I

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  Arc I Chapter 6

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  11th Anima Lunar VIII AAC 753

  “Captain, I am not sure what you mean.” Ludwig scratched his head. His second in command scanned the area, yet his confusion was evident. His aether sensitivity was never the best. “I cannot sense anything ... What ... What ... What is this ...? Captain, do you see what I see?”

  “I do.” Guenther nodded before raising his arm to confirm his suspicions. His hand tried to catch the floating particles. He failed. The misty particles eluded his grasp. They consisted of pure, refined aether. Dense, heavy, radiant, they shimmered dark purple, exuding the same oppressive aura that he had felt before. The surrounding aether was powerful to the point that it was visible to the naked eyes. This was certainly not normal.

  He had heard of such places before, holy sites, ancient ruins, old forests, blessed with high concentrations of natural aether, yet what they witnessed was different. Their air was rich in aether. The currents strong. This was not a natural phenomenon. This phenomenon was artificial. A fine mist saturated the clearing. Particles permeated the air and coloured the entire world purple. Their number was countless.

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  Ludwig gulped. “Captain, what is this?” His men grew nervous. The mysterious aether unsettled them.

  “...” Guenther fell silent. He was at a loss, like everyone else. The particles did not remain static. The aether gathered and accumulated in a way that reminded him ...

  His blood froze, as realisation struck. He remembered. He had seen this type of aether before. No wonder that the phenomenon felt familiar. This was ... This was ...

  “...” His head turned. As expected, the girl’s corpse was the centre. The maelstrom of aether rotated around her dead body. The situation was dire. “Dammit! Dammit! DAMMIT!!!” He had seen this before. This was a fucking summoning!

  Her corpse glowed purple in the dark, like a radiant sun. The aether protected her. Purple light covered her whole body. A dormant power had awakened, a dormant power of unimaginable power.

  “...” Guenther drew his sword, but it was already too late. Their world turned white. An enormous explosion struck them with full force. The shock wave knocked them over.

  Moments passed until his consciousness returned. Guenther clenched his fists. Mud, dirt, sand, and blood filled his mouth. His head suffered from concussion. His eyes caught only a few short glimpses, but they were enough to make his very bones shiver. A giant pillar of purple light rose skywards. Its radiant glory pierced the clouds and even heaven itself.

  The purple light subsided, and night reclaimed its rightful place. The pillar weakened, and the last remnants of light faded, but this was only the beginning. The dead girl stood before them and lived. Once again, she walked among the living, clad in black frills, silk, and lace. Beautiful crimson blood stained her blouse. The girl’s face looked confused, puzzled, surprised.

  “...” Guenther gritted his teeth, forcing himself to rise. He had killed the girl with his own hands. He had witnessed her death. Whatever they faced, it was not her.

  His eyes narrowed. A simple question escaped him. “Answer me, who are you?”

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