"The aning of a journey doesn't lie in what you collect, but collecting can make the journey more aningful."
This single sentence was all that was written on the first page. Perhaps because the ink had been mixed with gold dust, flecks of gold still glittered faintly even though the script had faded considerably. While it wasn't written in the common tongue, the language of the 16th Epoch hadn't changed drastically from that of the present day, so he could roughly grasp its aning.
Seeing that Jenkins had finished, Miss Bevanna turned to the second page, which held a table of contents written in faded ink.
"What we're looking for is an Extraordinary item, B-01-1-9839, the Emblem Collector's Box. This box can strip an Enchanter of their Soul Emblem, causing permanent damage to their soul. More importantly, its effect is passive. Unless it's sealed, it continuously affects all Enchanters within a 13.9-ter radius. This thing has been contained here for thirteen years, and this book has reached its limit. Unless an even more dangerous item appears, this table of contents is unlikely to change."
Her finger rested on the table of contents and slid slowly down the page:
"Alright, page twenty. Mr. Williams, please prepare yourself. I have a way to restrain B-01-1-9839's effects once it's removed from the book, but I need you to focus. Otherwise, you could easily be affected."
"Understood."
Jenkins nodded gravely, as if facing a formidable enemy. Then, a thought struck him. He opened the door a crack and nudged Chocolate, who had been resting on his lap, out into the hallway.
Even after closing the door, Jenkins could still hear the cat owing.
Miss Bevanna ran the pad of her finger along the edge of the pages, then unerringly flipped the book open to page twenty. She slid her right hand into the page itself, and with a scalp-tingling screech of grinding glass, pulled out a vermilion wooden box no bigger than her palm.
The surface of the wooden box was inlaid with fine gold threads, which intertwined across its six faces to form six exceedingly complex runes.
Coincidentally, Jenkins had recently seen these very runes at Papa Oliver's. From his rudintary studies, he knew this script had originated in the 9th Epoch and had been lost by the 13th.
It wasn't until the beginning of this epoch that they were miraculously deciphered and began to be integrated into modern ritual systems. Arranged in the sequence of top, bottom, left, right, front, and back, the six runes combined to an "Plunder." In the order of left, right, front, back, top, and bottom, they ford the word "Soul." As for the arrangent of front, back, top, bottom, left, and right—Jenkins had seen that word before, but he hadn't yet committed it to mory. He'd have to look it up when he got back.
The box vibrated incessantly, but pinned beneath the woman's hand—which glowed with a divine light—it could do little more than tremble.
Although he felt no discomfort, Jenkins raised his right hand to his forehead, feigning a wave of dizziness.
"I'm alright. Please, continue."
He said, his voice intentionally strained and hoarse.
According to Miss Bevanna's explanation, aside from stealing an Enchanter's Soul Emblem, the box had a few other interesting functions. One of these was its ability to analyze an emblem—in simpler terms, to check if it was functioning normally.
Originally, this process could only be perford with the emblem inside the box, but after centuries of research and experintation, the Nolan diocese had discovered a safe external thod.
Under Miss Bevanna's supervision, Jenkins pricked his finger with the silver dagger he always carried, letting a drop of blood fall onto the surface of the box. As instructed, he activated his [Breath of Healing] ability in the process, causing a faint green mist to rise from his body.
If he hadn't taken this step, Jenkins would have been deeply worried about how many emblems the box might detect.
The gold threads absorbed the blood evenly, and the box imdiately stopped vibrating.
A few seconds later, a blood-red mist seeped from the seams of the box. It hovered about two inches above the lid, swirling until it ford the shape of a small sapling.
The sapling looked ethereal, and its blood-red color gave it a strangely unsettling appearance.
"What... does this an?"
"It's normal."
Miss Bevanna craned her neck to observe the sapling from directly above:
"The color indicates that your soul is untainted; that's why it retains the natural color of your blood. The complete shape shows that your soul is whole and uninjured. Moreover, for your emblem to manifest with such clarity... it ans your soul is exceptionally powerful. Mr. Williams, to be honest, even my own emblem wouldn't appear this distinctly if I took this test."
Jenkins gave an awkward laugh, but thankfully, Miss Bevanna was rely expressing her admiration. It seed that ever since he had beco a Saint, any small anomaly about him could be easily rationalized by others.
"Praise the Sage!"
He devoutly made the sign of the holy emblem across his chest. Miss Bevanna assud he was giving thanks that his soul was unhard, but in truth, he was entertaining a thought that bordered on blasphemy.
"So, this change is harmless?"
"For now, it appears so. We've sent an inquiry to the Holy See, which should have more extensive records. But you needn't worry. As Papa Oliver has likely told you, changes to a Soul Emblem are not unheard of, and most of the ti, they're a positive developnt."
She paused for a mont, then nodded. "Since it has changed once, it's possible it will change again. Your soul ability is related to life and healing, so last night's exposure to the opposing power of death likely triggered this transformation. That is the most probable explanation..."
"Yes, I believe so as well."
Jenkins quickly nodded in solemn agreent.
"Have you heard of the Ponton Winery? There was an incident there on the 31st, likely caused by the followers of the [Lord of the Undying] who were holed up in the area. The entire region is now saturated with imnse life spirit. The success rate for any life-related rituals perford there is nearly one hundred percent. I can write you a pass to get in. You should go take a look when you have ti; you might find it beneficial. I have more to tell you about it during our combat lesson next week..."
"Is that so? That would be wonderful!"
He offered a sheepish smile, though inwardly he was certain there was nothing left to be gained from that place.
Still, he had to make an appearance. He understood the importance of seeing an act through to the end.
Jenkins also probed Miss Bevanna for details about the incident on the 31st. Though he had experienced it all firsthand, it was fascinating to hear the account from another's perspective.
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