Part 40: Chapter Thirty-Nine: The Power of Life

Iris looked a little under the weather as Viese prepared to head out, which she was concerned by.

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What’s wrong? You don’t look so good.
…Nothing.
I’m going to report to Kreuz. Please stay here, Iris.

It seemed that all of Eden was indeed back thanks to Felt’s actions.



Nymph: I want to see it, too.
Lady: Oh yes. Eden certainly has returned to the way it was.
Uru: I’m going to tell everyone about it. See ya!
So, Eden’s been completely restored…
I better go tell Kreuz right away.

Viese rushed to the Eden Temple to tell him.



Kreuz, I got a letter from Felt. He says that he has restored all of Eden.
Just as I thought…
I heard the Mana talking about it…
I suppose sending Felt to Belkhyde was the right decision after all.
Yes…
First of all, thank you Viese. You worked hard to help Felt.
And please, ask Felt to visit me when he returns home. I’ll wait for him here.
Please wait for him at your workshop. He may come home any time now.
I will…
Felt… Please return safely…

It turned out that Viese would not have the opportunity to wait around for Felt, though.



……
Are you okay? Your face is all red.
!!
What happened to you? You have a really high fever.
……
Go to bed and get some rest!

Viese tried everything she could think of to help Iris.



The fever isn’t going down…
……
I hope Kreuz knows how to help.

Kreuz knew only one way that was certain to cure such a strange disease.



Can you cure her?
I don’t know.
If we had an elixir, I’m sure she’d be fine…
Elixir…
It is medicine that is supposed to cure any illness. It can cure her.
Too bad it is one of the most advanced ancient techniques. It won’t be easy to make.
……
There should be a book with the recipe for Elixir somewhere in the library.
Iris, just rest here, please.
I have to go to the library to make the medicine for you.
…I’m fine.
No, you’re not. Please, just stay in bed. You need to rest.
……

In the back room of the library, Viese did indeed find a recipe for the legendary Elixir.



Hmm? [Soul Genesis]? I wonder what’s in here…
Many different kinds of symptoms and diseases have been discovered over time…
We have analyzed them, and developed a new medicine that can cure them all…
This is it!
Alright! I’ll just borrow this!
System Message: Received [Soul Genesis]!
You now have the recipe for [Elixir]!
Whoops…
I knocked this book off the shelf…
Huh? [Alchemic Destiny]? This looks interesting…
This might be helpful. I better take this one, too.
System Message: Received [Alchemic Destiny]!
You now have the recipe for the [Ruby Prism]!
Okay, I better go make an Elixir now!

Elixirs are not known as one of the most difficult ancient techniques for no reason, though, and require rare materials and possibly the rarest of Mana to create.



……
Oh no! I can’t make it!
It says I need to use Dore Water from a magical spring…
But, I don’t know where to find that…
And, I’ll have to make a pact with a Life Mana.
Like Aion, the Life Mana…
I’ll have to ask someone who knows about it…

Viese left to find information on either subject. While it was easy to find information on Aion, none of it was very solid on anything other than the fact that she exists and is not particularly inclined to be helpful.



Don’t you know how hard it is to make pacts with Life Mana? They have too much pride.
Pride?
There are different generations of Mana. Light, Dark, and Life make up the most traditional generation.
Among those, the Life Mana have the longest traditions, so they assume they’re the best.
There’s so much to know about Mana… I never knew.
But, even the Life Mana are young compared to Lilith, the Creation Mana.
Lilith was the original Mana, so she’s like the mother of all Mana.
If you’re looking for Aion in Noir, I suggest you look in a place related to Lilith.
A place related to Lilith…

Rumor suggested that Aion was indeed in Noir somewhere, though.



Have you seen her?
I haven’t, but she’s rumored to have lived in Noir for centuries.
Really?!
That’s what the local legends say.
That’s what I thought, thanks.

