Beautiful Mistake Chapter 8: A Silent Cry
Baldr studied an older result of the status update he performed for Bell. He didn't know whether to feel immense pride or worry for the young boy, who had exceeded the expectations of the Norse god.
Without context, one would confuse this status belonging to a veteran adventurer, one who had dove into the Dungeon for decades. Alternatively, a supremely talented individual who had also adventured in the Dungeon could achieve these numbers in a few years.
Bell Cranel had only received his falna for half a year.
It should be impossible for one to achieve these results with simple study and training. While the School District curriculum is rigorous, it doesn't compare to the trials of the Dungeon or other conflicts outside of Hringhorni's halls.
The Norse god couldn't help but think back of the discussion he had with the former rulers of Orario, when they asked that he take in their adopted grandchildren and prepare them as adventurers. He had little to doubt Lady Hera's plea to care for the children she raised as her own, but he wondered if he missed some kind of hidden message in her request.
Any more thoughts about the mystery of the Cranel children had to wait as Leon arrived to discuss other business that needed to be taken cared of.
"Have the next combat squad formation been finalized?" asked Baldr, reading the names of students who would be sent to deal with another Dungeon incursion.
The belief that the Dungeon was only located at Orario was one of the best kept secrets in the world, even as monsters continue to plague the surface despite the entrance to the Dungeon being sealed by Babel and pacified by the prayers of Ouranos. The truth of the matter was much worse.
The truth is that the Dungeon is actually an entire world beneath the earth, a dark mirror of the surface with denizens and environments beyond the recorded floors that those in Orario catalogued as it's entirety.
While it is true the main entrance of the abyss is sealed and monitored, other passages into the Dungeon exist throughout the world.
And just like other paths, it goes both ways.
This was the true mission of the School District aside from gathering exceptional talent in the world and intervening in petty conflicts. They were responsible for finding these entrances that randomly spawned anywhere in the world and deal with monsters that inevitably exit them.
But unlike the weak wretches descended from the original escapees in ancient times, these creatures would be in full strength and could originate from any floor or section of the Dungeon.
Leon hummed. "Here's the list of students chosen for the next round of missions and to reinforce other squads already deployed."
Handing the list of students who desired to join the School District's elite fighting force, the headmaster scanned through the names and recognized some noteworthy individuals who were part of the previous roster.
"I'm surprised to see Nassen's name in this list. If I recalled, he made a complaint of being part of the squad before?" questioned Baldr, remembering a brilliant but disgruntled young pallum who bemoaned being a front-line fighter despite possessing decent combat capabilities.
"It seems his junior had inspired him to get back out in the world instead of hiding away in his studies. Bell had expressed a desire to join the combat squads and Nassen wanted to join him."
"Speaking of Bell, how is he? I heard he registered himself for a few magic oriented classes and magical acquirement training. What is his current progress?" asked Baldr, as he rose from his seat and started rummaging through one of the cabinets in his office.
Unperturbed by his god's sudden actions, Leon continued talking. "Pretty well on the theoretical aspects. He's been acing many tests similar to his other classes but hasn't been able to manifest magic yet. But that hasn't discouraged him even after a month."
The god stopped his search and revealed the item he was looking for, a large tome ornate tome. Thanks to Leon's refined senses he instantly knew the book his god is holding wasn't normal with the amount of magic emanating from it.
It was a Grimoire, and with the amount of latent magic that was wafting from it a very high quality one.
"Perhaps we can assist young Bell in this endeavour?"
After another day of burning the midnight oil, Bell was no closer to his goal than when he started a month ago.
Carrying a large stack of books in his arms, Bell returned them to the shelves one by one in sullen silence. Each book ranges from magic lore from thousands of years to go to memoirs of famous mages. But despite the knowledge he learned and the hundreds of hours poured into reading them repeatedly, magic still eluded the young boy's grasp.
Finished with returning the books to their proper place, he walked back to the cubicle where he had reserved since last month for his magic studies. Just as he was about to shut off the lamp and go back to his dorm, he noticed a large book that was on the desk. This puzzled Bell as he doesn't remember picking up this book.
"Maybe I can do one more reading before turning it in." thought Bell.
He sat down once again, getting in a comfortable position and ignoring the ache in his muscles after hours of pouring over books since this morning. He opened the book and read the sentence on the first place.
What is magic?
The question made Bell think on an appropriate answer as he tried recalling all that he learned about magic during his research.
