"What's this about me being too innocent to access her casino? She didn't care about that before!" Séraphine muttered in obvious annoyance as she stood quietly in her office.
She was leaning back in her office chair with her bare feet on her desk. In her hand, she held what appeared to be a small toy: a bronze-colored ball the size of a tennis ball with a circular green crystal in the middle of a black one that looked like an eye.
The witch had a strange expression on her face as she examined the object. Then, her eyes turned to a pamphlet on her desk: the user manual for the gadget she had bought from Francisca.
'I let myself be convinced by her energetic words to distract me...' thought the brunette as she doubted her ability to judge the reliability of something as extravagant as the alchemical device in her hand.
"Can this seriously detect and quantify creature capabilities? It smells like a prototype. Am I a test subject?" Séraphine muttered before pouring her precious Aether over the object the alchemist named the 'Eye of the Dragon,' referring to the supposed ability of those rare, powerful creatures to discern a treasure's value just by observing it.
Following the methods in the booklet, she began operating the Eye, waiting for its evaluation of her, curious about her probable statistics, though skeptical.
Living beings are too changeable; not even the senses are reliable enough to fully perceive a creature's capabilities. How could a machine? Still, she had some hope because she understood a fundamental principle of science: if you can imagine it, you can try to achieve it.
Alchemy was no different from science, at least, those scientific alchemists had confirmed that. However, that was a contentious topic that Séraphine wanted to avoid, as she tried to avoid unnecessary discussions.
She already had a problematic cousin who was a purist of alchemy's mysticism. With Francisca now in her circle, the redhead being a supporter of the scientific side of her profession, the best the witch could do was step aside. She was, however, clear that bringing those two people together would be problematic.
If ancient and desired abilities like Séraphine's Vision could be replicated, albeit to a lesser degree, then surely alchemy would attempt to create something that could sense and quantify a creature's data.
The Dragon's Eye was released from her grip. The green crystal inside it glowed brightly, making the witch think that perhaps Francisca had created this object, inspired by her. The alchemist's choice of colors did not seem so simple.
The alchemical construct floated in front of the witch. Séraphine felt as if something were examining her, a sensation that felt extremely invasive, but she understood that it was part of the process and let it happen, though she wore a grumpy expression.
"At least it's no worse than the looks of those perverts," Séraphine complained. She hated those guys who couldn't control their impulses and gave her leering looks on the street, no matter what she wore.
She stopped thinking about that topic, not wanting to ruin her mood. She decided to wait for the Dragon's Eye to finish scanning, eager to see if it worked. Something in her wanted to see if its capabilities were possible.
Finally, the alchemical object stopped scanning the witch and began to tremble slightly, as if suffering a malfunction. For that reason, Séraphine moved away from the construct. She didn't want it to explode too close to her.
Instead, the alchemical eye emitted a bluish beam of light in front of the witch. It projected what appeared to be a sheet of light with words and numbers written on it.
"Then my results are done." Séraphine approached the strange projection, amazed at its sophisticated appearance. However, her attention was quickly drawn to its contents.
The contents were what the manual referred to as her 'State.' It was a concept explained in the booklet, in which she could find her stats as scanned and processed by the Dragon's Eye, just as the legend of the object said.
[SÉRAPHINE ROHAN'S STATUS]
[Vitality: 0.95]
[Aether: 1.6]
[Aether Control: 1.7]
[Lucidity: 1.4]
[Perception: 1.8]
[Applied Intelligence: 1.5]
[Charisma: 1.6]
[Reflexes: 1.1]
[Physical Strength: 0.90]
[GENERAL STATUS]
[Corruption: 0.0 (stable)]
[Current Health: 0.95 (Stable)]
[Tendency: Immaterial Research.]
[Affinity: Aether Magic.]
[KEY SKILLS]
[Deep Sight (Curse/Passive)]
[Flexibility: (Can perform gestures with ease)]
[Erudite (Passive)]
[Mental Resistance (Secondary Effect)]
"This thing... Can it connect directly to the user's soul through the Aether? Only then would it have such accuracy in its measurements," Séraphine muttered after seeing the result projected by the Dragon's Eye.
"That's not what the manual says. Is this the surprise Francisca mentioned? It seems that my studies on the Immaterial have added a new research topic." Séraphine was happy about this development.
This was a real surprise! As a witch researcher of the Immaterial, Séraphine was interested in the soul and its fundamental aspects.
To her, the soul was like an infinite gold mine. No matter which direction she looked, she could always extract something. She even had books on psychology in her study, although she had not yet read any of them. Her interest in this science was evident.
For her, studying the mind is a way of investigating the soul. For this reason, she also took meditation very seriously and did it every night before going to sleep.
"I should explore this little thing's functions more. It can sense my curse. Wouldn't that be useful for meditation?" Séraphine wondered, recalling her knowledge on the subject.
Meditation was practical and vital for anyone using Aether. Learning to meditate was the first step, regardless of whether you were a wizard, witch, warrior, or alchemist. Meditating was the key to generating, understanding, and using Aether.
Therefore, it was divided into two types of exercises: Resonance and Introspection. Resonance was simple. It involved vibrating the soul to resonate with specific frequencies that generated Aether. This Aether could be used by any of the three professions, formally called 'Paths.'
Aether is not stored; it is created and used instantly. So, knowing how to use it is essential. However, the continuous use of this energy causes exhaustion and physical discomfort.
After all, your soul was being manipulated to produce energy. Moreover, this process imparted a warmth to the Aether, similar to what happens in physics when atoms vibrate and resonate with each other to generate heat.
'I wish those jokes about storing Aether in my breasts were true,' Séraphine recalled, thinking of an annoying girl she had met before, who was also a witch.
