Chapter 25 : Faith

K : "Thank you very much for letting me stay the night."

Katachi bowed respectfully at the Demanti couple.

F : "It is the least we can do for letting our son wet your groundsheet. Please, don't mention it."

Katachi looked at the two, and felt his book strapped to his left waist. It had not changed at all in weight, but somehow the book felt heavier than before.

K : "Still, Segus bless you for your kindness. I pray for the longevity of you two."

F : "Take care, Mister Katachi."

K : "I will- Oh! Would you two happen to hear of any other strange happenings here and there, besides the 'sacred ground' you two have mentioned?"

The Demanti couple glanced at each other, and gave an apologetic answer.

N : "I don't recall of other weird places like that."

F : "Me neither. I'm sorry, Mister Katachi. This is as far as we can aide you."

K : "... No, it's okay. It's fine, actually. I wouldn't expect myself to be able to find all the Words of Power bunched together in a single town. It would be odd if that were possible - The world doesn't work like that, does it?"

F : "... No. I guess not."

K : "... Well then, I shall be off. Segus bless the both of you!"

Katachi slipped his feet through the sabots, walked out of the door, and into the streets of Bellpot.

*** ***

K : (... It's nearing noon.)

Katachi had rested his items on the right of a small bench under the shade. Sitting on the left, Katachi had picked away at the wooden dagger with the carving pick for a few hours. From the progress thus far, the engraving was near completion.

Having no clues as to what his next destination is proved to be too dissuading. Katachi couldn't make up his mind on where to go - Heading South and toward Findel's capital, or heading further up North-East to reach Rulid first before heading to Mielfeud to meet up with Mother Rin.

Therefore, Katachi had reached a conclusion - Sit around the busy markets of Bellpot and eavesdrop on the conversations and rumors the merchants spread amongst themselves. Hopefully, by doing this, Katachi would be able to pick up topics of interest, and get a general idea of where he would head next.

... Or so he had planned.

It had already been noon, and Katachi was more-or-less finished the carving on the wooden dagger. He rested his back against the backrest on the bench, closing his eyes and relaxing under the comfortable shade of the tree.

K : (It's no use. I haven't heard anything interesting yet. Most of it's about the discussion of item price over item quality, like Sunnite purity over price, or Yellowfin Salmon freshness over size...)

Katachi's eyes lazed around the area, searching for something of interest. Without much to entertain him, he looked up at the clear sky, and the leaves that filter the sun's rays ever so gently.

K : (... I still can't believe the Word of Power I took was actually this... Useful. I mean, I needed to take the Word of Power before anyone bad misuses it, but I've also destroyed the Sealed Room by taking it. I'm not even sure whether taking the Words of Power are a good thing. So... This journey had all been for naught?...)

Katachi had, in an attempt to escape hopelessness, looked down and gazed over in the direction of a little girl which looks about 6, with brown shoulder-length wavy hair playing cheerfully on a swing. She was wearing a rather shoddy bodice that seemed too big for her, with a skirt that has a few strands of thread loose.

And, in the corner of his eye...

K : (... ! That girl has a Word of Power placed on her?!)

Katachi caught a glimpse of the girl's shoulder when the bodice slumped, which revealed a golden word on it.

K : (What word was that? I only managed to catch a glimpse of it. It was for a brief moment, but I definitely saw a イ on her shoulder. There must be more to it.)

Planting his feet upright, Katachi stood up and walked towards the young girl.

K : "Little girl?"

The girl looked at Katachi, and stopped swinging, wearing a big grin on her face.

"Yeah?"

K : "What is that thing on your, uhm, shoulder?"

"Oh, this?" The little girl gently pulled and stretched the neckhole down to her shoulder area. Where the arm was connected to the body lay a barren, golden word.

信.

K : "!" (She has a Word of Power!... Or, rather, she has a Word of Power placed on her. But, if I'm not wrong, 信 means trust. I wonder why anyone would need to put that kind of Word of Power on a little girl. Maybe she's dishonest or something? Or maybe they're manipulating her for some ulterior motive?)

K : "Little girl, that thing on your shoulder..."

"It's a friendship mark!"

