Book 3: Chapter 107: Aurora's Puppet |
Arriving once again in the area where Rorik College was located, Sylutia stepped down from the carriage, standing before the towering college gates. Eight pillars stood here, with quite a few Rorik College students coming and going.
"Hello, visiting apprentices must register and present an application," a staff member reminded her.
"I know." Sylutia reached her hand into her pocket, gripping that key, then a badge appeared in her palm, which she handed over.
"Oh, this is a pass badge given to you by Professor Maledor." The staff member examined the mark on the badge and registered it.
"Go on in. If you need to rest overnight, head to the 'Red Brick Inn' in West District Three."
"Okay, thank you." Sylutia nodded, pinned the badge to her chest, and walked inside.
Following the directions on the business card, she arrived before a tall building—this was where the professors had their offices. Though they were often away on other matters, they still came by every morning.
"You're looking for Professor Focalin? Please wait a moment." After inquiring about her purpose, the staff member had Sylutia sit down in a small waiting area off the main hall.
About twenty minutes later, Focalin unhurriedly descended the staircase. Behind her followed two female students, both at the Third Tier.
"You've advanced quickly—it's only been a year."
"How's life at Tetis College? If it's not to your liking, you can always come here, hehe." She cracked a casual joke, while the two female students behind her looked at this girl with curiosity.
"Come with me to the restaurant for a bit. Standing around chatting here is still too boring." She led the three of them to a small restaurant on the college grounds, nestled by a lake with a beautiful view.
After the four sat down, a server brought over the drinks they had ordered. Focalin leaned back in a woven rattan chair, casually crossing and lifting her legs, gazing out at the lake view from the open-air restaurant.
"Ahh, having a drink really feels nice." She set down her cup before introducing everyone.
"This is Hedra, the girl I mentioned before—the one who competed solo in the freshman tournament and placed as an apprentice. She's now a student at Tetis College."
"Hello."
"And these two are my new apprentices, learning the secrets of the 'Dream Phantom Substitute.' Their names are Isu and Jina." After she spoke, the two nodded.
Among them, Isu had gray-blue hair tied in a broad braid, while Jina had dark golden hair with coiled, conch-shell-like ornaments on either side of her head.
"Their talent is quite good. They've already mastered the 'Voice Hearing Technique.' In a few years, once they reach the Fourth Tier, I'll teach them the 'Touch Pressure Technique,' then the Fifth Tier's 'Mind Image Technique,' and finally, at the Sixth Tier, they'll complete the fusion of all mysteries and achieve the 'Dream Phantom Substitute,'" Focalin explained.
"I see." Sylutia finally learned about the subsequent secret arts and the complete order of cultivation.
"Technically, this secret art isn't meant to be taught to outsiders, but what can I do? My lineage is hard to pass on. If you truly master all the prerequisite abilities, I'll apply to the college dean for you to gain inheritance qualifications," Focalin explained.
Afterward, Focalin asked Sylutia whether she had diligently studied the applications of the 'Sensory Link Technique' over the past year.
"It seems you haven't fully developed its potential yet." After hearing Sylutia's account, Focalin lightly shook her finger.
"But then again, you advanced in just one year, so you've probably been busy studying and accumulating resources, leaving little time for research."
"Let me give you a complex example." Focalin clapped her hands and had the restaurant server bring two fishing rods. She then attached bait and cast them into the lake.
"Usually, when you fish, you'd find that waiting for a fish to bite is a dull and boring task. You'd have to keep guessing why no fish are biting."
"But..." Focalin flicked her finger, and a pale purple bead hung from the fishhook before she cast it into the water again.
"With this, you can clearly see the underwater situation and analyze why the fish aren't coming or how they're biting." Shortly after she spoke, she pulled up a black fish.
"Let's have this for lunch." She had the restaurant staff take it for cooking, then continued,
"You have to use your imagination. If it can be hung on a fishhook, it can certainly be used for other things, like insects people overlook, the slender body of a snake, arrows shot from a bow, and so on."
"It can even be used to check inside a patient's body when treating illness."
"As individuals and living beings, humans have inherent limitations and boundaries. What we pursue is breaking these limits, allowing our lives to experience and engage with this world in richer ways."
Hearing this, the two female students behind Focalin looked as if they were used to it and even whispered among themselves.
"The teacher is spouting that philosophy again. Sometimes it feels a bit terrifying."
"When people are no longer people."
Hearing the two behind her whispering, Focalin raised a finger. From beneath the elm tree not far behind her, a figure identical to her stepped out, walked up to the two female students, and grabbed one with each hand, scaring them into yelping loudly. Only when they realized it was Focalin did they sigh in relief.
