17th October 1137

  Acryl

  The hotel room was in a peaceful silence. Neon was reading that leather-covered diary while she organized something in her notebook. Nameless was nowhere to be seen, though Acryl doubted that she would need to be worried about.

  He doodled on his sketchbook, pen outlining trees and flowers as he scribbled to create shadows and volumes. It was the first time in his travels in Auderheim that he could sit down and draw, scribble without any disturbance. For a brief moment, he forgot he was in a hotel room in Havel, forgot that he had become something further from the human he used to be. He felt like home, felt like it was another rainy night of Euth, that Canvas was asleep and Neon was beside him, chatting while they both did their own things. But those days seemed strange to him now. Acryl desperately wished that his condition could be completely reversed, that his blood would not be set ablaze under Seren’s fountain pen, and that he could visit Siyue without being smited by the Burnt Codex. He had a sourness in his heart that, because of him, Neon did not celebrate the Mid-Authumn festival like every Siyuense could.

  Acryl’s mind was not on his sketchbook, but rather on the things that had happened recently. All of it occurred one after another, didn’t give him any time to take it in and rest. Lately, he could feel the changes in his body; he couldn’t bear to watch the shadowy corners of the room, and he couldn’t stand seeing the shadows of trees swaying under the sun. The world seemed like a different place now after the incident in the manor. Acryl was now too afraid to look up in the starry night to gaze at the stars, too afraid that he would see the things that moved between the celestial bodies, and the beings resting beyond the skies. Even right now, he could feel the strange sensation beyond words flowing in him. Painless, yet he could feel the change. Acryl feared, feared that he would be turned into something horrible.

  Fosfor had said that he would be an important part of the long-term battle between humanity and the Existences, but could mankind fight against those beings? The Existences that had been worshipped and that could never be understood and comprehended, can humanity stand a chance against them?

  Or it was never a fair battle, but a battle to simply survive. Acryl didn’t want this burden upon him, but did he have a choice?

  Perhaps it was best to embrace the burden with grace and to trust Fosfor and the Brotherhood. Acryl wasn’t sure if he could even take such responsibility, if he was used to running away from taking the lead. That feeling of loss and confusion was the leitmotif of his heart, something that he could never get rid of, no matter how much he had grown, no matter how much he had learnt as a person.

  As his mind was in a lump of endless thoughts, his pencil lead broke. He snapped from his spiral of worries as he looked for a paper knife to sharpen the pen. While he searched in his bag that was lying on the table, he glimpsed the city from the window. The tower rested there, a giant painted grayish and pale bronze from the atmospheric perspective. It felt like a pin stuck on the board of clues named Havel.

  Seeing the Tower made Acryl think about the time a few days ago when they were returning from the Herald Romily Church; at that time, they took a longer route to the hotel to see the Tower more closely. It did take a lengthy time, but when they finally reached there, their legs were sore, and Acryl couldn’t feel any scent from the Tower. Not even the slightest scent of an arcane item could be noticed from there.

  That’s pretty weird, if I think about it…I’m probably not the first one to question it, so maybe there is an answer to that?

  He looked towards Neon, sharpening his pencil. She was sitting on her part of the bunk bed, shuffling through the notebook and writing things down, just like she used to revise for tests.

  “Neon, did you find anything about the Tower?”

  Neon looked up from her notebook, frowning while her eyes turned.

  “Watcha need?”

  “…Just stuff in general, I guess,” he said, shrugging.

  “Hmm…it was built after the meltdown of the Codex… officially known as the Broadcast Tower, uhhh, yeah, that’s about it.”

  “Did you find anything about how it works?”

  “Runes, I guess, that stuff ain’t so easy to find, classified and stuff, Acryl,” she said, sounding a bit annoyed. Acryl wanted to have a chance to organize all the information they have right now with Suiming and Nameless, but it seemed like he could only do that during the next meeting of the Brotherhood. Though there was one more thing he’d like to ask Neon…but he feared it may be too personal even for their close relationship over the years. That journal…that seemed dear to Neon that he had never asked about since he never wanted to disturb the part of her that Neon didn’t want to bring up. His heart raced as if he were not to ask Neon a question, but that she was an Existence, and he was seeking knowledge beyond his comprehension.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  But why did the Troupe seem to know her?

  Acryl swallowed as he calmed his breath. He couldn’t remember the last time he felt so stressed that it wasn’t a life-or-death situation.

  “Neon…” Acryl asked, his voice squaking. She closed her notebook and stretched; Acryl could hear her joints crack.

