Hinata remained motionless for a few seconds in front of the flames before finally speaking.
— I am not a true transcendent.
My mana is probably the only thing that allows me to become one at times.
Without it… I remain simply a mortal.
She slowly brought her hands together.
Almost immediately, an emerald light began to spread around her body.
A bright green mana slowly escaped from her skin, slightly illuminating the surroundings in the dark night of the forest.
Hinata then closed her eyes.
She was waiting.
Hunger.
Fatigue.
Pain.
Any anomaly.
But…
Nothing.
The silence simply continued to surround the camp.
Zerath and Kert watched attentively, waiting for the slightest reaction.
Finally, Hinata slowly opened her eyes again.
Zerath crossed his arms.
— Do you feel anything?
Even the slightest change?
Hinata calmly shook her head.
— Nothing at all.
Kert immediately raised his hands with a victorious expression.
— See?!
I told you this forest was misandrist!
Zerath let out a tired sigh before completely ignoring his remark.
His gaze returned to Hinata.
— So… it's only when you use that mana that you become comparable to a transcendent?
Hinata nodded gently.
— Exactly.
This mana comes from a transcendent.
She briefly observed the green energy still surrounding her fingers.
— When I use it, it can exhaust me greatly if I overuse it…
But it at least allows me to rival transcendants.
She paused slightly.
— At least… at the level of the soul.
A small amount of mana then materialized above her palm.
The energy seemed almost alive.
Hinata stared at the emerald light for a few seconds before continuing in a more serious voice:
— But this power is not without danger…
This mana can sometimes take control of my own body when it completely envelops me.
Zerath and Kert's eyes widened immediately.
— Huh?!
Zerath frowned.
— Hm… that's probably where the whole mystery lies.
Explain more.
Hinata took a soft breath before continuing:
— When this mana completely covers my body… it acts as if it is constantly trying to protect me.
The flames of the fire reflected in her eyes as she spoke.
— It senses things I don't even understand.
Things I cannot see.
Her voice became slightly lower.
— It can dodge attacks infinitely faster than me… as if it perceives danger before it even truly exists for me.
Kert remained silent this time.
Even Zerath seemed to seriously reflect on her words.
Hinata slowly lowered her eyes to her hand surrounded by mana.
— If I'm being honest…
This mana is probably far more powerful than I am.
She then raised her eyes toward them.
— Not just in raw power…
But existentially.
Zerath crossed his arms and nodded.
— That makes sense.
If without it you're just a mortal, but with it you can become transcendent… then that power clearly surpasses you.
Hinata nodded.
— It also corrects my choices… sometimes brutally.
Kert frowned.
— Corrects?
— Yes.
If an attack comes and I decide to go left… this mana can literally force my body to go right.
She slightly clenched her hand.
— And those oppositions sometimes hurt me.
Because my own body violently undergoes this conflict of movements.
The fire crackled slowly as she continued:
— But there is still much more to say…
Generally, when I completely shut off my consciousness and let it act alone…
She slowly raised her eyes toward them.
— I become far stronger and more precise than when I am conscious.
A slight silence settled.
Then Zerath suddenly seemed to understand something.
— Wait…
He narrowed his eyes.
— That's why you had your eyes closed during the tournament…
Hinata smiled slightly before nodding.
— Yes.
She briefly looked at the fire.
— That day… you and Kert were far too strong for me.
Then her smile widened slightly.
— So I decided to let this mana act without interrupting it… in order to match you.
Zerath remained silent for a few moments, reflecting on Hinata's words.
Was it because her mana possessed a will of its own that it resisted the forest's restrictions…?
Or was there something even deeper?
The fire's flames crackled softly as his thoughts followed one another.
Finally, he slightly raised his eyes.
— Naturally… without the powers linked to the Nemesis system, we are also just ordinary humans.
Hinata immediately frowned.
— What?
Kert turned his head toward her in surprise.
— What do you mean "what"?
You didn't know?
Zerath calmly resumed:
— The transcendent nature linked to the system mainly comes from a high level of understanding.
The more we understand complex aspects of the world… the more the system gives us "gifts."
He briefly looked at his own hand.
— And over time, transcendence ends up being acquired.
We can manipulate the soul, the mind… and who knows how far Mo-Zus himself has gone.
Hinata remained silent for a few seconds.
Visibly troubled.
— I… I don't understand…
Is that what transcendence is according to the system?
Zerath frowned in turn.
— Do you have another view of transcendence?
He crossed his arms before continuing:
— Transcendence is nothing more than a level of system cultivation through understanding our body, our soul, or our mind.
If this "cultivation" reaches the mind… then the system exploits the mind's abilities.
Hinata tilted her head slightly.
— What exactly do you mean by "cultivation"?
— Cultivation… is knowledge.
Or rather… a certain permission.
— And how is that permission obtained?
Hinata's gaze became more serious.
— I'm asking because… from what I was told, true transcendence consists of pushing our level of understanding into our subconscious.
Silence immediately settled around the fire.
Even Kert seemed to be listening attentively now.
Hinata continued slowly:
— The spirit… the soul… these are also forms of the subconscious.
And when a consciousness manages to fully conquer them… then it reaches transcendence.
The flames reflected in her green eyes.
