Chapter 22: Preparation For The Ordeal: Part 2
"Truly, our luck can be decided on how long the hints of the crack reside." Seeing how the realization hit me, Micca began to mothball her chin with her floppy ears as a coping mechanism. "With how things have been, there should only be three instances of events that could happen.
"If the cracks appear in the next 2 hours in a real time that's unaffected by the time dilations, then this whole forest will be facing the Ordeal of Hungers.
"If the cracks appear in the next 4 hours in the same kind of real time, then a Banishing Banner will appear from the crack.
"And if the cracks appear in the next 6 hours, which is midnight, the night would be engulfed in nauseating, corroding miasma, as the Screamers of the Void began to turn this land into theirs until the sunrise melted these impurities."
I presumed that this would be like a lottery on what kind of trial we will get. Or, in how Micca said it, how we die.
"What are these three instances of the events?"
"The Ordeal of Hunger is a simple one. When the crack happened, a single Calamity of the Void would appear from the rift, just like the Unruly One. Unlike the Unruly One, however, the calamity from the Ordeal of Hunger will not appear from the crack itself.
"The area of the possible coordinate that the calamity will arrive will be as big as the size of the destination of the crack… The bigger the destination, the harder it is to find the calamity.
"And as long as the Calamity of the Void is still alive, the whole area of the destination of the crack will be inflicted with Hungering Marks that will get generated periodically. Standing within five meters near the mark will turn you into a mindless beast who hungers for any sentient being that your perception can detect."
This one didn't sound bad.
"The rate of our metabolism also got heightened, forcing us to truly eat one another to survive lest we rot and die."
That one sounded awful!
"As for the next instance, we get the Banishing Banner. Unlike the rest of Calamities of the Void, the Banishing Banner is not a sentient existence. Instead, it's more of an unknown piece of relic from the Void.
"The moment the Banishing Banner got spewed into this forest, every sentient inhabitant of this forest will be sent into the dreaming current of something big, and possibly something that couldn't be comprehended by us.
"In those dreams of those above our mortal comprehension, we need to survive for a specific amount of time until the one who dreams wakes up from its slumber. When we managed to do that, we will get sent back to Hisoutenshizen again."
That doesn't sound so bad.
"Out of every recorded event of the Banishing Banner, only seven people survived."
Gah! I won't fall for it next time!
"As for the final event, the worst of them all." Micca swallowed her saliva before she could continue her useful info dump. "At the event midnight, or to be precise, one hour after midnight, if we use our bloodline's measure of time—this whole forest will immediately turn into a hunting ground for the savages of the void.
"Giants standing at seven meters tall will be roaming with their staff that is capable of nearly instantly pierce a hole onto anything they aimed. More than hundreds of them would be unleashed on one side of the destination of the crack, sweeping any living being while feasting on their soul and flesh.
"Every time they began their attack, a piercing, exploding scream could be heard. And before you knew it, a hole had already been formed on your body, and more, and more, as they kept attacking you until none of your consciousness lingered in your liveless vessel.
"These brutal hunters are the Screamers of the Void."
Yep, this is the worst alright.
"Still, how fast can you run with your injury?" I asked.
Micca tilted her head. " As fast as a cheetah, I guess? Even though my lower half possesses more fur and bulkier than those felines."
"How many times can you use those flaming wall spells before you're exhausted?"
"Thirty, if we kept pushing it. Half that amount for a bigger wall."
Micca mentioned that the screamers would last until the sunrise, these won't be enough.
"Do these anomalies persist when the crack happens? I just want to assure myself."
"They are gone the moment the cracks are formed."
For all of the ordeals, we need stamina and speed to find our target and remove ourselves from dangers. The more the cards we have, the better our odds.
"My dear Micca, listen to me. " I leaned forward, closing the gap of distance between us. "This will be my first task that I shall bestow on you."
"Uuoooh!"
"Teach me how to perform Blooming before the first instance of an ordeal."
"Nay, impossible!" She immediately formed a half X with her only available arm as a sign of dejection. "Though, depending on Father's constitution, it might not be impossible. Not to mention, in the current spot where we stand, it seems like the time runs four times slower than the outside."
"How do you even calculate that––"
And just like that, while it seemed to be an impossibility to even try to do anything at this point, Micca was determined to teach me the very intricacies of the Blooming, where one could harness the energy of surrounding, forcing the fruit to ripe, and use it to perform all sort of magical shenanigans.
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