurry. I already know the structure for housing Anastasia’s soul through [Sacred Relic Analysis]. All that remains is to manufacture the physical body.”

“Princess, I told you earlier that I lack the ability to create a vessel capable of housing a 5th-tier soul. I can only give you the method; the process must be done by you yourself… That said, I truly cannot understand why you would go this far for a counterfeit. Shouldn’t you send her back sooner?”

“Laplace, I do not wish to hear such words a second time. Both of them are important to me. Do not think of getting any crooked ideas. Tell me the method. If conditions permit in the future, I could also try to make a body for you that allows free movement.”

Fia detected resistance in Laplace’s genderless mechanical voice, as if it didn’t want to help.

Though Laplace usually acted frivolously, its mechanical thinking part outweighed the emotional part governed by emotion. Thus, it wouldn’t be swayed by feelings like a human. It had no reason to oppose her.

—Unless Laplace didn’t side with the current Anastasia, believing that returning everything to its original state was the optimal solution. Thinking about it, Laplace seemed to have been inducing Anastasia to take the wrong path from the start, like having Anastasia use the Key of the World Tree to harm herself.

Now Laplace openly stated that sending the current Anastasia back was the best solution, confirming her suspicion. To be safe, she shouldn’t let the current Anastasia meet Laplace alone in the future, to prevent Laplace from acting on its own and causing a disaster.

“The method is quite simple.”

Laplace used [Telekinesis] to retrieve a small booklet from a storage spell.

“You simply need to follow the instructions here. Normally, one could just use lifeless monster bones as a base like when creating puppets, haphazardly stuffing in some monster flesh to barely patch together a body that can move. However, I doubt you’d be satisfied with that result, so I prepared this book beforehand. The body framework mentioned within can be provided by me. Like the one you call Euphimilu, I have thousands of years of experience in creating the framework. Of course, if you insist on doing it yourself, I won’t say anything further.”

“How long does it take to create the framework?”

“That… I don’t have a specific time. The framework is the foundation of everything. Considering it must house a 5th-tier soul, I can only try to pack in materials with higher strength. And the higher the material strength, the longer the soaking time in the medicinal solution. I’ve never attempted this step, so I truly cannot guarantee.”

“Then I’ll do it myself.”

When studying alchemy in the past, she learned a spell called [Catalysis] that could accelerate the reaction time of the medicinal solution. It should work here as well.

Fia accepted the booklet and turned to leave, but Laplace suddenly stopped her.

“Wait, Princess. Don’t you intend to test it first before using it on your attendant? You come from the future; you should understand the consequences of implementing something without feasibility testing better than I. Lianne has no physical body and is also stronger than your attendant. Creating a body for her first as a test is more reliable than using it directly on your attendant.”

“Moreover, there’s another unsolved mystery that has long troubled me. Why would your attendant, without making significant progress, suddenly exchange souls, then exchange back again without warning? Furthermore, you mentioned being constantly attacked by Chaos recently. I know your attendant’s safety is important, but these sudden changes are also worth noting.”

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“What is Laplace trying to say?”

“Just asking you to pay more attention to these changes. Don’t let the bad situation of those around you blind your eyes. People can be resurrected, but opportunities, once missed, won’t return. Especially since she is merely an outsider. As an artificial creation that once guided humanity to leave Earth, I find it truly hard to understand your current actions. Quickly send this counterfeit back and retrieve the original attendant—isn’t that the normal human response?”

“ Both of them are important to me. We can now confirm that this Anastasia is slumbering within the body. Since we’ve confirmed the original Anastasia is safe, naturally we must find a way to ensure the other Anastasia doesn’t return. Why the soul exchange occurs can be investigated after securing both their lives. Lastly, there is no ‘counterfeit’ distinction between them. You will understand when you become human someday.”

“Laplace, you’ve said too much.”

Following Laplace’s words, the Knowledge-Seeking Demon General lowered his thick arms which were folded across his chest. Though his expression couldn’t be seen, the reproachful tone made it clear he sensed Fia’s dissatisfaction towards Laplace and was trying to scold Laplace before Fia took action.