— At that stage, existence no longer fully depends on the physical body.
Zerath and Kert gradually began to lose their relaxed expressions.
Hinata continued:
— Losing one's transcendence would therefore mean losing this state of connection between consciousness, soul, and mind…
And thus…
She slightly lowered her eyes.
— Returning to zero.
A heavy silence fell.
Zerath and Kert exchanged a glance before looking back at her almost simultaneously.
— Where did you learn all that…?
Zerath asked in a deeper voice.
Hinata answered calmly:
— With transcendants.
Then she resumed after a short pause:
— I have the impression that the Nemesis system uses a similar principle… except that instead of your consciousness naturally reaching these states…
She looked Zerath straight in the eyes.
— It is the system itself that accesses your soul and your mind.
Kert's eyes widened slightly.
Even Zerath seemed unsettled.
— That's dangerous.
Hinata's voice had become much lower.
— Imagine… if one day the system experiences an error, a bug… or worse.
She slightly clenched her hand.
— You could be the first to suffer the consequences.
The silence that followed was heavy.
Very heavy.
Because neither of them had ever considered things from that angle.
Finally, Zerath spoke:
— Wait…
You mean that you… don't even use the system?
Hinata gently shook her head.
— No.
I have never used the powers of the Nemesis system.
Kert froze.
Hinata slowly looked at the flames of the fire before continuing:
— And now… I think that system transcendence is a false transcendence.
Zerath frowned.
Hinata continued:
— True transcendence is the one from before.
Harder to reach… much slower… but real.
She then raised her eyes toward them.
— And that is the transcendence I am trying to reach.
A slight bitter smile appeared on her face.
— But it is incredibly difficult to obtain…
Kert remained silent for several seconds.
For the first time since their arrival in this forest, even he could no longer really find a joke to make.
This revelation deeply disturbed him.
Zerath, too, seemed troubled.
Hinata's words opened a vision of transcendence completely different from everything they had learned until now.
Finally, Zerath slowly spoke:
— To be honest…
He stared at the flames of the fire for a moment.
— I think I have already read an old book that spoke of a similar concept of transcendence.
Hinata slightly raised her eyes toward him.
— It went in the same direction as you.
Zerath paused before giving a bitter smile.
— But at the time… I was not capable of understanding that kind of thing.
For me, system transcendence was necessarily the true transcendence.
Hinata gently shook her head.
— The Nemesis system has not always existed.
Her voice was calm.
— If, in the past, there were so few transcendants… it was not because people did not desire to reach that state.
She slowly looked at her own hand surrounded by emerald mana.
— It is because the path was extremely difficult.
The fire crackled softly around them.
— Today… I simply think that the system allows many more people to artificially reach that state.
Suddenly—
Zerath's eyes opened wide.
Then he struck his palm violently with his fist.
— I understand…!
Kert and Hinata immediately turned their heads toward him, surprised.
Zerath slightly stood up, his gaze intense.
— The forest does not restrict true transcendants…
His voice became more serious.
— It restricts artificial natures.
Silence fell again around the camp.
Zerath quickly continued:
— Magic… transcendence obtained through the system… all of that is neutralized here.
He pointed at the fire.
— That explains why Kert ended up in that state right after lighting the flames.
Even the small amount of system he used was immediately rejected by the forest.
His eyes slowly turned toward the dark depths of the trees.
— This forest renders the system obsolete… in order to leave only the true nature of things.
Then he looked at Hinata.
— A true transcendent… as you say… reaches that state naturally.
It is not a usurpation.
Kert's eyes widened sharply.
— Wait…
You mean our transcendence is a… usurpation?
Zerath slowly nodded.
— I think that if a true transcendent were standing before us right now…
He slightly clenched his fists.
— He would probably consider us imitators of transcendence.
The fire cast a disturbing shadow on his face.
— Of course… we can fight like them.
And for a normal person, there would probably be no difference.
His voice became lower.
— But a true transcendent… he… would immediately see the difference.
Then Zerath slowly raised his eyes toward the forest plunged into darkness.
— Exactly like this forest.
A shiver passed through the air.
— It knows that Kert and I… are false.
He lowered his eyes to his own hand.
— And that the system supports us.
Hinata slowly nodded.
— Yes…
That is probably the most logical explanation.
Kert's face turned slightly pale.
A real panic was now beginning to appear in his gaze.
— Wait a second…
He looked at his hands trembling slightly.
— That means we're going to keep crossing this forest… as simple mortals?
His breathing became heavier.
— Without the system… we are absolutely nothing…
Zerath let out a long tired sigh.
— For now… I think we can only rely on Hinata.
He gave a nervous smile.
— Luckily she's here, by the way.
If all three of us were full system users…
His gaze drifted into the black trees.
— We would probably already be done for.
Kert swallowed with difficulty.
The mere sound of the wind in the branches now seemed much more threatening.
— Damn…
He looked around him with worry.
— Right now… a simple poisonous plant could probably kill me.
His voice trembled slightly.
— And I have to survive in a forest this terrifying for… I don't even know how long?
Finally, he slowly turned his head toward Hinata before approaching her.
— Hinata…
His tone had become far more serious than usual.
— We're counting on you.
Because without that…
He looked at the forest one last time.
— This might really be the end for us.