Emotions

Marcel closed his eyes and could no longer bear to watch. Everything he created was destroyed in just a few seconds. His daughters were groaning in agony, and his hearing betrayed him, hearing screams.

Vallynor, who had been observing at first, felt pity for Marcel. But remembering the old woman's and the prince's words, he understood that Marcel was to blame himself. After that, he began to ignore everything that was happening and started to analyze the data he had obtained.

As he had suspected, emotions were the reason why he could view the memories of these two souls. This method had many drawbacks. First of all, Vallynor had to feel the same emotions as the target. However, he still needed to experiment because he could feel emotions other than the sorrow that Marcel was experiencing.

Secondly, he couldn't know which memory he would enter. He didn't confirm whether he could choose the memories himself or not. If the memories were created automatically, it was unclear by what rules this happened. Therefore, in the next soul, he would have to try to create connections with the necessary memory, but...

While he was thinking about what he needed to do when he woke up, he was awakened by screams, and Marcel opened his eyes.

"Witch! Witch!" shouted the running soldier.

"Soldier!" the general shouted, who had been dressed for a long time and was smoking, watching his soldiers enjoying themselves with three girls. And the prince, as usual, sat on a chair after good sex, took a glass of wine and drank, remembering his lost love.

The general had long since submitted to the prince and knew him well. This was before that simple girl was killed. The prince worked every day to improve the lives of his people. He did all this to prepare the ground so that when he became king, he could marry that peasant girl. But the general knew that all his attempts were in vain. At best, the girl could become a concubine. But this was enough if the prince remained the same, seemingly kind. "Oh, love," thought the general.

After the girl's death, the prince destroyed his image and fell into all sins. Only anger towards the killer gave him meaning in life. And if nothing changes, and the killer Marcel is executed, will the prince be able to forget the past and move on, or will he find a place among the dead in his room?

The general thought a lot about this and how he could help the prince. He even tried to get closer to understand why he loved Ameli so much. Unfortunately, the prince did not want to reveal his thoughts.

The running soldier reached the general and quickly told him with a hint of fear: "General, a wizard is coming from the east, and behind him is an army of the dead."

"What? And how did you..." - the general did not finish his words and took up his weapon, attacking the soldier. The latter quickly dodged, but the sword still wounded his hand. Although the cut was not deep, no blood flowed from the wound.

"As I thought, undead... They surround the prince and protect him."

While the general was giving orders to his soldiers, he rushed towards the dead man who looked back at him with a mad grin.

The general waved his sword, trying to dismember the dead man's body. He knew that wizards could see through the eyes of their servants. If they left this body, they would always be in danger. The wizard and his army of the dead would pursue them.

The prince, who had recently been drinking wine, contemplating his future, woke up surrounded by soldiers who quickly briefed him on the situation. Learning about the approaching wizard, he quickly ordered the strongest soldier to take the best horse and go to the church. If the church learns about the attack, they will quickly mobilize all their power to kill the wizard.

Marcel watched attentively and heard the cries of the general and the prince. Listening carefully, he realized that the wizard was attacking the prince and his soldiers. He thought that killing the wizard would be commendable.

"What to do with the prisoner?" asked one of the soldiers.

"You idiots. Kill him. We should worry about our lives and... souls," the prince vehemently replied.

"Soul? Really..." Hearing the prince's words, Vallynor began to make assumptions.

The soldier who took up the sword headed towards Marcel, feeling guilty. Marcel, seeing death approaching, smiled, but as soon as he opened his mouth, the sword went straight into him, not allowing him to say a word. Marcel's corpse fell to the ground like a log. The soldier pulled out the sword and quickly returned to the prince.

Vallynor thought that the memories would soon end. He was surprised when he could see further, as logically they should have ended after Marcel's death. He was puzzled by the fact that he was now floating. While he was pondering, two transparent hands appeared before his eyes. Vallynor confirmed that these hands did not belong to him and that he could not move, only watch.

The hands approached his face, and only then did Vallynor realize that he was looking at the memories of a soul after it had left the body. So, after death, the soul will still look like the dead body. But over time, it will shrink and become a ball or something similar.

