New Fantasy World: Galeia-Chapter 44

I looked down and, lo and behold, a little catgirl was staring at me, the army of kids gathering behind her. A few adults looking over at us. The sight was slightly uncanny. Her ears were on top of her head and her short hair revealing the empty sides of her head. She had feline eyes like amber and a cute little tail poking from under her skirt.

[Shishi Tigea Child, Lvl 8]

[Urkila Tigea Child, Lvl 5]

[Faeton Elf Child, Lvl 8]

[Domi Elf Child, Lvl 6]

[Lupum Child, Lvl 7]

No race? The other children were mostly the same level, all above five, but under ten.

The Lupum all had snow white hair, same as their skin, and violet eyes. Tall ears shifting every few seconds.

"Hello, there." I said back.

I guess at that age, if you see long hair you’ll immediately think of a woman.

"What are you?" she spat at me with the ruthlessness of an innocent child.

"If it’s not too much to ask?" a middle aged woman asked me. She was standing behind the army of kids and smiling. A silky green dress with a blue apron on top covered her body. Brownish hair in a side ponytail.

[Tilen Human, Lvl 241 Paladin]

HOLY SHIT! I get protection of children is top priority, but damn!

The other adults had the same class and clothes. All above two hundred.

"No problem at all." I nodded.

I chuckled while dismounting and squatted down, looking at the kids.

"I’m a Halve, we glow with the suns." I took out a gauntlet and the leather one beneath, showing her my golden skin.

She did not hesitate to take my hand, her smaller one grabbing it with furry, chubby little fingers.

"Whoaa!" the kids behind opened their eyes wide.

"Can I see your face?" she smiled while playing with my fingers.

My helmet disappeared and we stared at each other for a few seconds.

"You have weird eyes, lady. Get a healer to check on you." a boy said.

I giggled and he blushed.

"She’s so pretty!" another girl said. "You know nothing, Gil!"

"Are you strong?" a girl asked.

"What is the beast you’re riding?" another asked.

"What’s your name?" "How old are you?" "Can I play with your hair?" "Can I climb on your mount?" "Do you want to play with us?" "Give me your lunch money!"

They bombarded me with questions. I laughed and answered one by one.

"My name is Natasha. I am very young and strong. Yes, you can play with my hair. She’s a Ratnak, and no, I don’t want you to get hurt. What do you want to play? I won’t give you money." I relaxed and sat on the ground, Sonya imitating me.

An older girl and two boys sat behind me and undid my braid. The rest in front of me.

"Let’s play Sword, Shield, and E’er!" the girl that called to me said. Apparently she was the leader, the rest of the kids nodding.

"I don’t know the rules, can you explain them to me?" I smiled at her.

"Are you stupid? Everyone know how to play!" I received a burn right away.

"Don’t be rude! I’ll tell your mamma." another kid stood up for me.

"Sword beats E’er, E’er beats Shield, and Shield beats Sword." the leader explained, making gestures with her hands.

So rock, paper, scissors? I nodded.

"Got it." I said and we started playing.

The kids were pretty strong. Some cheated and got called out, losing by default.

I refrained from abusing my high dexterity and, after hard battles, reached the finals against the leader.

She smirked as she raised her hand. "I’ve never lost." she warned me. "You are pretty fast, but not enough to beat me!"

"We’ll see about that." I raised my hand.

"You have to win, Pola!" "Avenge us, leader!" "Ah, she’s gonna lose." "If you win, I’ll give you my toy sword!" "Beat her, teach her not to mess with us kids!" "I’ll take her lunch money!" "I’ll give her to my mamma!" "If you win, I’ll be your wife!"

I heard some concerning things, but chose to ignore them.

Pola was focused on me, not breaking eye contact.

"Go, go, Sword, E’er, Shield!" they chanted and we both moved.

The world slowed in front of me to a crawl, her hand slowly stretching two fingers.

Sword! Do I lose or do I win? I contemplated.

I chose to loose. Being a kid was all about having fun anyway.

My hand took the gesture for E’er, stretching my index and pinkie.

