Tears of Souls: Lament at Midnight

Chapter 9

Perhaps it was the wine, but Candace slept soundly that night.

She vaguely registered a shaking sensation, but her eyelids felt like they were glued shut. She drifted back to sleep without a second thought.

"You slept through that? It felt like the whole building was about to collapse, and you slept through it?!"

Aber, sporting impressive dark circles under his eyes, stared at Candace across the breakfast table.

In stark contrast to his disheveled appearance, Candace was dressed in fresh clothes and a cloak, looking bright and alert.

"There was an earthquake last night?" She tore off a piece of bread, dipping it into her soup. "I think I felt something..."

Aber resisted the urge to facepalm. Her ability to sleep through anything was astounding.

The tremors had roused most of the inn's guests, sending them scrambling out into the streets in a panic.

Thankfully, it had been a false alarm.

The caravan was scheduled to remain in town for another two days to restock supplies.

Candace and Aber, however, were eager to continue their journey. They finalized their travel plans over breakfast, deciding to depart immediately.

Vina had generously provided Aber with ample travel funds, and he had promptly splurged on a chestnut mare for Candace to ride.

Unfortunately, the sheltered young woman had never ridden a horse before...

Traveling on foot would be too slow, especially in the North, where villages were few and far between.

They agreed that Candace would learn to ride along the way to avoid slowing them down.

Aber's black stallion, relegated to carrying their luggage, snorted indignantly.

Candace, approaching the mare cautiously, asked nervously, "Should I give her something to eat? And is it a 'he' or a 'she'?"

"Fiore's a boy." Aber patted the horse's neck. "He's still young, a bit of a wild one."

Candace recalled the stallion's impressive display of strength during the attack. "It's good to have a bit of spirit."

She mounted the mare with Aber's assistance, taking her first tentative steps under his guidance.

He wasn't about to let her ride alone, not yet. He walked ahead, holding onto both reins, allowing her to get accustomed to the rhythm of the horse's gait.

They might have agreed to travel together, but they were still practically strangers. The silence was starting to feel awkward.

Candace, searching for a neutral topic, asked, "Is Fiore named after the legendary 'Fae'?"

"Well well, what do you know? The scholar has a brain after all." Aber whistled, impressed. "Fiore is named after Emperor Antonius's steed. Legend has it that the horse saved his life countless times during his conquest of West France."

"After Antonius ascended to the throne, Fiore transformed into a ball of light and vanished before his eyes."

"That's when everyone realized that Fiore wasn't a horse at all, but some otherworldly creature. Emperor Antonius then used 'Fae,' Fiore's nickname, to refer to their kind."

"Of course, this all happened before the Great Collapse. There's no way to verify the authenticity of these stories." Aber stroked the black stallion's mane, only to be met with a snort of disapproval. "You know how it is, every great ruler needs a legendary tale to cement their place in history."

Candace mimicked his gesture, gently stroking the mare's neck. The horse seemed receptive to her touch.

"True, the story might be apocryphal, but the existence of the 'Fae' is undeniable." Candace continued stroking the mare's mane, her gaze distant. "I wrote a paper on them a few years ago, I did a lot of research."

Aber's curiosity was piqued. "So, what are they exactly?"

"They've been called many things throughout history, their presence documented in the texts of various civilizations and races." Candace reached up to touch her earlobe, her fingers brushing against her swaying earrings. "Sprites, fairies, the first mages... these are all names attributed to them."

"What we know for sure is that they're beings composed of magical particles. They have no fixed form and can shapeshift into anything." She gestured towards the surrounding landscape. "That tree over there, that pebble on the road, they could all be Fae in disguise."

Aber frowned. "Composed of magical particles... You mean like water elementals, fire elementals, those sorts of things?"

"Similar, but not quite. Some scholars believe that elementals were their predecessors." Candace tilted her head, explaining. "Elementals lack self-awareness, but the Fae possess intelligence, they can think and communicate. However, based on existing records, their level of civilization remains unclear."

She sighed. "We Mordans have very few records of them. Perhaps the elven libraries hold more information."

Over three hundred years ago, at the end of the Twilight Era, the last god had fallen.

The celestial realm, suspended above the world, had crashed to earth, shattering the landmass into seven continents.

Dwarves, demons, elves, and Mordans had all vied for control of the fallen realm, plunging the seven continents into chaos.

Ironically, none of them had succeeded in claiming the "god's legacy."

The ceaseless conflicts had weakened the seals on ancient prisons, unleashing demons upon the world, leading to the cataclysmic event known as the Great Collapse.

The northern continent, home to the demons, had been shattered into countless islands. The other continents had suffered plagues and extreme weather, their populations decimated.

It wasn't until two hundred years ago that the hero Irelius and his companions had managed to seal the demons within the remnants of the celestial realm, transforming it into a terrifying black hole that threatened to consume everything in its path.

The seven continents had become six.

The black hole devoured everything, even warmth.

The land surrounding it was perpetually shrouded in ice and snow, while areas further away had slowly recovered, resembling their pre-Collapse state.

This unique landscape, however, held a strange allure for adventurers.

Despite the risks of frostbite and illness, people continued to venture into the frozen wastelands.

Candace sneezed again, the irony not lost on her.

She was about to become one of those reckless adventurers.

Aber eyed her thin cloak and tunic with concern. "You don't... have any warmer clothes, do you?"

Candace was wearing her only change of clothes, freshly laundered that morning.

Her other set of clothes, now clean, was tucked away in her backpack.

"Don't worry, I'm prepared."

A rare look of confidence crossed her face.