Even Mana who spent all day outside in Noir never saw her, though.



Aion’s a traditional Mana, so I don’t think she’d be easy to find…
I don’t think I’ve ever seen her around here…
Okay, thank you.

This led to only one location she could be hiding, logically.



The only place I can think of like that is the relief.
Hello, Aion! If you can hear me, please come out!

Viese was in luck, sort of.



Are you really Aion?! …I need your help!
Hm, you still need about 100 more years experience to utilize my help.
But…
Listen up. I’ll make an exception if you make pacts with a Light and Dark Mana.
So, go do that first.
A Light and Dark Mana…

Viese already had a pact with Eital, but she would need a pact with Plua as well to enlist Aion’s help. She hurried to the Moon Tower, where yet another Lithograph also waited.



Plua, though, was unwilling to make a pact with Viese.



…Who is calling for me?
Hi, my name is Viese.
I’m a new alchemist. Nice to meet you.
…So, what’s a new alchemist doing out here?
Actually, I’m looking for a Dark Mana to make a pact with…
……
I don’t think I can help you with that…
You don’t think so?
I… I think I’ll cause even more problems for you…
??
Please, leave while you can…
What are you talking about…?
……
Plua…
I guess I should leave…

Viese did have a thought on who could help her with this.



……
Lutanus may know something about it. She is a Dark Mana after all…
I better go to the library!

Lutanus did indeed know why the Plua at the Holy Ground did not wish to make a pact.



Yes. Do you know anything about her? She looks really depressed.
So, she’s still bothered by it.
You know what’s wrong with her?!
…It’s a long story.
You see, because of our long heritage, Dark Mana have more power than other Mana.
And she has strong Mana power, even for us.
Is that true…?
She made a pact with an alchemist. She was so excited.
She used too much power and ended up injuring the alchemist.
The alchemist was very angry. She’s been depressed ever since.
How sad…
Will you please console her? She is much more powerful than I am.
Of course I will.

While she was at Eden Temple, she also asked Kreuz about the Dore Water.



So, you need Dore Water.
You can find it pouring out around Yugdore Trees.
But, reaching the Yugdore Trees beyond the Crystal Monument is dangerous.
Dangerous…
Yes. Please don’t risk your life.
Alright. Thank you very much.

Viese returned to the Moon Tower to attempt to persuade Plua to make a pact with her.



……
You accidentally hurt an alchemist.
…I can’t control my power. Please leave me alone.
You just need to practice a little more.
Besides, the alchemist must make sure a Mana uses its power correctly.
The explosion was the alchemist’s fault. He wasn’t skilled enough to handle your powers.
……
But, I won’t let that happen.
And even if it did, I wouldn’t blame it on you.
…You are a nice person.
I would like to make a pact with you. But, only if you want to…
……
…Do you really believe in me?
I do.
Mana, the father of power… the mother of life… The source of all nature…
I, Viese Blanchimont, have pledged to uphold the sacred tenets of Lilith.
In honor of that pledge, I have come to form a pact with Plua, the Dark Mana!
Thank you. I will do my best to help you.
System Message: Received the mark of the Dark Mana, the [Dark Gem]!

Though Aion was not terribly happy about it, Viese had succeeded at her task and she upheld her end of the bargain.



Oh, I see. You’ve actually done it.
Will you keep your promise? Will you help me?
…Very well.
You have proven to be skilled enough to utilize my help.
So, you’ll…?
Yes, I will make a pact with you.
Th-Thank you! Here it goes…
Mana, the father of power… the mother of life… The source of all nature…
I, Viese Blanchimont, have pledged to uphold the sacred tenets of Lilith.
In honor of that pledge, I have come to form a pact with Aion, the Life Mana!
System Message: Received the mark of the Life Mana, the [Life Gem]!
Okay, let’s go.

Viese now had the Mana she needed to save Iris. But she still was missing the legendary Dore Water. And who knows what other complications could arise…