Magical Soul Parade

Chapter 312: Sepulchre House Scion

The tension in the air was thick, save for one individual on the Ossuarist side who had remained calm throughout the exchange. He was a young man, looking to be seventeen or eighteen at the most. He was younger than Finn, but when he spoke, the rest of the party mellowed instantly.

"Stand down," the young man said. His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried a weight that suggested he was used to being obeyed without question.

He flew his griffin closer to Finn without a single trace of fear or hesitation in his voice. In fact, there was an air of casual superiority in his tone that seemed almost inherent, as if he didn’t even realize he was doing it.

"I apologize for the lecture my Arcanist friend gave you," the young man said, looking at Finn. "It is just a precaution. They wanted to gauge who you were and what you could do. It isn’t every day we see an Ossuarist with such a powerful... ancient soul mass."

A gleam was in his eyes as he said this, a look of predatory interest that Finn didn’t fail to notice. He didn’t show any reaction on his face, but Ryuga noticed. Finn could feel it through their soul connection. A thoroughly offended, violent tension was growing in Ryuga. The dragon felt insulted that a puny human was looking at him like he was a delectable creature to be harvested or devoured.

It was only because of Finn, who sensed this and actively pacified Ryuga through their connection, that the dragon didn’t simply lunge forward and swallow the entire party in one bite.

The young man continued to talk, entirely unaware of how close he had come to being ended. He pointed toward the superstructure in the distance as if welcoming Finn.

"Stratus is open to all," he said. "You are right, of course. Nothing inside this world tear belongs to anyone. It is a free-for-all. And that is what makes it... exciting, don’t you think?"

Finn smiled in response, hearing the double meaning behind the words, but he simply said nothing and urged Ryuga forward again.

This time, the party parted for him without needing to be told. They moved their griffins and artifacts out of the way as Ryuga’s massive bulk glided past.

Finn felt their gaze on him as he headed towards the structure, entering into the range of the zero-gravity zone. And immediately he did, he realized why they had been staring so intently.

The instant he crossed into the zero-gravity zone, for the briefest of moments, he felt the lack of gravity try to lift him off his feet on Ryuga’s head. It was a jarring sensation. But just as quickly as it came, the feeling disappeared.

Naturally and without any outward thought, Finn expertly used his soul power to root himself firmly to Ryuga’s body. From the outside, he didn’t even move. He remained perfectly upright, defying the vacuum of gravity.

Madoc and Osmund, on the other hand, didn’t fare as well. They floated upwards immediately, their arms waving about as they tried to get the hang of stabilizing themselves in a world without a ’down’. They looked like two drowning men in the air, their initial shock plain on their faces.

But even they, after no more than ten seconds, got the hang of it. Using their spatial fragments, they warped the local space around their feet to create a magnetic-like grip on Ryuga’s back, standing firmly once more.

A heavy silence reigned for several seconds after that. The young man from before, along with the rest of the party, had surprised expressions on their faces. Adapting to the zero-gravity field was notoriously difficult for newcomers. So, doing it as fast as they had was not just exceptional... it was essentially logic-defying.

The young man urged his griffin soul mass forward to stay in stride with Finn, and for the first time, the surprise in his voice actually sounded genuine.

"I could tell from the start that you were a special figure," he said. He greeted Finn more formally this time, introducing himself as if he were now speaking to an equal. "I am Cade. Cade XV of the Sepulchre House Thorne."

He looked at Finn with a prying curiosity. "Which house do you hail from? I should have known from the onset that you were from a Sepulchre family. Your bearing... and even your servants who were exceptional enough to adapt so quickly... it’s quite the display."

Finn didn’t answer the question about his house. Instead, he turned his head slightly and looked at Cade.

"First," he said, his voice cold and flat. "These two are not my servants. They are my companions. Address them with the respect they deserve."

Cade blinked, taken aback by the correction, but he didn’t push it. He nodded once, acknowledging the point, but his eyes were still searching Finn for answers. But Finn had a different priority.

"I have a question of my own," Finn said. "Do you know of an Ossuarist called Althea?"

Immediately, Cade paused. The griffin soul mass beneath him slowed its wings. First, he looked slighted that Finn hadn’t responded to his questions. It was a clear breach of the social protocol he was used to, and it was clear he took offense to it. But then, his expression changed after hearing the name Finn spoke.

The name Althea clearly meant something to him. Finn saw a brief flash of recognition in his eyes before he tried to mask it. Cade began to reassess Finn, his gaze sharpening as he wondered who this stranger was to be asking about her.

"I know the name," Cade responded a beat later. He didn’t deny it. "She is the holder of the Order fragment. She is currently wanted by the Inner Circle for reasons they haven’t seen fit to share with the rest of us."

Cade looked at Finn, his eyes narrowing. "Why do you ask? She is a very dangerous person to be associated with right now."

They were coming up to the vast sphere of floating landmasses now. Up close, the scale of Stratus was breathtaking. Finn could see flying creatures and mechanical artifacts carrying people from various spots in the congregation of landmasses. It was a fully fledged city, built in the sky and thriving in the ruins of gravity.

"Why did I ask...?" Finn repeated, looking at the city.

"Well, let’s just say she’s someone I used to know."