"Are you that afraid of me? Don't be so rude in front of guests again, understood?"
"Sorry, Teacher." The two stuck out their tongues and lowered their heads in apology.
Though it was a bit playful, it was clear that Focalin was good to them, to the point where they dared to discuss and tease her without reservation.
After hearing this, Sylutia thought it over. Soon, the restaurant brought out the prepared lunch, including the soup made from the black fish they had just caught.
That afternoon, Sylutia followed Focalin to learn the Voice Hearing Technique. This secret art allowed puppets to hear sounds and also produce them—occasionally useful for a good scare.
"Hearing is the first-stage goal. Making sounds is much harder, since it's not your vocal cords but rather air vibrations producing the sound."
"If you truly want to reach the level of sounding like a human voice, it'll take a lot of time and practice." After finishing the lesson, Focalin gave her instructions.
That evening, Sylutia stayed at the college inn and had a good night's rest.
The next day, she found the place where Aurora lived. It was a small, standalone cottage, similar to Sylutia's at Tetis College.
The roof was made of deep blue tiles, beneath which were walls built from gleaming white stone bricks. At the corners of the walls were some flowerpots with a few plants growing in them. It was clear that Aurora loved the combination of deep blue and pale white—her usual clothes and belongings were all in that color scheme.
After knocking on the door, the sound of it opening soon came from inside. However, the one who walked out wasn't Aurora, but a somewhat petite puppet. It had silver hair similar to Aurora's, wore a headband, and was dressed in an exquisite little dress.
"Hedra, what brings you here?" Shortly after seeing this hovering puppet, Aurora stepped out. She seemed to have just woken up, still wearing her nightgown.
"I happened to be at Rorik College, so I thought I'd come see you." The two had met at the Silver Bell Festival, so there wasn't much surprise or unfamiliarity.
After sitting down together, Sylutia curiously asked about the puppet.
"That's one I just finished. It's similar to the 'Black Kite Puppet' you got last year, but it hasn't reached my ideal yet." She waved her hand, and invisible threads controlled the puppet as it flew over to sit in her lap.
"She's adorable, isn't she, this little one." She picked up the puppet and showed it to Sylutia.
"I've made her several outfits and prepared a few small weapons." With that, she had the puppet drag a small box from the corner, opened it like a toy chest, and took out a long sword, a lance, a shield, a battle axe, a bow and arrow... all scaled to fit the puppet.
"She's not very strong, but watching her gradually learn to use all sorts of tools gives me a great sense of achievement and joy."
"Once I reach the Third Tier, I'll be able to swap in my own Memory Gem for her." Aurora stroked the puppet in her arms, speaking of her future plans.
"Do you think it's strange? If she could have a complete memory of me, would she be another me?"
"I grew up in a place full of operas and stories, having seen countless performances. But I never liked playing other people, and I didn't want to force emotions just for the sake of a performance's effect. In a family full of songstresses and playwrights, that made me quite the odd one out."
"My mother often says I'm too cold, not as lively as my other siblings."
"For a long time, I thought I disliked performances."
"But now I realize that's not the case." She raised her finger, and with the agile manipulation of threads, the little puppet on the tea table picked up a tiny teacup, sat down on a stack of books, and made motions of taking a small sip.
"I love watching her do things, even if it's just clumsily cleaning up—it's so interesting."
"Yes, her movements are all controlled by me, yet she's not me. It's like watching another version of myself slowly grow up."
"I don't like playing others, but I don't mind controlling a puppet to perform."
"It's a strange feeling." She sighed softly, then finally released the threads, letting the puppet return to her arms.
Over the following days, Aurora and Sylutia exchanged their learning of the 'Sensory Link' and 'Voice Hearing' techniques. Professor Focalin also learned about their relationship.
"I didn't expect you two to know each other." Today, she was wearing a bright yellow ruffled, puffy dress and holding a parasol as she took the two rowing on the college's small lake.
"Aurora is the Chief among this year's new students. She's usually quite cold toward her classmates and rarely speaks. I thought the child might be quite solitary." Focalin talked about Aurora's situation at the college.
"It seems she just prefers to communicate with those who share her interests." She sat at the bow of the boat, holding up the parasol to shield them from the sun, looking at the two sitting opposite each other—one with black hair, the other with silver—creating a stark contrast that somehow felt harmonious.
"Since Aurora has a friend, I can rest easy." She leaned back against the chair behind her, eyes slightly closed, feeling the gentle breeze across the lake.
The afternoon sun wasn't too harsh, carrying a warmth that was just right.
The sound of oars rippled across the lake, the ripples drifting into the distance.