272 272: An artificial world [pt1]
“You know, this sucks for us. Why out of all the places we could have landed up on, do we have to land on the one place from where we can go nowhere from? Why did it have to be an island.”
Rita’s voice echoed around the island, the vast emptiness of the ocean making it travel even further in the enclosed space.
No matter where you looked, you could only see water surrounding the island with nothing else in sight. There were no aquatic animals or other features that indicated a life of any kind.
It was now obvious that whatever world they were in was abandoned and void of life.
“Stop making such a big fuss. We are likely in a suspended space on floor 16th. People here like to make this kind of space as a hobby. This is not the real world.”
Quince explained, finally getting tired of Rita’s question. Unlike Rita, Quince had spent a better part of his childhood just learning about the abyss and its quirks. And Aurora knew from experience how tacky he was when it came to the facts about this place.
Ur was having fun flying around for a few minutes but he settled down on the small island pretty quickly as well. There was only so much to do in an enclosed space like this.
“An enclosed space? That’s the first time I’ve heard about it. So, how does it work? Is this because of magic? Or because of the abyss? Is this a result of an artifact?”
Rita was curious to know more but Quince seemed uninterested in answering her anymore. He had realized that the more he indulged Rita, the worse she got with her curiosity.
If he left her alone for some time then she would get bored of asking and turn her attention toward something else.
“Aurora, can you tell me what this is about? Since Quince is being a child by withholding information, then you are the only one I can turn toward.”
Aurora did debate teasing Rita by not breaking her silence but she decided to open her mouth in the end.
“It’s because of magic specialization and a result of the local mineral. This kind of effect is not possible to achieve outside this floor so don’t get any weird ideas about it.”
This was a sub-category of illusionary magic but it was particular and strict when compared to traditional magic. Hence, Aurora had not touched it in her last life.
Besides, it also fucked with your mind a little when you were creating the illusion so most people chose to keep their distance from it.
“Wow, it looks great. Do you think I can learn how to do this?”
Rita seemed excited and Aurora felt bad to burst her bubbles. But this magic could not be learned by anyone.
You needed to not only have the aptitude but also the right mindset for such magic. Emotions need to be eradicated and relationships needed to be snapped if you wanted total control over your desired space.
It was not something Rita was capable of since she was a sensitive person by nature. Even trying this would tire her out mentally.
“I don’t think this field is something that is particularly suited for you, Rita. But I am sure you will get to experience a lot more things like these in the abyss later on. I am sure those will be more to your liking than a limiting skill like this.”
Aurora didn’t outright deny Rita but her words had the same effect.
“So, you are saying that I won’t gain anything by learning this art? You did not have to beat around the bush to tell me that. You could have just come out and said that to me.”
Rita sounded let down but also understanding. It was a godsend for Aurora that Rita knew her limits and did not complain about injustice.
“She’s just saying that you are too stupid to learn this art. Don’t go and make words up yourself just because you want to feel better about yourself.”
However, that did not stop Quince from making fun of her. He and Rita had a weird back-and-forth kind of relationship. It was different from Aurora’s friendship with Quince.
Somehow, they had the energy of siblings who always fought and teased each other.
‘Even if the formation is the same, Clove’s absence makes all the difference. I never realized how tense Quince was all the time back there.’
Maybe it was because they had all been kids back then or maybe because their beginnings had been different, but the Quince in front of Aurora did not behave like he used to.
To Aurora, he had always seemed like the reliable older brother sort of figure but now he seemed to be acting more his age. It was nice to see Aurora and her eyes softened at the thought.
“Aurora, how do we get out of here? As nice as it is to be here, I think it’s about time we get out and start some real work.”
Rita was done with her bickering and also bored with her surroundings. There was nothing to do on this tiny island and not enough resources to live long either.
‘Besides, we did not restock on the last world so we really should get food and other necessities soon.’
It was entirely Aurora’s fault that they had not gotten anything. She had been in such a hurry to get to the next floor that she had not made a trip back to the town.
“Alright, let’s try and break the sky for now. It should cause a big enough disturbance for us to be able to get out…..”
Aurora was about to follow through with her words when the world shook. Water was rising in waves and it washed over the island.
Even for an artificial space, the force was enough to wash everyone away into the ocean. They were all separated.
Ur quickly swam through the water currents and took hold of Quince. His injuries would get worse if they were exposed to water too much. Rita also managed to reach Ur easily enough by swimming.
Aurora did not even need to swim. The water passed over her body harmlessly. It completely avoided her as if it was afraid to touch her.
Ur finally broke the surface and swam toward the safe space Aurora was at. However, unlike Aurora, Ur and the others were not safe even in that space.
Clearly, the water was not avoiding the area but the person here.
“What’s with this blatant discrimination? Why does the water not touch you?”
Rita asked as another huge wave raised. It was even bigger than the last one and it managed to engulf the whole island this time.
Once again, it missed Aurora but she was not able to maintain her foothold this time since the island had been swept clean from beneath their feet.
Aurora’s body lost balance as she fell. But the water ran away from her as if she was an untouchable person.
Aurora tried to gather her magic to break free but the flash of light caused Aurora to close her eyes and her body hit the ground.
It should have hurt because of the impact but Aurora surprisingly found her body falling on a soft surface. She felt around but only to feel a cushion beneath her body.
“W-We survived. Man, I thought I was a goner. That water was weird as it did not allow me to summon my magic or my familiars. I would have drowned had it not been for Ur.”
Rita coughed as she spoke these words. The water was clinging all around her body and her hair had turned a neon shade of red.
Ur and Quince were there as well but they had been rendered unconscious due to the pressure of the water. It was a wonder that Rita had managed to retain her consciousness.
“Man, another failure. This is the seventh time this month that I have failed to retain the world’s consciousness in my ball. At this rate, I won’t be able to graduate.”
Aurora turned her head to look at the teen who had sounded so depressed. His eyes were dropping and his skin was pale and yellowish as well. He looked like someone who did not get enough sun.
In simpler words, the teen looked like a sick human but Aurora knew that it was his natural complexion. Everyone on this floor had yellowish skin that signified that they were demons and not humans.
Rita, who did not know that this child was harmless, decided to take him hostage. Her knife rested on the kid’s neck as she threatened him.
“Who are you and what do you want from us? You better answer truthfully if you don’t want your head to go off flying.”
Rita was aggressive so Aurora did understand when the kid ended up fainting under the force of her anger. Rita could be really scary when she wanted to be.