Luciel and Bambi resumed the rune reading session. Their eyes laid upon [Soul Embers], one of only two categories with a numerical value attached.
Soul Embers: [0/250]
"This must be experience points!"
Luciel shook his head, enduring her unseriousness.
"It's similar to the primary technique Resonants use for qualitative growth. Rin… something."
Bambi nodded.
"Rinforzamento. Sienese for reinforcement. Some call it Rinforzando because the standard procedure is to store as much Hollow Essence as possible before purifying it for better efficacy, which significantly boosts the potency of Echo Essence. But we usually just call it Refrain. The other two terms are way too long for no reason."
He contemplated her words. The musical terminology was the main theme of the discussion — Aria, Chorus, Symphony, and so on. But he noticed that Soul Embers stuck out like a sore thumb. It was the only category that seemed exclusive to Luciel. Bambi controlled blood, so having embers in her soul sounded ridiculous.
He looked at her, who was also fixated on that category.
"You noticed?"
She squinted her eyes.
"Yeah. Embers. I wonder if it's different from normal Refrain."
"Yours aren't exclusive?"
"Not that I know of, no. I go about it just like everybody else."
Luciel thought about it for a while, then he asked:
"Do you have a limit, then?"
Bambi titled her head and grinned.
"Heh. Haven't met one yet. My quantitative growth exceeds it."
He clicked his tongue in jealousy.
"Freaking monster."
Every Resonator had a cap on their Echo Essence usage, which corresponded to the Encore's capacity. Refrain was the act of purifying Hollow Energy or Hollow Essence; in turn, it strengthened the Encore and enhanced the potency of Echo Essence.
But Refrain was bound by the Encore's capacity. A Resonant could not improve beyond what was given.
Imagine the Encore as a single string on an instrument. Refrain tuned the string tighter, producing a sharper, more resonant note; however, every string had a tension it could not exceed, or it would snap.
To increase an Encore's capacity, one must evolve their Stanza by naturally going through either a Crescendo or a Modulazione: growth in Aleph Scale and ascension in Rank, respectively. In Luciel's runic context, Crescendo meant completing the four Movements of a Symphony, while Modulazione, or Modulation, meant transitioning to the next Symphony.
For the average Resonators, they would hit the ceiling of Refrain, stuck there for a while, and then Stanza evolution might happen if they were talented. For Bambi, she just smashed through the walls and called it a day. She might've not even done half of her supposed Refrain because of her swift Modulation process. Truly a genius — he had to admit it.
Luciel wanted to wipe that smug off her face so badly. He palmed his face with both hands and ran them down.
"What?"
"Nothing," he replied curtly. "Let's continue."
Bambi suddenly sat up straight, enthusiasm clear in her voice:
"Now comes the good parts! Judging by the names, they must be abilities."
Luciel glanced at her with playful doubt.
"Why are you so eager to see my abilities? You're gonna sell me out to the Federation, don't you?"
Bambi's gaze sharpened, daring him to try.
He had to laugh it off, or a knuckle punch would come at any second.
"Kidding. Just kidding."
He averted his gaze toward the runes and willed the [Soul Bridges] to open each of its compartments.
Soul Bridges: [Flameborn], [Requiem], [Oracle of Embers]
[Flameborn]
[Kindled in fire, tempered by conviction, and uncorrupted by nature. Heat, pain, and passion form the core of your being. As such, you burn brighter than any flame.]
[Requiem]
[You and the flame exist within the same soul. You are its proxy, the flame is your will.]
[Oracle of Embers]
[Embers speak of unseen truths and lighten forbidden darkness. The flame ignites the hidden world behind your sight, weaving secrets in the dark where none but you may look.]
Luciel looked at his Bridges in a daze, then turned to Bambi.
"Can it really be considered a cheat code if they're all cryptic and frivolous like these?"
She looked at him awkwardly and shrugged.
