Chương 137: Bearer Betrayer

Ryland found himself agreeing with the High Academ's judgment more than he thought he would. For instance, when he more or less banished all the other students away from their current location, he didn't raise any protests. If possession was a possibility, then it was indeed too dangerous for any of them to remain here. Even if all signs indicated only Rhellian students were in danger of being possessed.

The High Academ didn't appear keen to have that be known, however, so Ryland remained silent for the time being about it.

"Linsby and the priest can take the others back to the entrance," Sint said.

"I can keep going. My mentor would kill me if I backed out now."

"Your mentor will do no such thing while I am present," Zevo said with a frown.

"Please escort the children back to the ruins' entrance. I didn't think things would get this serious." Sint still looked like she wanted to protest, but Ryland was starting to see things even more from the High Academ's perspective.

"He's right, Sint," Ryland said.

"I think the High Academ and I are going to start going through the entirety of the Crypts and warn as many people as we can." He left it unsaid that she'd be a hindrance in that regard. That would be a little too callously cruel, and she was smart enough to surmise that on her own. Which she clearly did, going by how her expression fell. And going by how the High Academ wasn't disagreeing, despite Ryland being a graduate student himself, technically. Zevo had already sensed Ryland's true power.

"Alright, then." Sint sighed.

"I'll go with the others."" Thank you," Linsby said.

"Now I won't have to babysit alone." Sint groaned but didn't argue further. It wasn't long before they had all left back the way they had arrived. Hopefully, they wouldn't get lost and knew the way back. Zevo turned to face Ryland a moment later.

"I don't quite know who you are, apart from some rumours about how you've excelled in your short tenure at Arcoryx Academy. However, I can see that you're rather skilled when it comes to magic. That doesn't mean I will slow down for you, though. The safety and security of the students come first."

"Of course," Ryland said.

"Please go ahead and do what you need to. I'll be where I need to as well."

"Will you now? And you think you know where to go and what to do to stop what's going on?"

"I believe so." The casual way Ryland had admitted that made the High Academ's eyes go wide. He mollified his expression, but he clearly wasn't pleased by the behaviour of a sub -Academ.

"Alright, then. It seems you have things well in hand. I will go ahead and take care of matters as I see fit. Please follow as best as you can." Ryland nodded. Maybe they were both trading arrogant barbs at this point, which meant they were wasting time. Best for them both to stop. After a short nod, High Academ Zevo disappeared. He shot through the Crypts' tunnels as fast as he had arrived, his passage leaving a small storm in his wake.

Through winding tunnels and past several intersections, he came to stop in front of a wide, dimly-lit staircase. Where he saw Ryland already ascending step by step.

"Oh, hello there," Ryland said.

"I believe we're on the right track, though we're not quite there yet." High Academ Zevo stared at Ryland like he was staring at a ghost. Admittedly, the man's forbearance was understandable. There were so many things going on that wouldn't allow Zevo to trust his companion easily. Ryland was a foreigner, one who came from a not-yet-allied Realm. He had also caused the tremendous mana disruption that had shaken the entire Crypts. There were rumours floating about him, he seemed to know where he was going, and…

And there was a lot. Ryland didn't want to spend all day figuring things out with Zevo. His time would be much better spent following the ants that had led him this far.

"Who exactly are you?" High Academ Zevo asked. Ryland took his customary deep breath before giving his customary answer, but then quickly modified what he was about to say upon a realization.

"Didn't you say we don't have much time?" The High Academ grunted then quickly fell behind Ryland.

"I'll try to answer you succinctly," Ryland said.

"If you confirm a few things." Zevo stared around as they reached the next floor.

"I make no promises." The next level of the Crypts was a little fancier. Here, the walls were cleaner and more cared for. Instead of being stuffed into pockets in the walls, the dead were set upright with a bit of space in between them to give them some minor sense of individuality. There was at least enough room for their loved ones to come in and add a dash of personality. Some of it actually made Ryland's heart pause along with the rest of his body.

One broad clay-covered figure had little swishes of paint scribbling out "Dearest Father" in youthful Rhellian alphabets. Another had a very lifelike painting of a small child attached to the chest of a figure that didn't even reach Ryland's waist. Yet another was an entire group all together, a taller man and a woman wrapping their arms around three smaller children. The Crypts wasn't just a burial ground. It was almost something of a museum and a library combined. A storage of stories of those who had moved on.