While he was contemplating all the knowledge he had gained, the soldiers and prince tried to escape but were quickly stopped by the army of the dead that surrounded them. The army of the dead threw the head of a soldier who was supposed to report to the church right in front of the prince's feet.

"Damn, we're trapped," shouted the general, realizing that he should have fled with the prince as soon as he learned about the dead man who had come. He had been sent specifically from the east to deceive the enemies, and everyone else had fled to the west, where they thought the city and church were located.

But if the army had come from the west, then the city had already been burned. And what he saw in the army of the dead confirmed his suspicion - a dead man in the clothes of a servant of God. The city had fallen.

An elderly bandaged man emerged from the army of the dead. He looked strangely at the sky - where Marseille's soul was, or rather, inside Vallynor.

The old man pointed his hand at Marseille, and one hand of the soul came out of his hand, which, compared to Vallynor's soul hand, seemed stronger and more dangerous.

"Don't you dare show up again!" said the old man, and Vallynor woke up in the peace of the old woman.

He looked skeptically at the soul. Did the old man speak to him in memories? This had already been said to him for the second time, and he could not believe that it was not Marseille. But how could these be his memories?

While he thought, trying to find explanations, Marseille's soul in his hand began to disintegrate as if someone deliberately destroyed it, and Marseille screamed in pain. In the end, the soul was destroyed.

"What was that?" Vallynor couldn't help but ask.

"The defense mechanism was activated," answered the old woman who had been watching him all this time.

"The defense mechanism? What is that?"

"The previous owner of the lamp gave it away with its creators. Namely, with Experavit - that's what he's called. He created a defense mechanism that was supposed to protect all memories associated with him, contained in the lamp. Experavit really loved not revealing his secrets, so he separated parts of his consciousness and put them in the lamp. This second Experavit lives in the memories of souls and protects all memories associated with him from intruders like you."

"This... I don't even know what to say," Vallynor replied.

"Keep practicing. Learn to find the memories you need and then cleanse your soul, keeping those memories intact. If you meet Experavita again, tell him you're the owner of the Book of the Dead, written by God himself. When you master this, I'll tell you what you need to do next. And now I'll sleep," the old woman said, closing her eyes and falling silent.

Vallynor watched as the old woman fell asleep. He picked up a new soul, but then threw it back. He had caught souls dozens of times, but each time he let them go.

After a while, Vallynor stopped, holding a soul in his hand, or rather, the soul of an old man that made him think he was a scholar. He also felt that this soul was smarter because of the vast amount of memories it contained.

"Well, my dear scholar, shall we begin?" he asked.

Holding the soul in his hand, Vallynor recalled curious moments for which he still could not find an answer. How did it happen that the doors he had closed were open when he returned after a minute? Moreover, the shoes were placed in such a way that the door would not close. Or once, when he was sitting on his bed playing on his phone, he saw a bright light at his feet out of the corner of his eye, which quickly disappeared.

Or when it seemed like someone was shouting his name in a familiar voice of those who had already died. Vallynor also recalled one of the scariest moments when a woman dressed in a white dress appeared at the entrance to his room, sitting and looking at him. Only the faint light of the lamps could suggest that it was something human-like. But the feeling was as if a monster was looking at you.

All these mystical memories made Vallynor wonder what was happening. Curiosity and various guesses took hold of him until he felt something pulling him. This time he began to fight and resist this force.

"Small advice. If you're not looking, you won't be seen," said the old woman, after which Vallynor could no longer resist the force pulling him towards the dark room.

Darkness enveloped his sight. After a few seconds, the darkness subsided, revealing a dark room filled with books and scattered papers throughout the space.

"Look carefully," said Vallynor, seeing the light of a candle that allowed him to discern an old hand holding something like a pen and writing on paper. With the other hand, the old man held a finger that was already showing signs of decay. After each written word, he looked at the finger, sometimes lingering on it longer than necessary, erasing lines or tearing the sheet and taking a new one.