However, storing Aether in the body was virtually impossible, at least not physically. The witch thought of the stone on Tania's forehead. It was something from her culture, but also a way the natives of the Savage Continent had to get around this constraint.
'But Tania doesn't want to talk much about her life in her homeland,' sighed the witch, worried about her friend. But it wasn't something she could force.
Tania would talk to her about her life when she was ready. Until then, Séraphine would be there to listen and be a good friend.
After storing the Dragon's Eye in a small box and placing it on her desk, Séraphine relaxed in her chair and reviewed her knowledge of meditation.
The second exercise was known as introspection, maintaining a quiet and calm state, the opposite of resonance. It calms the soul and immerses it in a state of stillness, allowing one to accomplish many things.
It involves exploring your psyche and memories, accelerating your thought process, and using your imagination much more efficiently.
Séraphine used this meditation exercise every night to relax, organize clues, review knowledge, and simulate spells she knew, was learning, or wanted to create.
She wasn't forced to do it this late; she had been meditating superficially all this time, using introspection to quickly and easily access her knowledge.
Then she came out of that state feeling sleepy. The witch yawned and lay her head on the table in front of her, using her arms as a cushion. She still wanted to play with the Dragon's Eye, but she was too sleepy.
'Though I must criticize some results, how can I only have a 1.6 in Charm? I am the most beautiful!' the witch thought, before closing her eyes and shifting her position, looking for a more comfortable one.
Her large breasts caused her some discomfort as she moved around, but she managed to settle comfortably. Before long, a slight snore emerged from her mouth.
Séraphine had fallen asleep in her office while waiting for her client to arrive. This client was special for more than one reason, not least because of her possible connection to someone in a cult.
She was a Lamia, one of the socially and legally accepted sentient races in Shattercrown. Lamias were known to be powerful beings who possessed artistic gifts.
𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝
This time, the receptionist at Séraphine's detective agency was Keiko, a black-haired girl with Asian features who worked at the O'Connor bar and was Tania's partner.
She quietly filed her nails, occasionally turning the pages of an open book on her desk. She was just killing time, waiting for something interesting to happen, although she knew a customer should be coming soon.
Through the glass, she could see a slender figure pass by. Ignore the colossal lower part of her body that resembles a snake; it's these features that make Keiko's black eyes show excitement.
Luckily, the door was wide enough to let her through; after all, not only humans lived in Blume. Under the soft chime of the chimes at the entrance, a beautiful woman entered.
Her long, lilac hair fell down her shoulders and adorned her sharp ears, vaguely resembling the appearance of extinct Elves, beings from before any civilization or culture in the world.
Her yellowish eyes had sharp, snake-like pupils, and a long, partially forked tongue emerged from her red lips as she sensed the air of the place.
Her human torso was covered by a blue, floral-print dress that revealed her arms, which were partially covered by dark green scales.
Her hands ended in sharp, red-painted nails. She held the door carefully, not wanting to break it. However, the woman's eyes widened as she felt the hardness of the material she had.
"It's alchemically treated metal. The boss doesn't want to inconvenience her clients," said Keiko, standing up from her seat and approaching the lamia with long strides.
"Welcome to the Detective Rohan Agency. It's a pleasure to meet you," she said, bowing slightly. This gesture only made the height difference more noticeable to a third party.
The woman's lower half was that of a huge snake. Its upper scales were the same color as her hands, while its lower scales were gray, ending in a deep purple hue.
Its upper half stood much higher than a normal person's height, raised like a cobra when threatened.
This forced Keiko, who was already short, to raise her gaze to make direct eye contact with the client. With such defining features, how could she not recognize the famous actress in front of her?
Madeleine Abraham! Not only did she act in the emerging world of cinema as a leading star, but she also played her last role in a mega production about to be released.
All in color! Advertisements about the movie were circulating in the town. Posters featuring Madeleine were especially sought after, and luckily, Keiko had one at home.
There was so much fuss about this film, not because it was the first color film, that honor went to another work, but because the budget was 3.9 million Aureum. It was an exaggerated amount, but according to the rumors, it had been completely worth it.
Madeleine recognized the look in the secretary's eyes because she was used to it. She sketched a delicate, professional smile and bent her body. She was relatively short.
"Thank you for your reception. I think you already know who I am, don't you? Could you put me through to Detective Rohan?" the actress asked, winking at Keiko. Keiko turned red with excitement and stepped aside, leaving the way clear for the Lamia.
"My boss has been waiting for you! If you follow that direction, you can find her office. You can't miss it," said Keiko, indicating the way. Madeleine nodded, still smiling.
"Thank you for your hard work. Here's a gift." The actress bent her body flexibly and brought one of her hands toward the end of her tail, pulling off one of the scales with relative ease.
She then offered this piece of her purple body to the secretary, who was overwhelmed with excitement. She couldn't believe what she was holding in her hand! A piece of Madeleine Abraham was far more valuable than any autograph she could have asked for.
"Oh, for Mother Light!" Keiko leaned against a wall, enduring the dizziness, but her huge smile would not be taken away.
She stared obsessively at the scale in her hand, thinking about what to do with it. Although it was a simple piece, it was somewhat heavy. For all she knew, it was harder than iron. A few ideas came to her mind.
"I must wear this close to my heart," the girl murmured. Then she thought about where she could find someone to drill a small hole in the scale so she could attach a piece of metal and wear it as a pendant.
"But first, I have to change my pants," said Keiko, feeling uncomfortable from the sudden wetness darkening her jeans. Her face flushed again.
"I did that in front of Madeleine Abraham! She must have noticed." The secretary wished the earth would swallow her up. Without hesitating, she went to the room where she kept a change of clothes.
𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝𑄝