Miss Capet was not the first believer in the Spirit of Nature that Jenkins had t, but she was the one he knew best.
The Righteous God, the Spirit of Nature, was believed to be the world's first deity, though its church completely denied this claim.
Legends and tales about this god made up a third of all religious stories still circulating in the human world. So Enchanters believed the Church of All Things and Nature guarded the world's deepest secrets.
Compared to the churches of the other eleven gods, the Church of All Things and Nature had often maintained a stance of non-interference throughout history. Its chapels were more often found in forests and villages than in great cities, and the church was known to willingly help any non-malevolent heretics.
Jenkins was certain that this church held secrets about the Mysterious Realms, the end of the Epoch, and even the origins of the numbered items, but unfortunately, no one could prove such a theory.
Miss Capet wasn't particularly talkative. By the ti their conversation shifted to the scenery of the Kingdom of Cheslan's eastern coast, they had already reached the antique shop's entrance. Stepping under the awning, Jenkins closed his umbrella and gave it a couple of quick shakes over a puddle by the door, sending concentric ripples across its surface.
The chi of a small bell announced their entry as he pushed the door open. He casually placed the umbrella into the stand in the corner. Pops, still engrossed in his newspaper, looked up and saw Jenkins, and then the woman behind him.
"Pops, it's been a while."
Miss Capet greeted him casually.
Jenkins froze for a mont. He never knew the young woman was acquainted with Pops.
Pops obviously knew Miss Capet, too. In fact, he seed to know almost everyone Jenkins encountered. Not at all surprised by her appearance, he waved Jenkins off, telling him to take his cat to the backyard for lunch. Then, he and Miss Capet headed upstairs.
Jenkins was intensely curious about their conversation, but he wasn't in the habit of eavesdropping. While he ate, he found himself wondering how old Miss Capet had been when she first t Pops; she didn't look much older than a girl now.
Distracted while feeding his cat, he tore off a shred of at for Chocolate, and the eager feline accidentally nipped his finger. The young cat's teeth weren't particularly sharp, and it imdiately opened its mouth the mont it realized its mistake.
Still, a sting of pain shot through Jenkins's finger. He gave his cat a look of mock reproach, and Chocolate responded with a placating "ow," rubbing its furry cheek against the offended digit.
"Alright, alright, I know you didn't an to."
He patted his cat, then began to wonder why he didn't just let Chocolate eat on its own.
Pops and Miss Capet talked for an hour. During that ti, Jenkins attended to a custor who had ducked into the shop to escape the rain and managed to persuade him to buy an inexpensive dal.
As Jenkins was recording the sale, Miss Capet ca down the stairs. With a lancholic expression, she bade him a brief farewell and left.
Pops followed shortly after, holding a sheet of paper and looking just as troubled.
"I know you must be curious about what we discussed."
Pops said, handing the paper to Jenkins before he could even nod.
"I have a few old friends in the Church of All Things and Nature. They heard so news and arranged for Sigrid Capet, who was already heading to Nolan to escort a dangerous item, to deliver this information to . I t her over a decade ago, when she was just a little girl."
That thoroughly answered Jenkins's questions. Feeling a little sheepish that his curiosity had been so plainly exposed, he nodded and spread the paper out before him.
The paper wasn't a letter but a partial description of how to acquire an ability. It was written with a quill, not a fountain pen. The ability was called [Exotic Tide], a blue, heteromorphic-type power.
It was called a special ability not because of any particularly strange effect, but because it had been taboo for many years—one of the forbidden powers.
"In the ancient Savage Epoch, various intelligent species fought brutal wars over limited natural resources. To counter their enemies, they developed a multitude of specialized abilities, like [Vampire Slayer] for targeting vampires, the chained ability [Demon Hunter] for demons, and [Midnight Manhunter] for humans."
"Humans back then were not the weakest of races, but they weren't the most powerful either. An unknown human mage—an Enchanter of that era—eventually created the special ability [Exotic Tide]. It allowed one to gain power by slaughtering other species. The more you killed, and the more varied the species, the greater the power you obtained."
Pops explained as Jenkins studied the paper. After a mont of thought, Jenkins asked:
"So what's the drawback?"
The ability had almost no prerequisites for learning, so it had to have a flaw. The world was fair; if such a powerful ability could be widely mastered, there was bound to be a catch.
"The drawback is that [Exotic Tide] isn't limited to humans. Moreover, as the user's power grows, they eventually lose themselves..."
Pops trailed off, his gaze lost in the rain outside the window, as if caught in a distant mory.
"I think I've explained this before—blue heteromorphic abilities originate from the innate talents of other species. The ancient Enchanter who created this ability didn't unlock so latent human power. Instead, they directly mimicked the anatomy of a monster known as a [Slaughtering Angel], causing learners to develop that creature's special organs. That's the truth behind it: you slaughter to obtain blood, and the blood grants you power. In theory, any intelligent species, not just humans, can acquire this ability.
"After the era of inter-species warfare ended, the most powerful races of the ti—dragons, elves, dwarves, sea-folk, winged-folk, and humans—signed a pact to permanently eradicate this ability. It vanished from all records for dozens of epochs. It wasn't until the last epoch, during a containnt breach involving a numbered item, that it resurfaced. The incident caused a temporal reversion, bringing artifacts from a past age into the 'present,' and with them, the ability [Exotic Tide] began to circulate once more."
"Oh, that sounds terrifying..."
Jenkins offered a rather empty exclamation, then paused and frowned.
"Pops, the effect you're describing sounds a little familiar... Gaining power through slaughter, growing stronger the more you kill. It sounds a bit like A-01-1-6377, the [Killing Mark]."
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