But as he recounted the stories of ancient elven mages using songs and dance to manifest the first magic spells from spirits, he remembered another elf who was waiting for him right now.
"I promised to meet Alya in the forest today! I'm gonna be late!" exclaimed Bell, jumping out of his seat and out the door.
Unlike other days, today lacked the usual cold bite of the mountain air. Even the sun shone brightly without a cloud in sight. A perfect day to spend time with his sister.
He found Alya sitting under a tree where the family would have their occasional picnics. The young elf noticed his approach but didn't say anything, instead showing him a bright smile that outshone the stars as a gentle breeze made her silvery blonde hair sway softly in the wind.
But the smile he cherished more than anything in the world suddenly turned serious as the forest suddenly became silent. Alya quickly rushed past him to tackle a dark shadow, startling him and causing him to fall on his back. The dark shape slowly morphed into the familiar shape of a goblin, the hideous little green creature clawing at Alya's soft skin and neck.
"Run, Bell! Go get help!" ordered Alya, not perturbed at the goblin's vicious claws tearing at her, leaving bloody gouges that looked even more prominent on her pale skin and staining her dress a deep crimson.
Bell quickly got on his feet and tried to help his sister but found that an invisible force was keeping him away.
He tried to call out to her or scream for help but found that he couldn't speak. The panicked boy strained his vocal cords to produce sound, but his voice was missing.
There was only silence.
Tears welled up in his eyes as he finally heeded his sister's orders, turning away from the savage and bloody sight to find anyone who could help.
He tried his best to block out the sounds of his sister's flesh being torn and her agonized screams but the sight and sound of it was firmly buried in his mind, resonating with such clarity even as he put some distance between them.
"I'm sorry. I'm so, so, sorry…"
He finally arrived at the edge of the Cranel home, spotting his grandparents tending to the garden. Mustering all the air in his lungs, he screamed as loud as he could for their help.
But just like before, he remained completely silent.
Why?! Why is there only silence?!
The distraught boy didn't have time to ponder his sudden mutism, as his childhood home burst into flames. The intensity of the fire was extreme, as Bell was blown back by its force and felt it despite being a fair distance away.
He scrambled to his feet quickly to warn his grandparents away, only to witness in horror of them slowly making their way back into the inferno. Once again, a malicious force prevented him from stepping one foot closer to his burning home as his attempts to make any noise remained in vain.
B…?
Powerless in any attempt to save his loved ones, the boy could collapse to the ground and weep.
…ell?
He wept with all of the strength of his broken heart and torn soul, tears streaming down his face.
Bell…
With what little strength he had left, he faced up to the heavens and released one final cry.
BELL!
Bell woke up from his sleep screaming, shoving the book on the desk to the ground and flailing about in the dark.
He felt hands holding onto him, which caused him to lash out in an attempt to defend himself from the unknown assailant.
"Bell calm down! It's me, Nassen!"
The fight left him quickly as he calmed down as asked, squinting his eyes to adjust to the minimal light from the desk to see a young pallum with brown hair and glasses.
"Nassen?... what is this? Where am I?"
Nassen huffed. "We're in the library, you lunatic. I came looking for your ungrateful ass when you didn't come back from your late-night studying, again."
Understanding slowly trickled back in Bell's mind as he remembered what had happened. He spent the whole day in the library researching about magic but hitting a dead end again.
But just as he was putting away the books and head back to the dorm, he found a book on his desk and…
"So, you finally got fed up and got a Grimoire? Didn't take you for someone who chose the easy way, Cranel."
Nassen was holding said Grimoire with great interest, examining its detailed cover and back. Bell recovered enough of his wits to refute the pallum's statement.
"A Grimoire? No that can't be right. That book looks nothing like the other Grimoires the school has in stock. Also, a Grimoire wouldn't help me get magic anyway…"
Despite the immense value and usefulness in Grimoires assisting mages receiving additional spells, manifesting magic is not so simple as that.
Grimoire's do not instantly grant magic but rather stimulate the innate magical potential in the reader, who would then manifest it in their falna if they possessed the right amount of specialized excelia and affinity for magic.
Since Bell is human, a race that doesn't possess natural inclination for magic, the chances of him being able to get a spell from a Grimoire is extremely low. With the high cost of Grimoires and their limited supply, the School District simply could not risk wasting such a precious item on the chance that he would fill his spell slot.
"Under normal circumstances that would be true. But the Grimoires that the School District keeps in stock are cheap mass-produced ones for students that have great magical potential. This Grimoire you just read is really high quality. I can still sense some residual magic from it even after you used it up!"