K : (... She's been made to believe it's a friendship mark?... I ought to be careful. Whoever is wielding this Word of Power seems to be using it as a form of brainwashing, or something along the lines.) "Where did you get this, little girl?"

"I got it from Igtana! He gave it to me!"

K : (Igtana... A guy... I should locate him as soon as possible, and take his Word of Power before the situation is out of control.) "Little girl! Please take me to where Igtana is! I need to speak to him at the shortest notice!"

"Hmm? Why's that?"

K : (I need to come up with a convincing reason for her? This could be a bit hard to handle, considering her age... But the Word of Power should come first. I have to ensure it lands in safe hands, at least.) "Uhm, be- because... That is not a mere friendship mark!"

"It's not?"

K : (... I'm not sure if she can take the severity of the Words of Power well...) "No. It's not. In fact, that symbol there may prove to be very, very dangerous."

"How so?"

K : (... Do I really have to demonstrate this?... Well, if I get attacked by others for the Words of Power I have with me, so be it then. This is more important than having to worry about a bunch of people who can't even hurt me if I use 恒定 to make their attacks useless.) "Let me give an example, then..."

Katachi raised his left arm a little bit, showing the back of his left hand to the girl.

K : (恒定! Constant status - Self!)

A soft, dry and hoarse whisper sounded in the back of his head, and Katachi's left hand had a 定 placed on it.

"Wow! You can do that too?"

K : "Yes. Yes I can. But it's really dangerous."

Clenching his fist tightly, Katachi drew his wooden dagger from its strap sheathe, and forced the wooden dagger onto his chest. Naturally, it would seem ridiculous, pointless and ineffective, but Katachi felt the full strength of his arms forcing the object onto his chest, though it did not hurt in the slightest.

"How is that dangerous? It's wooden, not metal."

K : "! Good... Good point..." (What was I thinking just now? Of course this wouldn't be convincing! I need to try something more drastic and obvious.) "It's not metal... Huh. Little girl, do you believe that wooden axes can chop trees faster than metal axes can?

"No, that won't be right, I don't think? Metal is cold, hard, and more painful than wood."

K : (Good, let's cut a tree with this instead to prove how dangerous it is.) "It is, isn't it? But have you seen a wooden axe cut a tree faster than a metal axe?"

"... No. I don't think so. I've heard about a story of the young Rhuibat whom moved a goddess, and he was given a metal axe to replace his wooden one. I think metal would definitely be better at cutting a tree, since he cut the tree much faster than when he did with the wooden axe."

K : "That may be. But, what if I use this wooden dagger, a weapon not even meant for cutting trees, to cut a tree faster than a metal axe?"

"You can try, but Rhuibat took a few hours to cut a tree as thick as that one."

K : "I can prove."

"Show me then."

K : (Good. I've got her attention.) Katachi set the status of his wooden dagger to Constant as well, and walked towards the tree calmly. He then proceeded to hack and slash at the tree with a flurry of attacks.

It was quite messily cleaved into sideways, but the tree was felled in less than a few moments.

K : "Does Rhuibat cut trees this quickly, then?"

When Katachi had turned his head to look at the girl, she was in shock.

"... Wow... The... The tree...! You must be some sort of hero, or something!"

*** ***

And so Katachi finally managed to convince the little girl to bring him to Igtana.

"Igtana!"

I : "Femmi!"

A young boy who looks 8, with only his right arm waved at the little girl next to Katachi. He ran toward the girl, and shook hands- er, hand with her happily. They danced in circles, around their clasped hands and weighed bodies' momentum happily.

K : (This boy is the owner of the Word of Power?... He's missing an arm... But, why would he need to apply 信 on a little girl?) "Hello, uhm, Igtana."

I : "? Femmi, who's that?"

F : "That is the Super Berserker! He cut down a whole tree with that wooden dagger there!"

K : (... 'Super Berserker'? What name is she giving me now?...)

Katachi wryly smiled at the little girl who seemed convinced that Katachi was a 'Super Berserker'.

I : "Really? That can't be right! He looks so weak! That dagger of his can't be made of wood!"