"We don't have time to take in the Halls of Mourning," Zevo said. He had been here often, going by his mannerisms.

"There is no time for us to waste here. Come." Ryland nodded and followed. If anything truly troubling occurred, he was certain he'd sense it. Plus, his students weren't in direct danger just yet. But Zevo was right. Now was not the time to take in the Crypts. He just couldn't stop his mind from wondering if he'd spot a body he would recognize from his time so far back on Rhel.

"Alright, then," Ryland said as they got moving. They weren't going together. Zevo still tended to dash off, only to find Ryland already awaiting him at the next juncture, much to the High Academ's growing annoyance.

"On to our deal. My first question is what do you know about the mechanism of possession affecting only Rhellians?" This content has been unlawfully taken from Royal Road; report any instances of this story if found elsewhere. Zevo looked like he was wondering how much would be appropriate for him to reveal, even in a situation such as this.

"Fear not," Ryland reassured him.

"The intricacies of the Glyph of Unity aren't completely secret. Not to me, at least. And there are quite a few among all the Realms who suspect its true extent. Otherwise, you do understand that Rhel would never have been allowed to join the Accords." Zevo grunted.

"I suppose you of all people would know."

"Indeed. However, things have changed greatly since I was last here. Things have evolved, improved, taken in a direction that has made it far more inscrutable than before. So I ask again, more specifically, is this possession something to do with the Soul Glyph of Unity?" Calling it a Soul Glyph instead of just a regular Glyph made Zevo start. The High Academ just shot off towards his next juncture, a location where the stairs were buried under some rubble.

Where he frowned at seeing Ryland already present, investigating the fallen debris blocking their way forward.

"Fine, yes," Zevo admitted.

"The Glyph of Unity from Kindly Mavar, May He Reign Eternal, is what's partially responsible for causing this possession."

"Yes," Ryland said.

"I suspected as much. I'm more curious as to how?"

"Is it that hard to surmise? The partial manasouls that escape from the conduits in the chamber's walls need a seat to work in other bodies, and in this case, the Glyph of Unity moulds the subject's manasouls to create that seat for the foreign manasouls." The more Ryland heard about the Rhellians, the more that incident with the students seemed like a terrible overreaction. Almost as if they were compensating for the fact that they couldn't do anything about the actual manipulation of their manasouls going on.

After all, this was something they had to deal with from the moment they were born. They had no say in the matter. At all. With such tyrannical oppression keeping them suppressed, it made sense they'd lash out in the only ways they could. Not that they'd ever admit the use of a Glyph of Unity to control their manasouls was tyranny of any form.

"That does explain it," Ryland said.

"Although, I hadn't thought that Mavar would go to such manipulative lengths."

"Watch your tongue, foreigner," Zevo said quietly.

"Kindly Mavar always does what is right. His reasoning transcends beyond our mere mortal understanding. There is no, has never been, and will never be a reason to doubt his actions."" Mortal understanding indeed." That angered Zevo enough that he disappeared once again. After Ryland had finished removing the debris blocking their path forward with [Alchemic Reconstruction], of course. Sighing, Ryland reappeared ahead of him again, once more following the trail of his ants.

High Academ Zevo bit down on a curse as soon as he spotted Ryland once more ahead of him. They were well and truly in the upper echelons of the Crypts now. There were far fewer bodies, with much greater and more opulent space in between them. Each body was not only made from specialized clay that gave it a certain kind of lustre, whether it was metallic or gemlike, they were also dressed in actual expensive clothes spun from linen and silk.

Artfully placed jewels glinted and glowed on their fingers, skulls, and ankles. Many had weapons and armour that were magically upkept with Inscribed Glyphs of Preservation. Each body was also stored in its own room. Sometimes even in its own entire apartment. These were the honoured dead. The ones who had left their mark on Rhel's history in acclaimed ways. Of course they'd get the best treatment possible even after they had passed on. They had been moving so fast, they hadn't come across any other students.

But this time, they found a couple of dragonkin from Shorn University. Both were scared so badly, their eyes had become the thinnest possible slits. Ryland and Zevo both reassured the children, promising things would be fine, and everything would be taken care of. Since they weren't Rhellian, they shouldn't be in any real danger.

"But we saw them," one of the dragonkin said. His voice was halting, raspy.