  “…Why did the person from the Troupe… seem to know you?”

  …

  Neon

  She was sure that her face was as red as the New Year lanterns. And she felt like she was upside down, just like the decoration of the word “happiness” on the New Year. The bridge in her memories of her mother and the things she overheard from her parents’ discussions connected; those things never made sense and would probably never do in the future, no matter how far she was from that past. Her father had retired as soon as the unpleasant news of Nai’s demise came to him. Every time Neon read through her mother’s journal, she could feel her heart being strangled. The things Josh said to her, the strange obsession of the Director…and the recurring mention of the Script; it all smothered her in sorrow and fear. Drowning her deeper into the confusion, Neon couldn’t recount the nights she had thoughts of leaving it all behind and joining the Troupe, no matter the danger and things that should better be left unknown.

  She couldn’t think of an answer for Acryl. Neon knew that she could trust her fears with Acryl, but despite that, she couldn’t force the words out of her. Her breath had become fast as she felt her heart race. She peeked at Acryl, oblivious of her feelings, waiting for her answer.

  “I…I…” she stuttered.

  “…I don’t know if I should tell you this.”

  “If it’s something I better not know-” Acryl said quietly.

  “Nai, my mother, Xihua, my father, were all from the Yellowcoat Troupe,” she interrupted.

  “And…I don’t know how the Troupe found me, or how they know me…but whatever they are doing…isn’t right.”

  Her heart drummed so fast that she felt it was going to burst out of her chest. Despite the weight in her heart easing, she did not feel any better; saying the things out loud did not make her feel any hope for the situation to change. Instead, she felt that the yellow shadows would come up to her, snatch her away from this life and the people around her.

  Acryl didn’t say anything; it didn’t seem like there was something he could do about it. The Troupe, despite her having the journal and the encounters, was still a mystery. Acryl’s face stayed blank while his eyes swayed. Neon looked at Acryl’s eyes again. This time, behind those eyes was a glint of determination and curiosity, akin to the light in his eyes the day they left Siyue. As if at any time, his Realm-art could sharpen.

  The room felt eerily quiet while Neon felt her heartbeat calming down.

  “Thank you for trusting me,” Acryl said.

  “…Neon…you walked down this path with me…and I’d do anything to make our journey longer,” he continued.

  “I promise you, Ni, no matter what happens, I will stay by your side,” Acryl said in Siyunese. His words echoed and lingered in Neon’s head. The words ignited a spark in her. A spark that lit up her heart and shone so brilliantly that it evaporated the paranoia and loss in her. Neon burst out smiling as she jumped out of her bunk bed and leaped to Acryl, holding him tightly. In the corner of her eye, she saw Acryl’s face. He seemed rather startled by the hug while a slight blush bubbled up on his cheeks.

  “Me too, Acryl,” she whispered, feeling Acryl’s body’s warmth.

  “Best friends forever?” Neon continued. She wanted to say so much more, but the flustered and embarrassing words won’t come out of her mouth.

  “Yeah, best friend forever.”

  …

  Acryl

  After getting lunch from a nearby street-corner restaurant, which was rather delicious for its price, they spent the rest of the day compiling the information they had gathered at the table, trying to find a thread between them. The Three Crowns, the School of Faust, the scentless tower, Kaspar’s plan…all of them mixed and twirled in Acryl’s head, so that the information seemed like a tangled ball of yarn.

  “You’ve met Kaspar, so what’s up with him?” Neon asked.

  Kaspar’s face and his deep, unpleasant stare flashed before Acryl’s eyes as he tried to recount their so-called cooperation.

  “…He seems…to be obsessed with the Starseeker.”

  “I think it has something to do with the School of Faust, but he seemed to do everything alone.”

  Maybe Suiming has some information on that

  Thinking about the Lily’s Brotherhood, Acryl reached for his bag and pulled out the neatly folded envelope, opening it and checking for the next meeting. The ink on the paper shifted and changed into different elegantly written words, until it formed the date for the next meeting.

  “I’m going to the Brotherhood this night,” Acryl said, raising his head up. Neon rested her chin on her hand, leaning on the table. Her hair was untied, falling down and between her fingers, reminding Acryl of willow trees.

  “Can I get into the Lily’s Brotherhood?” she asked. Rubbing her eyes.

  “I’ll have to ask.”

  In his memory, most of the members of the Brotherhood found the invitation in some way or another, though there must have been more seats available.

  “…I know this may be a crazy idea,” Neon said.

  “But what if Kaspar is trying to summon the Starseeker?”