Igtana walked to Katachi's back, and withdrew the wooden dagger from the waist sash. He felt and tested the weight of the dagger himself, he clipped the wooden blade with his teeth and knocked his knuckles on the dagger, and even inhaled the dagger's blade for any signs of 'metal rust' before being fully convinced that it was a wooden dagger.

K : (... What an exotic way of measurement...)

I : "That's awesome! It's a wooden dagger! A real, wooden dagger! Did you really cut a tree in half? How thick was the tree? Did you use magic? Can you cut one right now?"

K : "Uhm, Igtana?"

I : "Yeah?"

K : "... This may be a bit much of me to ask, but... Do you have something similar to this?"

Katachi showed the 定 still glowing on his left hand to Igtana.

I : "... Yeah, I do! Here."

Igtana copied him, and placed a 信 on his right hand.

K : (I knew it. He did have this Word of Power on him...) "... Igtana, do you mind if I-"

F : "Igtana! Igtana!"

Femmi, the young girl, happily ran over to them and handed him half a piece of bread.

F : "Igtana, here! Today's bread!"

Igtana's face quickly changed into one of gratitude and relief upon seeing the bread, and happily chowed it down with Femmi.

K : (... Half a bread... ! Wait... Half?)

Something struck him as a vivid idea. Katachi began sinking into deep thought.

K : (Half... If bread can be halved, can Words of Power be halved as well? It should be able to, at least, I think. Maybe I can try that...) "Igtana, can I have half of that?"

I : "? Half of this bread?"

K : (It's called a friendship mark for them, so I guess I'd play along...) "No, no, your friendship mark! Can I have half of it?"

I : "This? You don't need half, I can just place it on you-"

K : "Igtana, I... Uhm, this... Is pretty complicated... What I meant was, I would like the ability to place your type of friendship marks as well."

If all else fails, Katachi wouldn't know what to do. Perhaps he would have the boy take on a near-death state, forcing the Word of Power out? Or would he simply kill the boy by accident in that process? Either way, one more Word of Power, this early on in his journey, is bound to be helpful.

I : "Why?"

K : "Because, well, yours looks cooler than mine? Yours have three straight lines, and it probably means good fortune or something like that. If it doesn't bother you, can I have it?

I : "Hah? Oh... Okay then, but, is that even possible?"

Igtana twisted his face into one of confusion. He had most likely never heard of such a term before. It was no surprise, because he was young, but his response was expected and natural for pretty much everyone who didn't understand the Words of Power thoroughly.

K : "Is it okay?"

I : "Well, yeah, I guess. I'm okay with it, if it's even possible to begin with."

K : (I've tried 锁定 before, but never 半锁定... Would it work, I wonder?) "Here goes then, Igtana."

Katachi touched the book strapped to his waist with his left hand, and focused on the Word of Power on Igtana's hand.

K : (半锁定! Lock half within book - 信!)

The 信 on Igtana's right hand faded off on one half, leaving a simple イ behind. Katachi opened the thick, heavy book, and flipped to where the Word of Power would naturally be - A 言 was found in the page.

K : (... Nice! It really did cut into half like this... Then, I guess it makes the whole collecting-without-killing concept possible!)

I : "Whoa! Is this... Is this natural?"

K : "Don't worry, let me see..."

Katachi picked up a small branch on the floor, and gently scraped the paper of the book at its very surface. Slowly, the Word of Power filled up the scratched regions, forming a perfect 信.

K : (It works! Segus, I praise thee!) "It works! "

I : "Cool! Do it for my side too!"

K : "Okay, hold still now..."

Katachi dabbed his finger into a small puddle of water next to them, and drew 言 on Igtana's hand. Naturally, the Word of Power he once held had been restored to its former glory.

I : "Cool! My friendship mark's back!"

K : (I wonder if it works... Well, I don't really know a lot of terms for 信, but I can try, I suppose. 相信! Trust Igtana - Femmi!)

The Word of Power surfaced on Femmi's forehead, and the two children smiled brilliantly.

I : "Wow! You can place the friendship marks too! That's so cool!"
F : "He can? He can! That's amazing!"

