In the main boulevard of the Serina District, the duo leisurely strolled the area.
It was Walker's way of familiarizing Lucille to the way of life in the Settlement.
There existed a park to the east of the Serina district.
The children at the park played a game of stacking bricks on top of the other until it falls by a player who'd lose when it happens. They had piled 10.
Lucille could only stare at them with curiosity while following Walker until eventually she sat down near him at one of the benches.
He had already bought two sweet dumpling sticks and handed one over to Lucille. She nodded in gratitude.
The dumplings were baked and had sweetened milked glazed over it which brought a sweet and sour aroma.
Lucille took a bite, the flavors melted in her mouth as she had tasted nothing of the sort ever in her life.
Walker waited for Lucille to chew and swallow her bite before posing a question that revolved around his doubts regarding Anthology.
"I've been curious,"
Lucille's focus shifted from the game and the dumpling to Walker who had a question.
"How does one awaken Anthology, and what are the risks?" His elbows were pressed on his knees and his back bent downward.
Lucille cleared her throat and answered with all that she knew. "The risks depend on you, Mister."
Walker raised an eyebrow and looked to his side by slightly turning his head.
"Look at those kids for example… the game they're playing,"
Both of their gazes went on to the children who were passionately playing, forgetting it was just for fun.
"Depending on you, you will rise…"
One of the two kids in casual clothing placed the 13th brick and became nervous when it shook helplessly but when it stopped shaking, he jumped in joy. The other kid frowned, having no more bricks left.
A strong gust of wind passed by, "...or will fall." the bricks trembled and collapsed on the spot.
Then, the emotions of the children immediately reversed, the one previously frowning was joyful and the other, the opposite.
"So I either gain something or lose everything?" Asked Walker, having understood what she meant.
"Mm-hm." Lucille nodded and finished the last of her dumplings.
Having no intention or interest in sweets, Walker had bought two sticks for Lucille and made the courtesy of holding it until Lucille finished one of it.
He extended his hand and offered it, and although Lucille hesitated at first, she eventually accepted it, noticing his lack of interest.
Walker waited for Lucille to finish her snack then led her back to his apartment hearing no extra ingredients were needed for the awakening ritual.
•••
With anticipation and anxiety Walker returned back in the area he lived, but disrupting his usually undetected journey home was his landlady, Zulfiya.
Even in the industrial evolution of societal standards, this woman in her fifties dressed in robes of monotonous colors. Her age reflected well with the strands of white hair and wrinkles on her face but regardless, her form was akin to that of a seasoned soldier.
She leaned on the wall beside her store door with her pipe in hand. She tapped the ground with her leather boot, eyes closed.
Seeing that, Walker raised the collar of his coat and pretended she wasn't there, aiming for the stairs.
Lucille cluelessly followed, her eyes shifted from one building to the other and from one person to the other.
Zulfiya's eyes suddenly opened as if she sensed an ominous presence nearby and she noticed an oddly suspicious figure walking past her with his signature white hair peaking through.
She spun the pipe in her hand and tucked it under her sleeve and with a sneering voice, called out.
"Hey, frost! Get down here!" Frost was the nickname she gave him for his snowy white hair.
Walker, who was climbing the stairs, stopped in his tracks. He turned around to look even Lucille had left his side, She stood below the stairs, startled by the agitated woman.
He turned around and forced a smile, "Good morning, Madam."
The lady sighed and leaned on the wall again, feeling the cold on her right arm through her robe.
"The rent is due, have you forgotten?"
Walker closed his eyes, slightly raised his head and opened his eyes with a confident smile. "You know I was just about to deliver it to you."
"Is that why you were sneaking away?" Zulfiya scoffed, then looked at Lucille and asked, "And who are you?"
"Oh right, she's the-" Just when Walker was about to explain himself, Zulfiya interrupted, her palm raised to his direction.
"It's her I'm asking."
Lucille snapped back into her senses and with a stutter, introduced herself.
"I go by Lucille, Ma'am!"
Zulfiya raised an eyebrow, as though the answer didn't satisfy her curiosity.
"And what are you doing here? Never seen you around."
Lucille paused and thought for a second before coming up with the most logical response. "I am here to teach Mr. Soliraine… mathematics, yes!"
Zulfiya stared for a few seconds before letting out a breath and looking at Walker, "Finally seeking employment?"
Walker was momentarily baffled by the question, found it preposterous. "I DO work, my dear mentor! Hunting is the same as any other job…"
"You aren't even in any guilds or families! You claim you do work but haven't paid the rent for 3 months." Zulfiya sneered.
Walker, who was agitated, reached for his pocket but was immediately stopped by his mentor.
"Keep it. You'll need to pay the girl, right? You'll need it… but that's only because I see an opportunity for you to change." The woman turned around and started walking to her restaurant.
Clicking his tongue, Walker frustratedly muttered, "I just want to be like what you were…"
With her sharp ears, Zulfiya picked up on what he said and replied with a cold tone. "That's right, you shouldn't."
Before she completely went out of Walker's sight, she didn't turn as she said with a loud voice, "If you two feel hungry, just come down." They both heard the sound of her restaurant's gate open and closed.
Walker turned around and continued climbing the stairs, "Let's just get it over with."
