"Job placement now?"
Hearing the doctor's words, Shale suddenly felt nervous. He hadn't expected it to be so direct
"Right here?"
"Of course. Is there a problem with the doctor's clinic? Besides, isn't the 72-hour deadline almost up?"
Miss Louisa, the blonde writer, looked confused, but Dr. Schneider understood what Shale was trying to express
"Of course it's here. Oh, Shale, let me emphasize one point again.
Remember, we are correspondence Ring-術士 (Ring-Mages). St. Byrons Comprehensive College has no special emotional connection to us; there are only responsibilities and obligations, do you understand? As for helping you, it is because I need a fifth Ring-Mage in my group, and the college provides rewards for introducing new students. It is not because I am a kind-hearted person."
The doctor looked at Shale very seriously, his blue eyes filled with a warning
"You have no common sense regarding this world, so I give you this most important warning: do not easily trust others."
"He is actually a good person, but he is always this stern."
The lady on the side shook her head and said.
Shale nodded cautiously, but he agreed with the writer's opinion; Dr. Schneider was a decent person, at least for now.
"Louisa, for the following process, you only need to observe and prevent any unforeseen accidents. Please do not speak."
"No problem. We have already gone through these steps twice. Wasn't it the same when Annette and Augustus were inducted?"
The writer said, signaling for Shale to pay attention.
"A gifted person awakening their Life Ring must first come into contact with the four elements. This is very difficult for an ordinary person who knows nothing.
This is the Sixth Epoch, not the dark and chaotic Fourth Epoch, nor the Fifth Epoch ruled by the Witch Emperors. In this era where the extraordinary is hidden, steam and machinery are the themes; there is not so much mystery here. Even if one knows of the existence of mystery, it is difficult to come into contact with it. Moreover, the danger of contacting mystery is something ordinary people cannot even imagine."
The doctor held up four fingers
"So, Shale, how many of the four elements have you come into contact with so far?"
"Only [Profanity], which relates to the Evil Gods, is missing."
Shale spoke the truth, and Dr. Schneider did not ask further
"Look at my Life Ring."
Three silver runes flickered simultaneously. Shale interpreted their meanings as [Wrath], [Silt of the Heart], and [Malice].
[You have come into contact with 'Profanity'.]
Immediately following this sentence, the whispering voice recited another passage
[The Sixth Epoch, General Calendar 1853, Summer, the Day of the Silver Moon's Dark Radiance, you have come into contact with all four elements. Outsider, the Gate of the Extraordinary is about to open, and the path of sublimation lies ahead.]
"Did the 'other you' give you a hint?"
The doctor let the Life Ring behind him dissipate into steam, then asked.
"Yes, it gave me a hint, telling me that I have come into contact with all the elements and the Gate of the Extraordinary is about to open."
The doctor nodded with satisfaction
"The 'other me' is the core of the Ring-Mage system. That is the reverse side of your soul; it is you, yet it is not you. He shares knowledge and memories with you. But he can feel and see more, so he can act as a bridge between the Ring-Mage and the world, preventing us from directly contacting knowledge and information that would pollute the soul. Now I will repeat this once more, and I hope you will keep it in mind."
"In other words, the 'other me' cannot know knowledge that I am unaware of?"
Shale's heart stirred as he asked this question.
The doctor nodded affirmatively. Shale blinked; he had long guessed that his "other me" was definitely not normal.
"That is actually you, but you don't know it. He is the same gender as you, which is why the voice in my head is a man's, while the one in Louisa's head is a woman's."
The lady on the side nodded in confirmation.
"He shares your memories, but he does not need sleep, so perhaps he knows more about the night than you do. But essentially, you and the 'other you' only differ in thinking style and perspective. That is why you sometimes hear inexplicable words; he can see more from the ordinary world."
The doctor said again, and Shale blinked once more.
In his heart, the woman's soft laughter seemed to nourish his soul, dispelling the last bit of influence brought by the poet-level relic.
"Who exactly are you?"
He asked in his heart.
[Outsider, at least for now, I am you.]
"Collecting elements" is only the first step; afterwards, four more steps are required: "Ringing the Bell," "Ignition," "Propulsion," and "Hymn." The complete five-step process is the most orthodox awakening procedure for Ring-Mages, used by both the True God Churches and the three major colleges.
"Ringing the Bell" refers to shaking the soul, allowing it to undergo its initial sublimation. This step sounds complicated, but it is actually just drinking a potion.
The three major arcane colleges and the five True God Churches have different formulas for the "Bell-Ringing Potion." The doctor said that the potion from the Sikeses Higher Medical College is said to be the best tasting—orange-flavored and very sweet—while the potion from the [Church of Nature and Evil Thoughts] of the True God [Lord of All Things] is the worst, tasting somewhat like chewing on tree bark.
The college sent the "Bell-Ringing Potion" directly via manuscript—a conical glass bottle with purple, bubbling liquid. It felt cold to the touch, but it was warm when drunk.
However, Shale felt he didn't taste anything at all.
"Look behind you."
The doctor reminded him.