Vallynor watched this strange sight and the incomprehensible words written by the old man, as well as on his finger. At first, he thought the old man was a madman in love with the fingers of the dead. But with each glance at the finger, he began to realize that it was hiding something.

While Vallynor tried to understand the secret hidden in this finger, the old hand holding the finger carefully placed it on the table and then, taking the last sheet, quickly left the room. When he opened the door, the old man and Vallynor saw a bandaged person.

Remembering the old woman's words, Vallynor closed his eyes and began to listen more attentively. "Strange, I just felt the presence of this persistent soul," said the bandaged old man, starting to look around. Seeing that there was no one else in the room, he frowned and said, "Open your eyes. I know you're here in this soul," realizing that closing his eyes was a mistake and that the old man he met behind the door was scared.

Opening his eyes, Vallynor immediately felt that something was wrong. Without hesitation, he pierced the old man with his hand and pulled Vallynor out of him. The old man was frightened, thinking he would see his death, but time passed slowly, and he saw no blood or pain.

"I warned you twice, but you didn't listen. Give me a reason why I shouldn't destroy you?" asked Experavit, looking at Vallynor, who was sitting in his hand.

"I am the new owner of the Necronomicon," said Vallynor, ready to explain further when Experavit interrupted her.

"And the last. It won't save you," squeezing his hand, the old man wanted to destroy Vallynor's soul, but in a matter of seconds, something black enveloped Vallynor's soul. Experavit himself felt a powerful force that pushed him straight into the wall.

The old man sitting on the side could not move a step, not knowing what to do. His heart was screaming for him to run, but something held him back and even made it difficult to breathe.

"What was that?" Rising, Experavit began to carefully examine how a familiar book appeared in front of Vallynor, but at the same time, it was not the same as the one he knew. Maybe it looked like it, but this grimoire carried a strong feeling of fear that was not present in the book he knew.

"This... is the true Book of the Dead, written by Death itself?"

"Hmm. You must be special if the real Necronomicon protects you... Let's change the setting. We've already changed this old man's memories enough," said the man, turning to Vallynor.

"What?" Unable to hold back, the old man yelled, hearing the words of this strange man. "What memories?"

Vallynor was already about to agree to the proposal, as the setting had indeed changed, and he already had a ghostly body that Marcel's memories had seen. Looking around, he saw nothing but a table and two chairs. On the table lay a book that strongly resembled his own Necronomicon.

"Sit down, we're going to have a long talk," said Expervait, appearing behind Vallynor.

Vallynor didn't reply and sat on one of the chairs. Expervait sat on the second. The old bandaged man scrutinized Vallynor carefully as if studying him. Vallynor even noticed surprise and shock on his face, but didn't understand what caused such a reaction. After some time, Expervait broke the long silence and asked:

"What's your name?"

"Vallynor," he answered shortly and directly.

"I've never heard that name before, but I want to know your real name," said Expervait.

"I left everything related to my past world behind, and that includes my name," Vallynor confidently replied.

"So, you came from another world after our defeat. Interesting, interesting. I have to praise you for leaving your past and name behind. It saves you from curses and magic that could affect you. However, it's foolish because your memories are a part of you. You're trying to cut parts of yourself... Tell me, how did you get here, and how long have you been living in this cursed place?"

"I don't know how I got into this world, but I ended up here after I died. I've been living here for about 4-5 years, if you take into account that a year consists of 365 days and a day consists of 24 hours."

"Hmm, what have you been doing all these years?"

"Am I really supposed to answer your questions?" Vallynor skeptically looked at Expervait.

"If you honestly answer my questions, I'll help you with the problems that trouble you. Maybe even more than that," replied Expervait.

Vallynor thought for a long time, not knowing whether to trust Expervait or not. Finally, he decided. Most, if not all, knows the old woman and Baba Yaga. And Expervait himself won't tell anyone anything because he's locked in a lamp. Or, more precisely, a part of him.

"For a year or two, I just survived and studied magic, and for the other two or three years, I learned and trained with Baba Yaga," Vallynor replied.

"Tell me about the moment when you injured your soul," Expervait requested.

