"Koe, teach me how to use existence."
He was slightly surprised when she responded instantly, her voice carrying a subtle note of excitement.
[Oh~? I was wondering when you would get ready to start.] She chirped animatedly, her voice little too eager. [Come on in.]
"Okay."
He closed his eyes, focusing inward towards his soul. He had done it several times in the past years to the point that it had become nothing short of reflex now. It didn't take him too long before he opened his eyes in an eerie realm.
He slowly opened his eyes, taking in the familiarly ominous sight around him. Over the course of the past six years, his soulscape had undergone some major changes. It now looked nothing like the boorish black void it once was.
Taking a step forward, he smiled fondly as he felt the shallow dark water run over his feet. A pale red light washed over the realm, revealing large, pillar-like platforms scattered around the realm and stretching high above the dark sea like skyscrapers. The dark sea itself wasn't really as large as a regular sea, only stretching a few hundred metres across, enclosed by a gargantuan crimson ring. The ring was the source of the light, rotating slowly around the realm like some ominous planetary ring.
Anyone else would be shitting themselves if they ever found themselves in a place like this, yet Ender just smiled, totally at home in this nightmarish place.
"Ah, this feels so nice." He said, stretching his arms to get a good feel for them. Here, his form seemed to have reverted to his age prior to his reincarnation, yet still retained some properties from his current life, namely his pale white hair which now flowed messily over his shoulders. His pupils were a sharp, vivid red that seemed to glow slightly in the dark, giving him an otherworldly presence. At least in here, he could still see.
"Oh, you seem happy." A flat voice spoke from behind him.
Ender didn't look at the voice. He knew better.
"How you've grown. I thought you'd look again."
"And have to sacrifice even more of my meager life force to live. No thanks." He said dryly.
"Fair. Okay, you can look now." She said.
Ender turned, keeping his eyes narrowed as he looked at her.
Behind him was a short girl with soft grey eyes staring at him blankly. Her hair was a shining blonde colour, reaching down to the small of her back. She wore a simple school uniform with it's logo blurred, making her look entirely out of place in this dreary place as she sat on the edge of one of the pillars, causing him to have to look upwards to meet her face.
"Tch, I seriously want to punch that smug face." Ender said, feeling more than a little irritated at the form Koe decided to take.
"What? I couldn't find any memories of your sister so I just had to make do." She said nonchalantly with a shrug.
Rael nearly sighed again. Ever since getting reincarnated, He had found many gaps in his memories as well as several alterations.
For one, every single memory of his sister had been blurred.
He could still remember events, but everytime he tried to remember the face of his sister, all he could get was a blurred, unrecognisable image.
Even Koe, for all her power couldn't see past it.
Ender shook out those thoughts. They were important, but not urgent.
He had to focus on what was in front of him.
And that was to learn how to use Existence.
He turned to Koe who seemed to be lost in thought, luckily she came out of it.
"Hmm, I was thinking of asking for a fee for teaching you but I'll waive it this time, so you better be thankful."
Ender's smile grew a bit forced, but he nodded stiffly nevertheless.
"Right. Thank you."
'This scammer. You're supposed to help me regardless. Why are you making it sound like you're doing me a favour?' He thought bitterly, yet not daring to say it aloud lest she change her mind and decide to put a high price on the lesson after all.
He had to repress the urge to roll his eyes.
She continued.
"Existence, as is obvious refers to all that makes up a person in their entirety. It is formed from their habits, their physical appearance, their affinities, values, possessions even as far as the people or experiences they come across. You could say it's the part of reality in which something occupy and directly or indirectly affects...I guess.
A beggar's existence is mostly ignorable as it most often exists only in the alley or dump he lives in. The existence of a soldier in a war can be formed from his birth, to his enlistment, to his actions on the battlefield up till his death. Even after death, as long as his bloodline exists, a portion of his existence will love on, although faint. Even greater beings and entities such as the Angel you met, Euphoria and even he Void itself have Existence. Everything that exists has existence, some far more than others. Does that sum up things for you?"
Ender stroked his chin, his mind disseminating the information easily.
'So, I always thought it seemed weird how unique places and legendary items always seemed to originate from ordinary things that were somehow related to some ancient powerhouse. I guess this existence is transferable, or at least can raise the existence of other things and people.'
At this he nodded, prompting Koe to continue.
"For most, Existence only becomes something usable at a certain stage of power. Below that, it remains mostly illusive except in certain scenarios. Regardless, it is very important for the growth of a creature's power. Every path of ascendance is one that is tailored to a specific world, race, species, group or person. For most, until they first step into the divine path. their existence remains largely inaccessible and uncultivated."
She suddenly stared at Ender with something between exasperation and intrigue.
"But you on the other hand...your existence is weird, to say the least. Despite being so small in quantity, it is especially potent that the systems meant for mortals can't fit you. Though , it should at least be enough to learn at least a single low level technique."
Ender's eyes shone as he rubbed his hands together excitedly.
"Oh, in that case, I want to learn the raseng-"
"Rejected." She raised a hand, instantly shooting down his hopes of learning the coveted wind style.
"Huh? Why not? Something like that should not be too much for me to use." He replied with a slur, raising his brow.
Koe sighed. Pinching the bridge of her nose in annoyance. Sometimes, she forgot, despite his evident lethality and intellect, just how childish the boy could be atimes.
"At least pick something that goes along with your existing powers." She said, pointing at his chest. "Something sword-realted that can go with your Cleaving attribute."
Ender held his chin as if thinking for a moment before speaking confidently.
"Ah, yes. I still have that. In that case, Banka..."
"No. Pick something else."
"Dimension Slas..."
"Rejected."
"Sword of Rupt-"
"Definitely not."
Her tone was especially firm with that last one, leaving no room for negotiation. At this, Ender gave her a look as if she had just taken his favourite toy away.
"Please, just pick something realistic."
Ender almost choked on air at that. As if realism hadn't been dumped in the trash since six years ago. Eitherway, he had to pick something that Koe wouldn't be able to reject as well as something he could easily use despite the physical weakness of his body.
A small smile played on his lips.
'Good thing I already thought ahead for this one.' he mused internally.
"Hmm? How about slash storage?"
Koe's brows perked up at that.
"Slash...storage? Never heard that one before." She admitted, curious.
Suddenly, Ender's eyes seemed to turn a shade of grey similar to Koe's as his body became unnaturally still. Koe's expression seemed to pause for a moment as she tilted her head, feeling a stream of information and memories rush into her mind.
Once the transfer ended, she looked at Ender who was smiling like and idiot then blinked.
And blinked again.
"You're kidding."
"Nope." He said cheerfully. "Is it acceptable or not?"
"Well yes..." She replied slowly.
Then Ender smiled, his grin spreading wide across his face.
"Then get to building."