26 Strengthening Spirit Bond

Lorn straightened his back and put down his cutlery.

"Yes?" he tried to not sound too interested in her answer.

"I'm willing to go along with you for a time… but I'm not sure if I'll be able to stay forever."

'Oh,' Lorn hummed. 'That's pretty good.'

She was basically saying she would go along, but she could quit anytime she wanted. Lorn knew how to make it sound better in her ears.

"I was thinking that maybe you could accompany me until we manage to sever our bond somehow."

Sybil's expression was of annoyance, but quickly, it turned softer. That was a good reaction. Lorn's proposal would sound better for her because it had a definite ending. Hers was too vague. It might sound better for her, because technically, she could quit anytime she wanted, but that only meant endless hours of her wondering about when she should quit.

It was much easier to have a clear goal in mind with these kinds of things.

There was also a potential bonus for Lorn. It was highly likely she would still stick around after they separate the bond. She had already come this far. Why not push through till the end, kind of logic.

People tended to go through with things so long as they start them somehow.

"But I'll need to take care of some stuff first," Sybil added. "I'll be finished in two days, I think."

"Okay," Lorn replied. "I'll be waiting for you, practicing and stuff. Oh, and, I'll be able to stay here for roughly a week before I have to go back for a bit. So maybe we should head to a town nearby… where are we headed towards, anyway?"

"We'll make our way to the capital first. They might have info on Divine Trials where we can choose our rewards. They might even have specialists that are willing to sever a bond. That would still cost a lot of money, so we might have to work for it."

"How do hunters usually make money?"

"It depends on their skills. Before going on hunts, mayor Eider used to work on construction most of her time. For me… I suppose I could work on construction as well, considering I can make things weigh less. But traditionally, we either get hired for work, or we can hunt possessed or monsters and sell its parts. Monsters are a bit too hard for us now, so we'll settle with what comes our way. I'll tell you all about it when we start traveling. For now, you can dedicate your time to practice."

With his task accomplished, Lorn walked back into his room with a satisfied mind. Sure, barely any of his preparations on the conversation turned out to be useful, but that was just how things were like.

He diligently resumed his training of spirit and, before sleeping, he picked up his mirror to check whether he had any notifications. His consumption reduction increased by one percent once more and he received one level in Strengthening. His immersion rate was stable enough, sitting comfortably at 25%. There was one more thing he saw.

[Congratulations! Your understanding of your Spirit Partner has increased. For your Spirit Bond to Rank up, your partner's understanding of you must increase.]

[UNIQUE MISSION: Increase your Spirit Partner's understanding of you.

You cannot convey your own understanding of yourself to her through any means.

Time limit: None.]

…

The day after, Sybil spent mostly out to say her goodbyes to some people. The next day, they went out together to shop for the trip. Using her savings, Sybil bought a carriage with two horses and started putting supplies in it. Lorn promised he'd pay back everything when he was able, but in a truly Sybil fashion, she only shrugged coolly, as if she didn't mind it either way. And to be fair, the gesture was probably true.

Lorn suddenly felt that depressed people were very cool sometimes.

They then went to the mayor to so Sybil could sell her house. The mayor arranged for it to be sold to one of the Hunters that were coming from Belo city to replace Sybil and Danton's spots.

And learning that the two were departing, the mayor gave Lorn some money and one soulless. It was a young man named Clay, who previously worked in the stables. He was to drive and take care of the horse and also perform other menial tasks in their stead.

Sybil didn't seem to mind it so much, but Lorn couldn't help but have mixed feelings about the act. He didn't think himself someone to be preoccupied with morals, but he supposed that some things would just feel wrong no matter what. He just hoped he would get used to this world soon.

On the third morning, Lorn and Sybil got on their carriage and drove off. Quite a few people came out to say goodbye to them and to wish good luck.

Lorn felt odd at the sight of children looking at him with admiration and some soulless expressionlessly praying to him with both hands clasped. He subconsciously rubbed at the gem in his forehead and reminded himself that this wasn't reality.

It should've been obvious, but the more Lorn interacted with the world, the more easily he found himself lost in it. At this point, he couldn't tell if it was a good thing or a bad thing.

Eventually, they departed, leaving behind the crowd of people.

Clay drove in the front while Lorn and Sybil shared a seat in the back.

"In three days' time, we should make it to Belo City. You said you'll have to leave for a bit when we're there, but how long will you take?"

"I shouldn't take more than three days. I might even be back in two days."

The more he acclimatized to the One World, the easier it was to access it. He was sure he would soon stop needing the sensory deprivation tank soon enough.

"Then we'll get there, do some sightseeing… and I suppose I'll be left all alone in the big city," Sybil sighed dramatically.

"I promise I'll be back as soon as I'm able," Lorn chuckled. "It's a complicated matter, interdimensional travel."

Sybil's eyebrows creased at that. "I still don't get it. You are able to come here, but you have to make the trip back to make sure you're alright… Is it really that difficult? It feels like you're able to come and go whenever you like."

"It's complicated, but not too difficult," Lorn replied with a smile. "And when all the complicated things get resolved in a year, a huge wave of Undying would appear in the One World, and do fuck all. Things will get really busy here. And like me, they'll be able to come and go whenever they like."

"Sounds fucked."

Sybil probably wouldn't like that scene.

"Yep. Thankfully, that batch will contain the better people of Earth. At least you wouldn't be stuck with losers like me."

"I'm scared to see what kind of people are inhabiting your world if you're calling yourself a loser."

"Well, there's the avatar of the One Emperor, to begin with," Lorn smiled. "There are also a bunch of infamous siblings called the Cross children."

"Who are those?"

"A disgustingly rich old man named Sir Reginald Cross scoured the world for extremely talented children and adopted them. The already talented kids now received the very best education and access to the latest of technology and science. Eventually, they grew up and became known as the Cross Children."

"And? What happened to them?"

"Growing up, the children went their own ways. Ironically, the eldest became a politician – he is now the president of the country I… was born in; the second turned to philosophy – I have never read his work, but I know there's always a buzz around him; the third became an artist – she does everything, writing, drawing, sculpting, music, and many more; the fifth became a private investigator – he has yet to fail a case; and as for the seventh… she did a lot of things - she's now doing something called streaming."

"Streaming?"

"You do something and everyone else in the world can see what you're doing if they want to… I guess?"

Sybil was familiar with the internet and its usages to a degree.

"And what does she do?"

"She plays games."

"Weird world."

"I know," Lorn chuckled.

"What kind of games?"

"The difficult kind. The ones that are impressive to look at. 'Wow, how did she do that?', kind of vibes."

"I guess that makes sense."

"Yup."

"What about the fourth and the sixth?"

"I don't know," Lorn shrugged. "They never really appeared publicly, so no one knows who they are. Maybe there are even an eighth and a ninth."

Sybil paused, her expression difficult to read.

'Is it time to stop?' Lorn wondered.

"What about you?" she suddenly asked. "Where were you born and what kind of life did you lead?"

The question surprised Lorn slightly. He also realized that this was a crucial moment to completing the mission he received from the system.