Chapter 27: It Is a Relief That the Teacher Did Not Die

The fact that my teacher, Jormungandr, had entered a state of living death was inseparable from Zohan; in fact, it was entirely his doing.

Over the past decade or so, Zohan had caused Jormungandr no end of trouble. The primary reason was that his young body housed a mature soul—his boundless energy, his uncontainable enthusiasm, and his insatiable curiosity about this strange new world all made him prone to disaster. Well, that, and the fact that Jormungandr indulged him.

At the age of three, he successfully cast his first spell. Jormungandr, overjoyed, summoned an exotic creature—some kind of monarch-tier beast with a name comprised of several grandiose prefixes—and promptly slaughtered it to liven up the celebration.

At five, she accurately measured the growth potential of his mental power. She bathed him in a ritual cleansing and performed an ancient dance to summon a goddess. She never did summon the goddess, but the grace of her movements and the elegance of her posture convinced Zohan that if a goddess truly existed in this world, her name must be "Jormungandr."

The trouble was that her dance possessed a charm effect. It should have had no impact on a child, but because he possessed a mature soul and immense mental power, he found himself touching upon something forbidden in his dreams that very night. Jormungandr managed to wake him in time and banished the forbidden entity that sought to descend through his body, but she suffered a grievous injury in the process—this was the first time she entered the state of living death.

At ten, Zohan began experimenting with forbidden arts. He accidentally used an ancient magic scroll from Jormungandr's collection, tearing open a gateway to the World of Black Souls. A monstrous, overwhelming death aura surged forth, and terrifying black souls instantly engulfed their floating island. Among them was even an avatar of their "Soul King," a being said to be capable of threatening the "gods."

Jormungandr cleaned up the mess for him once more. Though she was utterly exhausted from sealing away all the black souls, her eyes remained bright and filled with love as she looked at him. "It is alright," she said. "Even if you tear this world to tatters, your teacher will mend it for you."

Following that, she once again entered the state of living death.

In this state, she had no breath, no heartbeat, and no signs of normal life; it was as if time had frozen upon her. Yet, she did not decay or rot. The reason Zohan had managed to pull himself back from the brink of despair at the time was his discovery that her body still held a faint magical oscillation—the energy would dissipate slightly, only to generate anew.

This is the key to determining life or death for a mage. Even if a mage’s body were to rot away to bone, as long as the magic within them continues to cycle, their soul remains anchored, and they can be reborn as something like a lich. Of course, liches are generally no longer considered normal human mages and are classified as "monsters." Liches often refuse to admit they are "monsters," which frequently leads to disputes with normal human mages.

The last time Zohan saw his teacher in this state, it was quite different from the state of Yeye’s mother. Yeye’s mother would enter Yeye’s dreams, as if creating a pocket dimension for mother and daughter to coexist. This ensured that even if Yeye did not grow up like a normal person, she would at least develop normal intelligence and language skills under her mother’s guidance.

Zohan’s teacher, Jormungandr, did not enter his dreams when she fell into this state; she was much like Seliade was now—lying still, motionless.

"Yeye, what is your mother’s name?" Zohan was ultimately suspicious of the identity of Yeye’s mother. What if? What if it really was...

Yeye stared blankly for a moment before remembering. "Her name is... um... she is called Edistren." After all, she would not simply call her mother by her name; it was something her mother had told her when she began learning to spell her own name.

Edistren? It sounded like an alias his teacher might choose, but upon reflection, his own train of thought seemed far too wild. First, his teacher had only left him two years ago; it was impossible for her to have suddenly given birth to a daughter as old as Yeye. Second, even with the resources of an entire nation, the mausoleum would have taken at least ten or twenty years to construct. Third, although Jormungandr had entered the state of living death twice, it had always been Zohan’s fault. She herself had said that no one else could push her to such an extent!

Zohan felt a little more at ease, but he decided to do his best to help Yeye resurrect this Lady Edistren. He was quite interested in the lady's identity and the vast mausoleum, which was filled with treasures like a dungeon or a labyrinth.

"Can you draw what your mother looks like?" Zohan had a sudden inspiration. Yeye’s drawing skills had improved significantly since last time, and Zohan decided to give it a try.

"Yes," Yeye nodded obediently. She had seen that human children were often punished if they were disobedient. Some were even left to starve if they failed to meet their mother's demands. Yeye felt that Zohan would not treat her that way, but she was still somewhat worried and decided to strive to fulfill any request he made.

She took the pen and began to draw, but Zohan lost hope as soon as she drew a few lines. Because Yeye had lived in the great mausoleum since she was small, she was incredibly familiar with its layout and architecture, making her architectural diagrams quite adept. However, portraits required a higher level of basic skill. The portrait she was drawing now was about the level of a three- or four-year-old child; how could he possibly identify anyone from that?

"I’m finished!" Yeye held it up for Zohan to see after drawing some circles and lines.

"This is your mother?" Zohan smiled slightly, though not truly disappointed. "How about you draw another one for me?"

Yeye actually knew it didn't look like her, and she had been a little worried, but she hadn't expected him to not only refrain from scolding her but to ask for another. The smile on Yeye’s face faded slightly, but the corners of her mouth curled up more naturally. She leaned in, resting against Zohan as she began to write and draw on the paper again.

After the second drawing was finished, Zohan saw her progress... she really was a genius. However, it would take some practice to reach a level where the person could be clearly identified. The process of practice was dull, and Zohan did not want to force her; after all, her life thus far had been difficult enough.

Yeye soon grew sleepy and climbed back into the cabinet to sleep. Zohan turned his attention back to Seliade. Seliade now needed to consume the blood of another person. Lord Bobur would have been the most suitable candidate—he was tall, physically robust, and possessed an ample supply of blood. Given that Seliade had taken the initiative to drink Lord Aldous’s blood, perhaps blood with a familial connection was even better.