The revelation from his roommate stunned Bell, as he processed what Nassen told him.
"I… I finally have magic?" thought Bell excitedly, his arduous studying and research finally coming to an end as he acquired the coveted ability of magic.
But the joy Bell felt turned to ash by Nassen's next comment.
"So, how did you pay for this custom Grimoire?"
Not noticing Bell's increasingly panicked demeanour, Nassen continued his commentary on the cost of a Grimoire.
"If memory serves right, a basic Grimoire is around a hundred million valis depending on the seller and materials. Seeing as this Grimoire has enough juice to give you magic then it might even be worth more than that. Did you get a few sponsors or even found a familia in Orario willing to pay the cost for your membership?... Bell?"
Nassen's words were so far ignored by Bell, the latter laying down on the ground in a fetal position. The older boy picked up his roommate's horrified mumbles and understood why he was feeling such dread.
"Ah, so you didn't pay for it. Well, that's too bad…"
The young pallum would have let his junior continue his debt induced mewling if they were in their dorm but quickly snapped at him to cut it out.
It was already past midnight, and he has several classes in the morning along with other errands he needed to do.
"Stop whining, you baby! I got this."
Nassen grabbed the used Grimoire and examined it again for a little while, before sliding it between two books in a nearby bookshelf. The act puzzled Bell as it didn't really solve his problem but the young pallum shushed him and dragged him out of the library.
"But the Grim -"
"No."
"Nass -"
"Time for bed."
Following Nassen's advice, Bell decided against mentioning the Grimoire to anyone and headed straight to the headmaster for a status update.
He was nervous throughout the process of getting his status updated, waiting for the inevitable question of how he got magic and having to tell the truth since Baldr could instantly tell if he lies.
But the question never came and instead the Norse god was expressing pride in his child finally acquiring magic.
"Congratulations, Bell! You've finally gotten magic after only a month of study. Even for the most gifted mortals, it would have taken years before someone could manifest their first spell."
Masking his nervousness, the young boy thanked the god and gingerly took the status sheet from the jubilant deity. He started reading through his basic abilities and skill list before zoning in on his magic slot, finding a spell filling the first slot.
Seeing the spell made Bell forget his expensive blunder as he celebrated the acquirement, whooping up and down while his god watched on proudly.
"I… I can't believe it. I finally have magic!"
Baldr chuckled. "Indeed, child. It's quite an impressive spell as well. Sound based magic is incredibly rare, and one without a chant even more so."
Bell Cranel
Level 1
STR: D 511
END: D 522
DEX: D 533
AGI: C 644
MAG: I 0
Magic: Sonitus Caeli
Chant-less spell that unleashes a blast of concentrated sound with magic disrupting properties.
Skill:
Carnassion Zinnias
Transcend limits through love and devotion. Grants accelerated growth, which is nurtured by familial love with effects enhanced based on intensity of emotions.
Thanking Baldr for the status update, Bell hastily got dressed before excusing himself and rushing out of the office. With his status freshly updated and a spell slot filled, he was itching to test it out in the newly repaired training room.
Bell found himself in the newly renovated training halls for magic, meeting with one of the instructors on duty and requesting an area to practice his new spell.
As he followed behind the instructor, the sight of so many spells being performed made him more eager to unleash his own.
They finally stopped in a section of a room that looked newer than the others, making Bell realise it must have been ground zero of where his sister first cast her magic. It was a testament to how potent it had been that this spot could barely be salvaged and had to be replaced in its entirety from the walls to the roof.
The instructor set up a single training dummy, the magic resistant target placed perfectly at the end of the room. With his target ready and waiting, the eager magic practitioner lifted his arm and pointed his hand palm open towards it.
As Bell mustered his Mind reserves and felt the shifting of magic in the air, he suddenly thought of the question he read in the Grimoire.
What is magic?
It was such a simple question that didn't warrant much attention, but for some reason it resonated deeply inside him.
"Magic is a power that will grant me the strength I lack. It is a tool that will allow me to move forward despite my weakness…"
As he began losing himself to his inner thoughts, an aura of magic began leaking out of his body. Vibrating with such intensity, the aura began disrupting nearby magics and drew the attention of everyone on Bell.
"As I lost my voice, it became my sound. With it I banished the silence, to protect those I love. To never fail them again. It's with this power that I will ensure that I will never fail again. I won't fail my family. I won't fail her again!"
"SONITUS CAELI!"