Lucille who felt out of place for a moment remembered her childhood and clenched her fist and followed Walker Soliraine upstairs.
"What now?" Walker asked.
Lucille recalled her own awakening ritual and listed out the requirements.
"First we'll need a paper, likely one that's edible and ingredients that you will think of,"
Walker interrupted and sought to satisfy his curiosity. "Ingredients I'll think of?"
"Yeah, you need to find a set of words—a sentence, poem or a goal then imagine the colors of each word and create an ink to write on the paper."
The proposition came off as comedic, Walker thought he was being played for a second but noticed how genuine Lucille was from her eyes, not an ounce of mischievousness or malice was found in her golden eyes.
"Then what do I do with the letter?"
Lucille blinked twice then replied, "You put it in your mouth, of course."
Walker shook his head in disbelief, "What?"
The innocent girl found nothing wrong with what she said so she was confused.
"That's one way to awaken it, without extra risk. The other is…"
Having no fear of any risk, and being at the end of his ropes, Walker took a step closer and asked. "Just tell me what it is."
"Mister, I still think you should go with the safer route…" Lucille, who had Walker's tall figure before her, nervously advised.
"I wouldn't be where I am if I considered the 'safe' Elizabeth, would I?" Walker seriously asked.
Oh, he actually doesn't remember my name…
"You didn't let me explain entirely…" She retreated a few steps back and leaned on the wall.
Walker realized his aggressive tone and sighed before calming himself and sitting down. "Alright, go ahead."
Lucille took a deep breath of relief and let it out. "So the difference between the two ways is creativity versus learning tutelage…"
Walker silently listened, not interrupting this time.
"Which is why scholars have named the two paths 'Life' and 'Death,' the one I recommended was the Path of Life, the risky one is the Path of Death." Lucille felt extremely proud of herself so she moved back and forth as she had seen her personal instructor do when teaching her.
She imagined herself a researcher's monocle in her mind.
"The faster way: The Path of Death requires a ritual that will connect you to the unseen world of Nekhlmoun, and you'll have to gain the favor of or conquer the one ruler of the place… not exactly favorable. And there's a risk of losing your will to the presence or will of that plain."
Walker nodded then asked. "What about The Path Of Life?"
Lucille with a smug smirk, nodded and replied enthusiastically. "The slower way: Your own mental construct. you form your own domain by collecting fragments of Celestia, the home of the stars."
Hearing all of that, Walker felt as though he was reading a fantasy book written by an overlay schizophrenic author and that excited him.
Lucille finally stopped swaying and asked with true pride in her heart. "So, which one do you choose?"
Walker thought for a moment and as impatient as he was, he couldn't help but prefer the latter option.
He tapped on his knee thrice then answered, "I'll choose The Path Of Life."
"Nice! We can start right away." Lucille was itching to run to the kitchen but heading there without knowledge of the ingredients would only be a waste of time.
Instead, she went into Walker's room and looked for paper. After a bit, she couldn't find any empty ones so she raised her voice and asked, "Do you have plain papers?"
Walker, who wrote very often, didn't have any in mind and he was too poor to buy extra copies. However, the book from yesterday came to his mind and he stood up, went to the living room drawer and took it and called out, "It's here!"
She returned and held her excitement of finally bringing someone to the world of Anthology for the first time and sat down across Walker.
Thankfully, she found a pen laying on his desk.
Lucille passed the pen to Walker who had already opened the book and said, "Go ahead and write something you truly believe in or want to achieve."
Walker had no clue what to write, he was below average in poetry and his goals were long dormant, things he had partially given up on.
Suddenly he felt something vibrating on his waist. He patted the area and felt a spherical bulge whom he then reached for his pocket and brought out, it was the old metal compass.
He then recalled words uttered to him by William, it was one that Walker heard frequently. "One needn't be lost, the world is one big compass, no matter where you walk, you're the center of the world."
He immediately wrote it down, he felt his hand move on his own as he wrote each word in an eloquent font.
Once he finished, he raised his head and looked at Lucille who sat, astonished by the aggressive writing she saw.
Walker's look told Lucille, 'What next?' and she responded without hesitation. "Close your eyes… and place your finger on the page, then trace the words with it, from start to finish and imagine each one as a color and blend them in your mind."
He did as Lucille told him, being surprised by how he was actually able to designate a color for each word and blend them…
Mixing blue, red and yellow, he ended up with white… the brightness was blinding…
Walker's pupils began to feel a burn even though his eyes were closed. He tried opening them but couldn't.
He forced his hands on both of his eyes and started the attempt to force them open faced with a blinding brightness.
His vision suddenly turned completely dark and just when he thought he was fully blinded, his eyes opened.
Lucille casually sat, resting her hands on her lap while kicking her feet, whistling.
Walker also noticed his arms hadn't moved from their original position, one was on the book, the other placed on the table as support.
He took deep breaths and Lucille finally noticed something was amiss. Her feet stopped and she asked with a tinge of concern, "Are you alright, Mister?"
Sweat rolled down Walker's forehead and dropped on the floor. His breath stabilised when he answered, "Are you sure this path is any safer than the other?"
Lucille narrowed her eyes and looked with confusion, her process was simple from what she remembered.