"Gaah!" I grabbed my chest and writhed in mock pain. "You beat me!"

""""""WOOOOAAAHH!!!""""""

The kids exploded in cheers. Pola stood up and fell back, the horde of children received her and lifted her above their heads. She looked down on me with a cheeky smile and wide open arms.

"Leader is the strongest!" "I’ll be your wife, Pola!" "Take her lunch money!" "I’ll give you my toy sword later!"

They circled around me, laughing and cheering. The kids behind me had finished playing with my hair and giggled at the girl’s victory.

I noticed the adults a few meters away from us smiling and giving me a thumbs up. Probably their caretakers.

I nodded to them and stood up.

"Had your fun?" Lapia’s voice made me turn.

Next to her, Alyssa was holding back laughter, covering her mouth and shaking.

"Yeah, was pretty fun." I smiled and walked to them.

"Kids! Play time is over. Thank you, Your Excellency!" a handsome man called and smiled at me. I waved at him.

The children whined and protested but followed the man down the street, still carrying Pola.

"How did it go with the Me’ik?" Lapia asked.

"Pretty good, Sonya leveled up quite a bit." I patted her flank. "Weird animals."

"They move in large herds and are incredibly aggressive. They send their weak to scout ahead. If they die, they let the herd know. The stampede usually tramples everything in their path." Alyssa explained.

"Pretty much what happened." I sighed. "I didn’t gain a single level."

"You need more than a herd of Me’ik to level up." the Luzo giggled. "They’re around level two hundred to five hundred, that’s nothing for you."

I hummed. "I see. Anyway, I met an interesting woman earlier." I said as we walked towards the parking lot space.

"I heard." Lapia nodded. "Yolanda, the accountant, told me when we left."

"Who was she?" Alyssa asked.

"Tay, an alchemist. Said she worked for Lady Dabark, or something." we got to the parking area and Sonya stood in front of Lapia.

"She’s huge." she said, apprehension in her voice.

"I got you." Alyssa patted her back.

A bright, white halo floated above the Elf’s head. They locked eyes and the Ratnak reared her head back.

Lapia almost closed her eyes, balling her hands.

The impact was softer than the previous two. Sonya reeling back nonetheless, quickly nodding her head. I laughed and rubbed the massive head.

"Good girl!" her eyes looked into mine and gave a short growl. She laid down and drank from the water through.

"Lady Dabrak. What did she want?" the Elf asked as she rubbed her forehead.

"She wants to meet me." I took the saddle off and stored it. "Let’s go inside."

I changed clothes to my blouse, skirt, and leather boots. Running a hand through my hair, I undid the poorly done braids the kids made.

"Mhm. That sounds like something she would do." Lapia sighed.

"That woman is so troublesome." Alyssa shook her head.

"You know her?" I looked at them.

That was a surprise.

"Only heard of her." the Luzo said as I opened the door and held it for them. "Thank you."

"Met her because of work." the Elf scowled. "She’s a woman of tradition, set in the old ways."

We walked to the stairs and I noticed the first floor almost empty. Three merchants behind desks the only people.

What time is it? I looked at the wall and squinted at the clock. One?

"Why would she want to meet me, then?" I positioned myself behind Lapia as we went up the stairs. Her butt jiggling with the sway of her hips.

"I can think of a few reasons." she chuckled. "Most likely, she just wants to chat. Welcome you to the city and all that. She’s a pain to deal with, but she’s not unreasonable."

"What was your answer?" Alyssa asked, staring at Lapia’s behind as well.

"I told her to tell her employer to drop by tonight." I shrugged.

"Haha!" the Elf’s laugh echoed. "How did she react?"

"Oddly relieved, for some reason." I answered.

"I can imagine." Alyssa took my hand.

We reached the tenth floor after speculating about the Noble’s intentions.

"We’ll see tonight." Lapia opened the door to her office. "We have lessons to worry about."

Here we go.

We entered the apartment and walked over to the table. Lapia sat down with Alyssa next to her.

"Take a seat, Your Excellency." the Elf motioned for me to sit in front of them.