"Well, uh… it's still something! We now understand that Bridges are your passive abilities."
Then, she added:
"And it's not like they're undecipherable. Flameborn might mean your fire is superior to others' — at the same level, at least, I believe."
"In the end, I still have to go through trial and error. The runes will help as a guide. I like that far better than whatever system you were thinking of."
Luciel had never expected the runes to be elementary, reading everything out loud. He believed leaving room for imagination was far better than following a textbook to the letter. It was this kind of overreliance that had worried him when he first saw the runes. He was afraid of its convenience.
Fortunately, the more he uncovered, the more relieved he felt.
Bambi nodded in agreement.
"Me too, actually. I don't think I would've grown to this extent if I had a system that spelled everything out for me. Your rune system feels cooler."
Luciel inwardly smiled, satisfied with their agreement.
"Any more comments about this?"
She shook her head.
"We'll find out as we go. It's not efficient if we just sit around and try to dissect everything. Application is still the most important."
"Agreed."
He had an inkling of what [Requiem] and [Oracle of Embers] entailed, but like Bambi said, there was no use in overthinking them.
"Alright. Moving on then."
Soul Verses: [Divine Fire]
[Your flame is the origin of life, the beginning of fire. It brings both salvation and ruin, depending on which path you choose.]
'What do salvation and ruin even mean?'
Luciel knew his flame was special, but the description just made it more epic.
Bambi hummed, still focused on the runes.
"So Verses are your active abilities."
"You know what it means?"
"No clue."
"Same."
And they moved on.
She rolled her eyes to the last one, and they beamed immediately. Luciel noticed her excitement and chuckled. He could guess this was her favorite part.
The Relics.
Obviously, her greed extended to Relics as well.
Relics were essentially rare magical items of the Shattered Realm. Unlike man-made objects, Relics were connected to the soul, thus they could be summoned or dismissed at will. The soul acted as a storage, housing these Relics; some could even restore them passively thanks to their soul's unique nature.
'I know for damn sure that greedy elf has at least twenty of them.'
Bambi grabbed his arm and shook it back and forth.
"Come on. Come on! Take it out! My Dawn!"
"Relax! I can't if you occupy my arm like that."
She didn't care one bit about its information like the previous ones. That's how he knew her greed couldn't be fixed, even if Laterano's god were to intervene.
After his desperate plea, she finally let go of him and sat tight.
"Your Dawn, my ass. Touch it once and say goodbye to your partner."
"Jackass!"
Luciel's eyes smiled with a dark gleam. Bambi's bravado evaporated in real time, and she quickly amended her words.
"Ahem. You're the best. I mean it."
He heaved a long sigh.
Never mind her antics, he had a hunch that Dawn would be that sword.
'I mean, what else could it be?'
He imagined his fingers wrapping around the sword, just like in the dream and the Soulscape.
Then, embers burned into existence. They coiled around his open hand and hardened in an instant. Like a ghost, Dawn settled into his palm.
He was right. The leather grip… he had never felt more satisfied.
'Hello, gorgeous.'
At the same time, Bambi's eyes widened like a puppy spotting a treat.
"That's the best sword I've ever seen…"
'So she knows it too.'
He could always count on Bambi being the wisest when needed the most.
"That was my reaction too."
For some reason, Bambi looked at him with dubious eyes.
"Oh, really? What do you know about swords, huh?"
"Enough to comment."
She clicked her tongue.
"Tch. Sure. Anyway, let's go and test it!"
She almost stood up to leave, but Luciel pulled her back down.
"We need to read what it does first."
Bambi waved him off.
"Aish, no need. A weapon does its telling through action!"
"Go and tell that to your weapons. Mine will be thoroughly cared for."
Luciel dismissed Dawn. It vanished with the embers it came with.
"Fine! I'm curious anyway. Open it."
Luciel shook his hand, thinking, 'How can she be so predictable and unpredictable at the same time?'