Shale swallowed the last drop, wiped the corner of his mouth, set the bottle down, and turned around. A layer of white mist had already risen behind him, and he could vaguely hear the sound of a bell, though it was not clear.
He did indeed feel the so-called vibration of the soul, but that could also have been a hallucination in his stomach caused by drinking too quickly.
"Ignition" refers to igniting the four collected elements, causing the initial spark of the soul to flare up. This step only requires the assistance of a Ring-Mage of the third ring or higher and some technique. The doctor pressed his right index finger to the center of Shale's forehead. As some cold air currents slowly entered Shale's body, the bell sound in his ears became clearer.
He turned his head; the thick white mist behind him had a scorching temperature, and the steam became profound, as if containing countless possibilities within it.
"Propulsion" refers to allowing the soul to drive that ignited, faint spark, enabling the Ring-Mage to perceive 'Spirit' and possess the ability to manipulate the four elements. Specifically, this requires Shale to feel power—the idealistic power of the mind influencing matter.
So, Dr. Schneider brought over a book without a cover
"For a Ring-Mage, there are many ways to come into contact with the four elements. But the method of inscribing [Spirit Runes] into one's own Life Ring does not encourage contacting gods, mystery, or the uncanny. While that can work, it is quite dangerous. The orthodox way of cultivation is reading books, reading stories of the past; other methods can be considered relying on luck."
"Reading books?"
This reminded Shale once again that the extraordinary organization he had joined was a school.
"Yes, the churches, colleges, and a few Ring-Mage organizations possess some special books that record quite dangerous knowledge and stories from past eras. Those books are copied by hand and translated from dangerous ancient languages into contemporary ones, which weakens their power. Therefore, reading those original or only once-copied/translated forbidden books is the best way for a Ring-Mage to inscribe Spirit Runes. And for you, this is enough to let you feel your own power."
He handed the book to Shale
"This is a hand-copied version of the first volume of the 'Book of Fire Worship,' and it is a version that has been hand-copied at least six times from the original. It is the least dangerous book in my possession; there is no chance of obtaining a Spirit Rune by reading this book. Spend half an hour reading it completely, and you can ask me about any words you don't understand."
So Shale spent another half hour reading, equating the progress of his future extraordinary path with studying. He had to disguise his current identity, so he could only pick a few words to ask about every so often.
During this time, the doctor and the writer remained quiet enough; they knew this was an important moment for Shale.
"Finished reading? What do you feel?"
The doctor asked.
"A bit hot."
Shale put down the book and answered cautiously.
"Ignite it."
The doctor gave Shale a piece of paper. Shale held it and waited for a few seconds, and finding that the doctor had nothing else to say, he asked
"Um, did we skip a step... like an incantation or a gesture or something?"
"Don't understand it; feel it. Guide this power. Unless your core Spirit Rune is a concept like [Extinguished Fire], this is not a difficult task."
So Shale closed his eyes. He came from another world; although it lacked the extraordinary, it possessed more knowledge and imagination. He closed his eyes and relaxed, imagining the warm current in his body flowing with his perception, finally reaching his fingertips and sparking.
Opening his eyes, the paper between his fingers had turned yellow due to the high temperature.
A huge roar came from the steam behind him, the black shadow representing the hammer head about to strike Shale's soul.
"The last step is the Hymn. You must acknowledge your identity and announce to the world that you have transcended the mundane."
The doctor's tone became serious at this moment.
"How do I do that?"
Shale was puzzled. His heart was pounding; he understood that he was about to truly come into contact with the extraordinary and step into the mysterious realm belonging to the steam age.
"Say anything. I just recited my own name at the time, while Louisa recited a famous short poem. Mr. Rat Augustus prayed to the gods, and Miss Luvia Annette whispered, so we don't know."
To Shale at this moment, the doctor's words seemed to come from far away. He looked at the thick white steam behind him, watching the hammer head about to strike from behind the dense fog.
The woman's voice, the voice reciting the whispering poem, sounded again.
Thus, almost in sync with the woman's whispering voice in his heart, Shale silently recited that declaration
[The Sixth Epoch, General Calendar 1853, Summer, the Day of the Silver Moon's Dark Radiance, I have come to this world. I have pushed open the Gate of the Extraordinary and stepped onto the path of sublimation of the four elements. Shale Suren Hamilton, the path of fate forks beneath my feet. I will witness, I will experience, I will see all of this.]
The giant hammer, carrying immense wind pressure, swung from the depths of the steam and smashed down behind Shale amidst the gale.
Boom~
The soul was impacted; sparks flew, spiritual light flickered, and elements overflowed. In that wildly spraying white steam mist, a brass-colored wheel ring with a strange luster, like the sun, gradually became clear.
It rotated, spraying sparks in all directions. The brass ring body appeared completely in the steam mist with high heat, the Life Ring hovering behind him.
In the center of the high-speed rotating wheel ring, two brass-colored, shining core runes symbolized Shale's upcoming fate—
[Space-Time], [Silver Moon].
PS: After twenty-two chapters, the protagonist has finally come into full contact with the extraordinary, becoming an extraordinary and mysterious person under this world's system. I hope everyone likes this story; the story has only just begun.
(End of chapter)