She pulled the hem of her cloak forward, removing a few small ornaments. A faint red glow emanated from the fabric as the unassuming garment transformed into a self-heating blanket.

"Vina has a cloak that can lower body temperature. I modified the runes, and now it can keep you warm." Candace pulled up the hood, wrapping herself tightly in the cloak. "Animal furs are too bulky, I'd rather carry more rations."

Aber recognized the enchantment. It was a popular accessory among the upper class in his country, originating from the elves of the West.

Noblewomen considered it uncouth to expose their skin, even in the sweltering heat. They wore long sleeves and skirts year-round, often with heavy petticoats and corsets underneath.

It was a recipe for disaster, especially for those prone to sweating.

Years of adventuring had honed Aber's intuition, and something about this situation felt off. He couldn't quite put his finger on it, but he couldn't shake off the feeling of unease.

His instincts proved to be right.

A few days later, they arrived at their first destination: Parma Town.

Its walls were just as imposing as Aruboum's, if not taller. Even Candace stared up at them in awe.

The air was frigid, her breath misting in front of her face.

She noticed piles of white snow gathered at the base of the walls and went over to poke at them curiously.

"Wow..."

She was fascinated by the texture. She crouched down, scooping up a handful of snow, watching as it slowly melted in her gloved hands.

Aber, finding her behavior rather childish, tugged her away by the hood of her cloak.

"That's snow, right?" Candace removed her glove, examining the melting snowflakes clinging to the fabric. "Are the clouds in the sky made of this too... Achoo!"

Her tone was as flat as ever, but Aber detected a hint of excitement in her voice. He chuckled. "Those are questions for scholars to ponder. I'm more concerned about your sneezing. Where's your self-heating cloak?"

Candace was wearing both her tunic and cloak, wrapped tightly in her modified garment, but she was still cold.

She frowned, unfastening the cloak and examining the runes sewn into the lining.

The runes were glowing faintly red, indicating that the enchantment was active. But she felt colder than before...

"Beyond Parma Town lies the Great Northern Plains. The conditions there are far harsher than anything you've experienced so far." Aber crossed his arms, watching her with a hint of amusement. "You better figure out what's wrong with your cloak soon, or I'm not taking you any further. I have no intention of watching you freeze to death."

That was unacceptable. Her planned search area was vast, she couldn't afford any delays.

They quickly found an inn and settled in.

Candace spread her cloak on the only table in the room, carefully picking at the seams with her dagger, trying to determine what was wrong with the enchantment.

Aber poked at the fire in the hearth with a poker, bored.

He glanced at Candace, his eyes drawn to the gemstone earrings dangling from her ears.

"Oh, right, you need to remove all your metal jewelry." He tapped the stone wall with the heated poker, trying to get her attention. "Earrings, rings, everything. In extreme cold, they can freeze to your skin and cause serious injury."

Candace, having disassembled her cloak, was studying the runes.

She absently touched her earrings. "I don't wear rings, these are..."

Her hand froze, her eyes widening as if struck by a sudden realization.

"Of course... That's it!" She placed her hands on either side of the runes, her body tense with concentration.

Aber dropped the poker and hurried over to her side. "What is it? What did you find?"

Candace gestured excitedly at the disassembled cloak. "It's not the runes, they're working perfectly. But the effect is weaker than it should be."

"So, why is that?" Aber scratched his chin, his tone skeptical. "Did you draw them wrong? Or maybe they're misaligned?"

Candace shot him an exasperated look before explaining patiently, "No, the runes are fine. It's the 'here' that's the problem."

Aber picked up on the emphasis in her voice. "...Here?"

"Exactly. It's the air here." Candace, having solved the mystery, relaxed back in her chair. "There's a severe lack of magical particles in the air, it's not enough to sustain the enchantment."

Simply put, the energy source was insufficient.

Aber, like most Mordans, possessed no magical talent and had no knowledge of alchemy. His understanding of magic was rudimentary at best.

"Magical particles... but aren't those everywhere?" He frowned, racking his brain for any relevant information he might have retained from his younger years. "There are three types... and magic is manipulating them to... do things?"

Candace held up four fingers. "Four types: water, wind, fire, and earth. They correspond to the four creator deities: Vientus, god of wind; Aquia, goddess of water; Frama, god of fire; and Dera, goddess of earth. They..."

"Okay, okay, I get it, I just forgot for a moment!" Aber interrupted hastily, clasping his hands together in a gesture of pleading. "Please, Miss Nymeros, spare me the lecture. I'm not cut out for this scholarly stuff."

Aber was incredibly comfortable with familiarity, his shamelessness rivaling even his aunt's.

He was the type of person Candace found most difficult to handle, his easygoing nature often throwing her off balance.

She hadn't expected him to resort to such formal address as "Miss Nymeros" just to avoid a lecture.

She chuckled, finding his antics more amusing than annoying. "Anyway, as I was saying, the Black Abyss is far more terrifying than we realize. It devours the magical particles in the surrounding area." She tapped the table with a gloved finger, her expression turning serious. "That's why the temperature here is so low, and the closer you get to the Black Abyss, the more barren the land becomes."

She sighed, glancing at the struggling enchantment. "This is a high-level enchantment, it can automatically draw magical particles from the air to sustain itself. But if there aren't enough particles in the air, it's useless..."

Aber's eyes widened in realization. "So, you're telling me you don't have any warm clothes."

Candace: "..."

"All that fuss over a cloak, and you still end up having to buy cold-weather gear." Aber patted her shoulder sympathetically, shaking his head. "Trust me, out here, magic is unreliable. Money is king."