"Why, thank you." I sat down.

She summoned a few linen bags and placed them on the table. Polupis, peaches, and a wide assortment of other fruits I didn’t know.

"We should snack while we talk." she pushed the cherry tomatoes in my direction.

I took them and ate one. Delicious. I took out some dumplings.

"Alright. Where do we start?" I asked.

I rested my elbows on the table, supporting my chin.

"Okay, first." Lapia extended a hand, a spark flying off. "Let’s start with the basics. Sensing E’er."

"Okay. How do I do that?" I winced.

"You already do, you just have to actively become aware of it." Alyssa comforted me.

"You are a Halve, so the process is different." Lapia thought for a second. "Yeah, he did say it like that." she muttered to herself. "When you first woke up, did you sense something other than with your five senses?" she asked me.

I racked my brain, trying to remember.

The smell of the forest, the sight of the trees, the temperature, the sounds, the clean taste of the air. I tilted my head. And something clean, other than the air.

"I felt something clean, like a smell, but different. It wasn’t water." I said after remembering.

"Alright. That right there is E’er. It can be something like a smell, or a taste, of outstanding cleanliness. Almost of nothingness." she smiled.

"Yeah, like that." I nodded. It fit the description.

"Now try and feel it again. From around. Become one with it." Alyssa said.

I closed my eyes and focused. Darkness welcomed me. I took a deep breath, then let it out.

Cleanliness, I remember the smell. Come to Mommy. I continued taking deep breaths. Zoning out the world in my focus.

I remembered anger management. I am in control. The body is a vessel. I let the air in my lungs leave and my senses numbed.

’What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us.’

I thought back on what my counselor had said. The man taught me yoga and how to clear anger off my mind.

’Unless you realize who you truly are, it won’t matter what you do.’

I am a Halve. A being born of the energy of this world.

I am a warrior, a protector. I will fight to my last breath.

I am E’er, E’er is within me. E’er is nothingness. I am nothingness. Formless.

I felt a lid open inside me. A soft and gentle warmth spread from my skin into my core.

I opened my eyes and the smell of something very clean tickled my nose.

"That was easier than I thought." I tilted my head.

"You did it." Alyssa’s deep voice reached me. The sound rich and gentle.

"Being of E’er, I tell you." Lapia’s silky voice tickled my ears. "Well done."

I smiled.

"Do you see now that it all comes from within?" Alyssa asked, a gentle smile on her face.

I nodded. "It does."

"Now, absorb E’er." Lapia continued the lesson. "Pull it inside you."

I did as told and it surprisingly came easy. I breathed in slowly, the energy around seeping into me. Nothing changed, I noticed.

"Every time you kill something, the E’er within their bodies will be released, you have to absorb it in order to grow in power." Lapia explained. "I’m researching this very phenomena."

"Have people not explored it?" I asked after calming a weird feeling. It was strangely personal.

"They have, but not in the way I am doing it." she smirked. "Now that you have sensed and absorbed E’er, you will slowly understand the mechanics behind it."

"With that understanding, you might see what you want to become." Alyssa said.

"Is that how it went with you?" I looked a them.

Both nodded. I ate another polupis.

"Now that you have done the basics, we can go deeper." Lapia smiled. "I said before that E’er is a particle. Before that, however, I have to explain a little. Natasha, the world is made up of very small things." she explained slowly.

"Atoms?" I interrupted her, raising an eyebrow.

Her eyes widened a little, then relaxed into a satisfied smile.

"Well, that saves us a lot of time." she served juice in glasses and took a sip from one. "E’er is smaller than an atom. Subatomic particles are the size of a planet in comparison. When we absorb it, untold amounts of E’er merge with us, becoming our source of might. Our ’wisdom’ represent the amount of E’er at our disposal times twenty, but it’s not the exact amount of particles. One ’point’ of E’er is actually around a cubic meter in size in its free state. E’er compresses within us. When we spend it, it expands and we transform it with the knowledge we possess. I studied Pyromancy and its thermal laws of E’er transformation. I can control a flame’s temperature, size, lifespan, and more." she took another sip.