Sensing the tension, Lianne grew apprehensive. She simply took a step forward.

“Lady Fia, Laplace doesn’t know how to speak properly. Please forgive it. Regarding the test it mentioned, I have no objections. You can create vessels for both me and Anastasia simultaneously. I will enter the vessel first. If I can successfully operate the body you create, it proves the vessel is without problems. You can then proceed with Anastasia. If I cannot operate the body, there will be no loss. I have existed as a soul independently for long enough; even if rejected by a physical body, I won’t perish upon leaving it.”

“A single case is not enough to prove complete safety. More samples are needed—”

“You, be quiet.”

The Knowledge-Seeking Demon General forcibly interrupted Laplace.

However, Fia also realized she had become impatient again because of Anastasia. She took a deep breath to calm herself, shifting her gaze to the floor nearby.

“I still don’t agree with Laplace’s earlier statement. But it’s also true that a single instance is not enough to prove no accidents will occur. Besides Lianne, we should find more soul bodies for testing to be safe. But time waits for no one. I don’t know when the ‘exchange’ will begin, so we must proceed as early as possible.”

Separating a soul from a body carries huge risks. However, if Anastasia’s soul is exchanged back, then extending the experiment time to avoid risk would lose its meaning.

“I still believe you should focus more on why the exchange is happening. What do those Chaos targeting Anastasia actually want to express—”

“Lianne, [Sacred Relic Analysis] is a spell that comes with a holy aura. Will using it on a soul body like you be alright?”

“No problem, Lady Fia. I am a soul that left its body, not a ghost formed from accumulated resentment due to bodily death. I won’t be purified by holy magic.”

“That’s good. Can we begin now?”

“Any time.”

Perhaps to make it easier for Fia, Lianne, originally a swirling black mist, gradually changed. Soon, she took the form of a petite figure with a human outline. Though the body outline remained blurry, the multiple tails behind her and the high-standing fox ears on her head were now discernible, identifying her as a multi-tailed fox person revered as a sage in Cold Night.

Lianne’s body is as petite as mine.

Probably due to poor nutrition during her witch childhood.

Creating a vessel required the body to match as closely as possible the soul’s appearance at the time of departure—meaning the vessel must match Lianne’s original size. That said, if she made several vessels of different sizes for Lianne to try, Lianne would probably be happy to have a new body. Once Anastasia’s issue was resolved, she could make a few more bodies for Lianne. Regardless of whether this experiment would harm Lianne, she was putting in great effort.

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Thinking this, Fia placed her palm above Lianne’s head.

“[Sacred Relic Analysis].”

…

By the time Fia left the Witch Hall, it was already half past ten at night.

The process written by Laplace was tedious, but for Fia with her photographic memory, it wasn’t a difficult problem. Just during the walk along the country path, she had firmly remembered in her heart the entire process. If materials were sufficient, she could begin immediately.

The only thorny issue now was insufficient time.

After all, no one knew when the exchange would occur.

Calm down.

Laplace’s words being unpleasant was one thing; their content was another.

Why was the exchange happening to Anastasia and not someone else? And those antlered Chaos with massive eyes, why did they target Anastasia, as if they absolutely had to kill her?

Previously, Anastasia guessed it might be because she possessed intelligence about the Chaos from the other world, making them insist on killing her. But this guess fell apart upon a little thought.

First, how would the Chaos of this world know about events in another world? Second, if the Chaos believed Anastasia’s existence threatened them, they should have realized that she posed a far greater threat than Anastasia. They should target her instead. ¹ I’ve been thinking… Maybe that future timeline is… The key plot isn’t Anastasia of that world but… Fia.  That world fia is the mind.. while in this one, she’s the sword. no no lets call that world fia is the previous dofilia.

