Dinner was a quiet, strained affair. Lord Alaric was preoccupied with a letter from the capital, his brow furrowed in thought. Lady Elara, serene as ever, was radiating a quiet joy, a secret smile playing on her lips. Elias hadn't really seen much of his parents of late. It was obvious that they were occupied with various duties pertaining to their positions as the Lord and Lady of Blackwood so he tried not to get in the way of their work. That wasn't to say they didn't make time to interact with him. His father for instance would always make it to their morning training and after a period return to do his work. Today he was extremely busy that's why he couldn't make it that morning and why he decided to leave that day. Elias spoke with his mom with a few contributions from his father.It didn't seem like Aina had told them that he had gone out without permission.
Aina herself said nothing, concentrating instead on her food. After the meal, Aina didn't even bother to excuse herself. She simply rose from the table walked over to Elias and , grabbing his hand, led himout if the dining hall. Alaric and Elara watched them go.
" Those two have become quite close." Elara said.
" Indeed." Her husband agreed.
" Too bad she won't stay with us forever. In a few years,she'll have to go to Fazhan University to attempt Ascension."
" If she wants." Elara said Roric scoffed and took a sip from a while glass.
" I don't think your family would condone her not going. Besides,she's ambitious not unlike you."
" Oh?You think I'm ambitious huh?" Elara asked with a smile, resting her head in her hand."
" Yes. It's one of the numerous reasons I love you. I'd be a lazy bum without you."
" And I don't know what I'd be without you." She replied getting to her feet.
" Speaking of which, haven't you worked enough?" She asked sitting in his lap.
" I'll just finish with this and we can..." Elara gently lowered the letter.
" Say,what do you think we start replacing Aina so Elias will have someone to interact with?"
" As in?" Alaric asked. He was her expression change and a soft blush appear on her cheeks.
" Oh." He said realizing what she meant as she brought her face closer to his....
‡
In the study, Elias was trying his best to explain how he'd made Eli and the steps in his shadow clone technique.He spoke in vague, philosophical terms. He talked about "moulding" and "shaping" Flow, of using his will to give it form. He spoke about "filling in the blank spaces with Arrays," but he didn't delve into the specifics of which ones or how they were configured. He was careful to not mention anything that would suggest he had human anatomy. He instead used wordplay to make it seem as if he did it based on limited knowledge about the subject. He'd contemplated lying but then today had shown that she knew him so well she's telling if he lied. That's why he rather chose to withhold information.
' Why does she want to know anyway?'
Aina listened intently, asking pointed questions and trying to dissect his vague answers. She asked about the energy source, the stability, and the limitations of the clone. Elias answered to the best of his ability, always with a hint of uncertainty, as if he were still discovering the technique himself. He watched the corner of her lips, waiting for the tell-tale sign that she had caught him in a lie, but it never came. Well,it was not as if she'd make much of an expression even if she did.
Finally, after what felt like an eternity, Aina sighed.
"It's… fascinating," she said, a reluctant admiration in her voice.
"But it's incomplete. There's no proper theory, no structured foundation. It's all based on your intuition."
Aina looked at him for a moment, then she stood up and walked to a bookshelf.
"Very well," she said.
"You're going to document it. Every single detail. Every intuitive thought. Every instinct. You will give me a record of this technique so that we may study it. It's a great discovery, Elias. One that will put you in a place far greater than you have ever been. It's not everyone who can create a new technique."
With that, she dismissed him. He left the study, his mind reeling.
He had done it.
He quickly made his way to his room, locking the door behind him. That evening, as the moon cast its pale light upon the estate, Elias lay in his bed, his mind racing. He focused on his soul, he entered his Spirit Domain. The space was a familiar sight, the backdrop of a universe with his energy swirling endlessly under the surface of the water. a subtle swirling of two distinct colours, and the ground was a dark, rippling surface.Concentrating a bit he snapped his fingers and a figure rose out of the water below his feet, causing ripples as his feet touched the waters surface.
It was Eli, his shadow clone.
"Oh," Eli said, a carefree smile on his face, "you're alive."
"Of course I'm alive you would disappear if if I died." Elias said, his voice flat.
"Fair enough."
"But Why did you snitch on me?" Elias asked.
Eli raised his hands in a gesture of surrender.
"She caught on to what happened before I even said anything. And it's not like I had a choice. It was either that or certain death. In fact I should be the one complaining. I'm not even a full week old and you're already putting me in life and death situations."
Elias frowned.
"I don't think Aina would go that far. And besides, you're not technically alive in the true sense of the word."
"That's exactly why she'd kill me!" Eli insisted.
" It was a terrible experience. My wrists, my chest, my head…" he shuddered theatrically.
Elias just stared at him and shrugged.
"It could have been worse.Did anything else happen while I was gone?"
"I was in the room with her the whole day," Eli said with a shrug.
"What else was supposed to happen remember I was held captive."
Elias pondered. He had been gone for hours, and Aina hadn't said anything to his parents.
"Maybe Aina was looking out for me this whole time," he said.
"She didn't seem to have reported Miss Gable for letting me go out."
Eli just shrugged again.
"It's either that or she just wanted to punish you on her own."
"Elias smilef faintly.
"Either way, I need to work on my Shadow Clone Technique and perfect it to make it indistinguishable from a real person."
Eli gave him a thumbs-up.
"I'm always ready Boss."
"You're awfully cheerful for your first encounter with an ice queen like Aina." Elias observed.
"It's in the past," Eli said, shrugging.
"And besides, I'm interested to know what you discovered on your own outing."
Elias walked towards him and stretched out his hand. The shadow clone took it, and their eyes lit up as they exchanged information. Ever since Elias had discovered he could could compress an additional duration of six hours into his perceived time within this space,he experimented to see what else he could do.
Aside being able to manifest objects he could also manifest memories. It was that experiment that led to him transferring those three memories into Eli's head when he created him. He could simply select some memories and pass them through Eli's head, showing him what had happened.
As the memories flowed from Elias into his clone's mind, Eli watched in silence. He saw the thugs with the blue rose tattoos, the glimpses of S.K, and the casual, yet profound, conversation with Lyle.
"You had quite the experience," he said once they were done syncing.
"That Lyle guy…."
Elias eyed him from the corner of his eye.
"Both he and S.K. were very annoying people, one shrewed and one a bum." he said with a hint of annoyance.
Saying that, he manifested four objects. The Talisman he had taken from Lyle, the 'MiracleMakerPendant', the 'ObsidianDagger' and the 'KitsuneMask'. They hovered around him. Choosing one,he activated his Flow Perception to peer into its essence.