K : (What the-... That shouldn't have worked, I... I don't think?... Two Words of Power can affect the same object, but they cannot affect the same property. Which is to say, the 信 placed on her isn't Trust, but something else?...)

I : "Hey, can I place yours?"

K : (Oops. I didn't think that far!... Uhm...) "... Well, Igtana... The thing is, it's not possible."

I : "Hah? Why not?"

K : (Maybe, I can explain it to him in a way he could understand?...) "Because... Because my friendship mark is like a brush. I can draw out other friendship marks, but I can't use the drawing of a brush to draw, y'know?... Do- Do you understand?"

Igtana stared at the 定 on Katachi's left hand for a while.

I : "... Cool, so it's like those brushes in calligraphy that can draw friendship marks like mine. It can draw anything you want it to, but in the end it's just a drawing, not a brush, huh?..."

K : "Yeah, that's about right. It's a lot more complex, but generally that's how it works."

I : "Neat! That's nice to know-"

The abrupt ringing of bells disrupted their conversation, and the two children turned their heads towards one of the stalls in public with wide grins on their faces.

An old lady was placing a huge wooden tray filled with all sorts of bread on the floor, and the starved, poor children with ruined rags for clothes and dirtied bodies ran forth to grab at the charitable foods.

F : "Let's go, Igtana! I'm confident that we'll get a couple this time!"

I : "See you around then, Super Berserker! Nice knowing you!"

They took off quickly, and Femmi was moving in an almost... Unwomanly fashion. She ran with such recklessness and disregard for safety that it was almost as if...

... As if...

... As if her courage had been forced out of her body, transformed into a destructive, reckless form.

K : (... I seem to recall that 信 has a term related to confidence... But, what is it? It's been so long...)

He gazed from the same spot at the children running towards the daily charity event held in Bellpot to feed the homeless, with a strange, sullen feeling lurking in his heart.

*** ***

K : (... Apparently, the Words of Power can be halved like that. The book is surprisingly accurate.)

Katachi rested beneath a tree in Bellpot, laying on his groundsheet and covering himself with a comfortable blanket out at night.

K : ( 'The symbolism of the Word of Power holds its strength.' Interpreted another way, so long as the symbolism is correct, the power will naturally flow and expand. If a mushroom patch was divided into half and left to regrow to the original patch's size, it becomes possible to obtain two mushroom patches, much like I'm now having copies of the same Word of Power...)

Katachi rested his head against the bag, adjusting his head to get a snug position.

K : (I'm quite worn out today. What should I do tomorrow, though...)

Katachi recalled the dilemma this morning after having read the map.

K : (... I guess I'd go to Rulid, then Mielfeud after all. I did promise Mother Rin that I would be visiting every couple of moon cycles...)

Katachi gently placed his left hand over the thick book, feeling the ridges of the pages with his middle finger.

K : (... That's a really kind-hearted kid. He didn't use Trust on the girl, he used Confidence. He gave the girl courage to move forward, even when they're both orphaned. Though, I'm pretty sure that Confidence isn't exactly what Femmi needed to stand a chance against the bread race, the thought is that which counts.)

He stared at the book in his hand. What if, his whole journey had been a waste? What if Katachi's efforts were to be wasted, should he be killed along the journey, and this book full of Words of Power hoarded and taken from him? What if others corrupted with malice sought this book, and used it for their personal means? Would that not defeat the purpose of collecting these Words of Power?...

... Brooding over it wasn't going to get him anywhere. Katachi needed to survive. He knew that he had to live, to keep the book safe from harm until its power is harnessed to a climax bfore the destruction of it in proper can take place.

He could not accept Death - Not until his journey was over.

K : (... May the gods grace you, Igtana. Though, I wish they would grace me to the very end.)

*Cozy's Notes : Not all Words of Power holders are malicious. In fact, some simply wish to live a plain, simple life in peace. But Katachi, the young lad, is invading their lives in order to fulfill his own desire - So the question is, what exactly is Katachi's role in the story? Is he the hero? Or is he actually the villain?*

The harsh coldness of the night could not permeate Katachi's cozy cover, as he dozed off to a light sleep.