"It was when I first met the grimoire. I was fighting an army of rats that were eventually destroyed by something resembling a dragon. And after that, I started training in creating undead. At that time, due to circumstances, I couldn't escape after the battle. So, after some time, scavengers in the form of wolves and some birds came to the remains of the rats. I fought as hard as I could, but in the end, a huge gorilla came. The grimoire warned me that I couldn't fight it..."

"Gar?"

"Yes, that's his name - Gar. At that time, I couldn't do anything and had to accept my fate or accept the contract called the 'Call of Ancestors,' if I'm not mistaken. It was then that I summoned the Duke of Graves..." "Vallynor fell silent and looked at the reaction of Expervait. He wanted to know how he would react and what he thought. But Expervait sat still as a stone and listened."

"Go on," Expervait finally said, breaking out of his reverie.

"Out of desperation, I accepted the offer to summon the Duke of Graves and, in exchange, gave him parts of my soul and humanity."

"Do you understand what you have done?" After thinking for a while, Expervait calmly asked. But Vallynor could see that he was really holding himself back.

"Uh, I had no choice."

"You're right. You had no choice because you were weak. And weakness is a sin. Remember, as long as you're weak, others will surround you and use you as they please. You won't even be able to speak until they allow you to. So remember well - it's better to die than to live as a weak creature who will live at the mercy of others... Do you know what humanity means?"

Vallynor was puzzled by Expervit's words about weakness and what he thinks about it. He didn't immediately understand what Expervit was asking. But instinctively he wanted to nod mentally to hear the answer from Expervit himself. So he replied:

"No. Can you tell me what humanity means?"

"Hmm... Humanity, humanity. It's something that can't be explained in a few words. But I'll try. It's not just what you might think makes you more human. Yes, that's one of the effects... It's responsible for talent, for will. Not the strength of will that you can train, but will itself. No matter how much you've trained, if you lose a part of your humanity, you automatically lose a part of your will in the form of percentage. It also holds your personality so that it doesn't change from a simple gust of wind. And the last thing, which is not subject to and few would have heard. Even I'm not sure. They say that all humanity once belonged to some entity that created the demons themselves. That's why demons crave the souls of humans. Not just because they're filled with emotions, as many think, but also because of parts of the demons. In their blood flows the desire to be perfect and powerful."

Vallynor didn't even know what to say. He wondered if he regretted summoning the Duke of Graves. But he had long since realized that he had no choice. He had long realized that if he were stronger, he could have made a different choice... But then he wouldn't be Anino. As they say, something goes away, and something new takes its place.

"Do you realize the weight of your decision? Watching you and studying your maimed soul, I can tell you that you haven't lost so much of your humanity. But remember - to hold onto your humanity, like the apple of your eye. Like the most sacred thing you have. And never, ever make a deal where you have to give up your soul. Even parts of it, because humanity is parts of the soul. And the one who offered the deal, if he's cunning, can take away your humanity."

"Is there any way to restore or even increase humanity?"

"Yes and no. It is possible, but with hellish conditions. And it is so negligible that if you don't delve into the topic of the soul, you may not even know about such a thing as humanity. And not all types of souls can do this - only celestial and demonic souls. More precisely, angels, gods and demons, fallen gods and demonic gods... You cannot immediately understand that this is an irreparable resource."

"Mr. Expervit..."

"Call me Ex. That's what my professional brothers call me. And now continue."

"Ex, as you already understood, I have a wounded soul. And I came to the Queen of the Forest to help me with this problem. She will give her soul to create a grimoire with my soul and hers using soul merging technique. Can you help?" - Valynor didn't know why, but after talking with Expervit for some time, he felt the need to talk about what was on his mind and ask for help.

"This old lizard is willing to give her soul to you? Why you and not me? Damn it..." - regaining composure, Expervit continued. - "Is she complete, though? Because I don't see any other reason to abandon her unborn children."

"CHILDREN?" - Valynor exclaimed, hearing the last sentence. He immediately understood why the old woman was asking for help. But he didn't know why she wasn't telling him directly. He would have to ask when he returned.