Though she also considered whether the Sovereign was secretly causing trouble. According to Helian, the Sovereign already knew the current Anastasia was also an Outworlder. However, the current Sovereign hadn’t yet chosen to side with Chaos like the one in Anastasia’s world. The current Sovereign still stood on the opposite side to Chaos and wouldn’t direct Chaos to attack someone bringing new intelligence.

It couldn’t be that Anastasia, like herself, was deliberately guided here by an entity similar to the Witch of Hope or the Crown Princess, could it? That night, only she was with Anastasia. If there had been abnormal mana fluctuations, she would have awakened immediately.

Her thinking hit a dead end again. Fia clicked her tongue. Perhaps she should ask Helian, who was connected to the Sovereign. Having lived for millennia, even their conjecture would yield more intelligence than she had.

Pressing down the heavy doubts in her heart, Fia looked out at the pitch-black wilderness. Since the farm where the Witch Hall was located was quite remote, walking from the Witch Hall to Blossom’s main urban area required traversing a stretch of almost undeveloped country roads. Even with the summer night sky full of stars and the chorus of frogs and insects in the grass, the air still held an eerie feeling. Only someone like Fia, who felt no fear, would dare walk alone on the country dirt road that made one’s spine chill at night.

Walking is too slow. Better to fly back to the Royal Castle.

The thought arose. Bright purple butterfly wings began gathering behind her. But before the wings fully formed, Fia frowned and stopped. Her attention was caught by the corner of her vision, where the periphery of her sight should be.

There, beside the pitch-black country road, stood a figure darker than the night itself. Judging by the petite and slender build, it appeared to be female—Fia inclined more toward thinking it was a type of phantom. Its blurrily fluctuating body outline already told Fia this was a non-human entity.

She subconsciously activated [Wind of Exploration]. The results showed it was an entity with mana content even weaker than an ordinary person.

Fia couldn’t help but breathe a light sigh.

Like on old Earth, the World Tree continent also had various ghost legends, including female ghosts appearing alone in the wilderness at night, preying on robust men. This was likely the prototype of that legendary female ghost, the difference being that while she had plenty of energy, she wasn’t male.

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She wasn’t afraid. Instead, she prepared [Light] and walked forward.

“Who are you? If you are a vengeful soul who died unjustly, I can fulfill your wish and then perform rites for you.”

The constantly fluctuating apparition didn’t speak. Instead, it extremely slowly extended its right hand towards Fia, making a gesture as if to shake hands. Then, a voice barely audible accompanied the entity’s form, drifting away with the wind.

“…Wishing you success.” ² no.. nooo… pls dont be what i think

The apparition’s voice was full of joy.

But it was bizarre.

That handshake gesture… didn’t seem like someone from this world.

Staring at the spot where the apparition vanished, Fia couldn’t help but regret for a moment not using [See Through]. That would have determined if it was just her worrying excessively or a trick of the eyes.

Better to head back first.

[Flight]

◇

Breakfast was as calm as usual.

Since creating the vessel required many types of materials, Fia had given Colita the list last night upon returning to the Twilight Flower Palace. Most materials were expected to arrive by noon today, allowing for the first attempt.

As for test subjects to verify feasibility, Colita suggested using death row prisoners from the prisons. By paying their families a sum of money or promising to commute their sentence from execution to a special punishment allowing them to live a few more months—like sending convicts to the border to fight monsters and the undead—they would scramble to participate in the experiment.

Progress could be described as quite smooth.

“Little Fia, you and Ana didn’t go to the Land of Exile to level up at all yesterday. Did something happen?”

Amidst the crisp sound of cutlery and dishes, Claire’s voice suddenly rang out.

“Nothing much happened. I just wanted to complete the physical body for housing Anastasia’s soul first before considering the next steps.”

Not knowing when the exchange would occur, naturally, they couldn’t do things that might accelerate it.

Fia didn’t elaborate at the table. Only she could create a body for Anastasia now. Speaking of it would only add to the worries for everyone. No one liked the feeling of only being able to watch helplessly; that sense of powerlessness was something one never wanted to experience twice.