"The Rhellians. They were all acting very strangely, and they were all acting together, taking a bunch of other students with them."

"Other students?" Ryland asked, alarm growing stronger at the revelation. The second dragonkin nodded.

"I think they were a group from Arcoryx Academy. They had those deep blue and white robes. We only saw them at a distance, but I think they were first-years too." Ryland pressed his lips together.

"High Academ, can you take care of these poor students, please?" There was a shift in his tone that had all three of them looking at Ryland with rapt attention, though of course, their actual emotions were wildly different.

"And what might you be doing while I'm gone?" Zevo asked, suspicion heavy in his voice.

"An exorcism." Zevo's eyes widened. He appeared to forget all about the other students. Maybe because they weren't ones from his institute, though that was perhaps Ryland thinking a little too harshly of him.

"The last one you performed on a single student caused a massive disruption that might actually have led to the rest of the students being possessed."

"They're possessed?" one of the dragonkin asked shrilly. Ryland sighed.

"Might I remind you that I performed the exorcism because there was a possession?" High Academ Zevo wasn't convinced, but Ryland was done humouring the man. There was a group of students from Arcoryx in potential danger. What had happened to no longer having any time to waste?

"You can't—" Ryland interrupted by turning to the dragonkin students from Jure's Shorn University.

"Where did you see the students from Arcoryx?" The intensity of his voice had both Jure students straightening. In short order, they quickly explained where they had distantly encountered the possessed students and the ones they had been holding captive. All the while, Zevo constantly complained that such a thing would have unforeseen consequences. Ryland turned to the High Academ with a resolute look.

"Rest assured, High Academ, that there can be no consequence that I cannot handle."

"Your arrogance knows no bounds!" Zevo said.

"You hardly know what you're dealing with."

"On the contrary, perhaps you'll see just how much I do know." Ryland nodded, then let his manasoul flare up. He changed up some of his spell's Subglyphs." [Translocate]." Great Pious. Worthy Pious. Esteemed Pious. Those were just a few of the many great titles that Pious had gathered over the years. Names that held meaning. That held the history of his time on Rhel, on the accomplishments he had achieved here as one of the newest members of the Order. Too bad the bastards seemed to have forgotten that.

Because how dare they start tampering with his project?

What in all the Realms had emboldened these runaway monkeys into thinking they could deal with the Crypts as they saw fit instead of begging and pleading for him to give them a sliver of control? How had they ever assumed that he'd allow them to run amok with their terrible little plans? When all this was done, Pious would take a stand right in front of that up-jumped Demiurge of Rhel, that mongrel all these pathetic morons called Kindly and Eternal.

As if he was anything more than a fool with far more magic than he knew what to do with, playing at power as if he really belonged at the table of true ascension. Just the thought of needing to deal with Mavar after this put a sour taste in Pious's mouth. But he didn't stop raging and cursing under his breath. It made his journey through the Crypts a little less boring than it normally would have been. Although, there were a few other things that were tugging at his attention.

What in the world were they planning to do here? What was the ultimate goal in their minds? Pious had no way of telling properly. Which was fine. He'd find out for himself. Even if he had to wring the answer out of every body, dead or alive, he got his hands on. It didn't take him long to reach the very peak of the Crypts. The level where they held the greatest heroes of Rhel. Upstarts honouring more of their kind. Pious did his best not to spit at the finery and ostentatiousness as he swirled towards the entrance.

His storm-form allowed him a lot of freedom, especially in the darkness of the Crypts. He frowned as he neared his destination. Souls. Lots of them up ahead. Not just the partial escapees of the Crypts' imprisoning system, but also real and alive ones. Just… strangely modified. Shifted, somehow. What in the world were they messing with? What could possibly be their intention?

For all that Pious might have a terribly poor opinion of these Rhellians, it was in part because of their togetherness that he believed them to be inferior. He was almost where he needed to be when he was forced to stop. An annoyance had made herself known.

"Now, now," the Second High Adjutant said, a field of repulsive magic emanating from the Glyph she had cast.

"You've come far enough, Great Pious." Pious landed back to the ground, his body reforming from the dark cloud. His magic was already spiking alongside his growing anger.

"You dare use my title after placing yourself in opposition in that manner?"

"Well, I can certainly afford to do so now." Pious turned apoplectic and let his magic expand. It was time to deal with the hag and get to his precious Dreadlich before they did something irreversibly stupid.