[Twilight's soul has been bound with your own. New Miracle Arts acquired.]
The words hung before her eyes.
They were just like the ones Light had seen not long ago.
It seemed that now it was her turn.
Just as he was lost in thought, the girl's soft, uncertain voice broke his concentration.
"Mii...ra...kle Arts..." she slowly sounded out, each syllable a battle of its own.
It was, without question, one of the worst attempts at reading he had ever heard.
A warm memory surfaced unexpectedly.
'She sounds just like Euphy did when I first taught her how to read.'
The memory brought a faint smile to his face.
Returning his attention to the present, he watched the girl struggle through the floating text, piecing together words one fragment at a time.
'So she can see the boxes too.'
'And hers are probably different from mine.'
After several failed attempts, Light finally managed to push himself upright and lean against the wall of the inn.
Half his strength was gone.
The cause remained a mystery.
Since the girl was busy reading, he figured he might as well use the opportunity to learn more about her.
'She probably won't mind... I hope.'
His own blessing was already incredible.
It allowed him to borrow abilities from others.
Surely a blessing capable of teaching someone how to fight instantly would be just as absurd.
Taking a slow breath, he focused on the information he wanted to know most.
The girl's blessing.
The floating boxes shifted.
[Blessing: Warfare]
[Brilliance: Celestial]
[You are the living testament to the art of war. You reflect what this world has shown you; every opponent becomes a teacher, every wound a lesson, and every battle another flame that tempers your resolve. You do not fight for glory or conquest, but because war itself has become your very nature.
Armies crumble before your might. Champions fall before your blade. Even the heavens watch in silence, knowing that within the realm of battle, none can surpass you.
To stand against you is to stand against the march of history. And history remembers only the victor.]
Light released the breath he hadn't realized he was holding.
Finally,
After everything that had happened, he had learned something about the girl.
And just as he had suspected, her Brilliance was ranked Celestial like his.
Whether that was good or bad, it remained to be seen.
Still, there was more.
Familiar words soon appeared before him.
[Unique Miracle: Endless Campaign]
[The Heavens recognize that your battle is never over: Your mana pool is permanently doubled at every stage of growth.]
[Miracle Restriction: War Never Wavers]
[The Heavens recognizes your unwavering resolve. In exchange, powerful emotions are dulled and suppressed.]
Light blinked.
'Just like me...'
A Unique Miracle.
A Restriction.
Knowing he wasn't the only one carrying both made him feel strangely relieved.
'Maybe every blessing has them.'
His eyes drifted toward the girl.
'That explains her sudden changes in emotion.'
Unlike his own restriction, hers was terrifyingly straightforward.
'Though maybe that's better than having no idea what mine means.'
The words 'You have no Freedom' still lingered unpleasantly in the back of his mind.
Shaking the thought away, he focused on her remaining information.
[Miracle Arts: Hand-to-Hand Combat | Soul bound {New} | Mana sense {New}]
He already knew about Hand-to-Hand Combat.
It wasn't marked as new.
'That's probably the ability I'm borrowing from her.'
Soul Bound, however...
That was another matter entirely.
'If my Soul Bound is different from hers…'
'Then maybe both versions are unique.'
There was only one way to find out.
Without hesitation, he shifted his gaze there
[Miracle Art: Soul Bound]
[Brilliance: Celestial]
The Heavens acknowledges two souls as one. What one sees, the other may witness. Darkness cannot blind a soul. Light finds its way back to you, allowing you to behold the world once more.
[Ability: The world reveals itself to you: Gain your eyesight]
Light froze.
There it was.
The answer.
His gaze slowly shifted toward the girl.
Toward her ruby-red eyes.
Eyes that now carried life where once there had only been emptiness.
'Blessings truly are gifts from the heavens.'
Restoring someone's vision should have belonged in fairy tales.
Yet somehow, his blessing had accomplished exactly that.
Not intentionally.
Not knowingly.
But it had happened all the same.
The impossible had become reality.
'There is still so much I don't understand about this world.'
He sank slightly against the wall.
His strength was slowly returning, but the exhaustion remained.
Part of him had expected the girls Soul Bound miracle to explain it.
It didn't.
The mystery of his sudden weakness remained unsolved.
A startled yelp interrupted his thoughts.
"Kom...bat?" the girl read aloud, her voice rising in confusion.
Light looked up.
Their gazes met.
Seeing his attention on her, the girl immediately seized the opportunity.
"Um... Light?" she asked.
Her head tilted slightly.
"Do you know what all of this means?"
Even in the darkness of the room, her ruby eyes seemed to glow faintly.
'Actually... not really.'
He knew little more than she did.
Still, there were things about the world she couldn't possibly understand yet.
Even after experiencing his memories.
Living through memories wasn't the same as living through reality.
If they were truly bound together now, then she needed to learn.
And for the moment, he was the only person who could teach her.
"You know what Blessings are, right?" he asked.
The girl nodded.
"Mama said they were gifts from the heavens."
"Yeah. That's what I've always heard too."
He gestured toward the floating boxes.
"As far as I can tell, both of us are Blessed. I received mine six days ago."
His gaze met hers.
"And I think you received yours too."
"I see..."
The girl pressed a hand against her head.
A pained expression crossed her face.
"I can't remember clearly..."
Her voice grew quieter.
"The last thing I remember was..."
She paused.
"When Mama and I said goodbye."
Sadness flickered across her face.
Then a soft shimmer of light passed over her body.
Instantly, the sadness vanished.
Her expression became calm.
Almost unnaturally so.
Light frowned.
The restriction.
Before he could say anything, confusion appeared on her face.
Another flash.
Then calmness.
Confusion.
Flash.
Calmness.
The cycle repeated several times.
"What..." she muttered.
"What is happening?"
A short laugh escaped Light before he could stop it.
The absurdity of the situation caught him off guard.
After everything that had happened today, seeing her actively fight her own blessing was strangely amusing.
The girl immediately turned toward him.
"Stop laughing and tell me what's going on."
Her tone was perfectly calm.
Which somehow made it even funnier.
'She should be angry.'
'But her restriction won't even let her do that.'
The realization was unsettling.
'What a terrifying thing.'
If her restriction was this noticeable, then what would his eventually do?
The thought sent a chill through him.
"Relax," he said.
"It's part of your blessing. You read your restriction, right?"
The girl nodded.
"Then that's what's happening."
He pointed toward her floating boxes.
"You have a restriction. Just like me."
He shrugged.
"I'm not sure if everyone gets one, but both of us do."
The girl's eyes drifted upward.
"So that part was true."
"It seems so."
Silence followed.
Then another question.
"So does that mean I can learn how to fight too?"
Light scratched his cheek.
"I think so."
Not exactly a confident answer.
"There aren't many Blessed people in my town," he admitted.
"So I don't really know how all of this works."
"I see."
The girl lowered her gaze.
"I wish Mama was here."
A flash of sadness appeared.
The shimmering light returned instantly.
And once again, the emotion vanished.
"I don't like that feeling one bit," she admitted calmly.
Light couldn't blame her.
Watching it happen was unsettling.
Experiencing it had to be worse.
As her ruby eyes returned to the floating boxes, Light did the same.
There was still one final Miracle Art left to read, and many more questions to be answered.