-----

”Worried about your daughter?” Wolfgang asked while meandering to stand next to Arjuna, who in turn was staring at the doorway leading to the Spirit World.

"Not exactly," Arjuna replied with a complicated expression. “I have full confidence in her. It’s just…” He left the rest unsaid, not finding the right words.

“I know what you mean. Siegfried is also extremely capable and there should be no reason to worry. Yet the Spirit World is what it is. Many geniuses with a bright future have failed to return over the years.” Wolfgang nodded in understanding.

The two men stood side by side for many long minutes, comfortable being silent in the company of each other while everyone around them was buzzing about in excitement. The path to the Spirit World would be open for a total of four hours, though naturally, not everyone would take that long. Most people would stay as long as they could though. Only a single young girl had returned so far and that was because she had stumbled upon a willing spirit almost immediately. Over the last two hours, many of the guests had approached Arjuna with their questions, but they had given up once it had become clear that he wasn't going to be divulging too many juicy details about Karna’s origins.

It wasn’t as though Arjuna was being secretive without reason. It was hard to answer questions about Karna’s mother since he had no idea who her real parents were, and judging by her nature as a Godling, that might have been a good thing. He also didn’t want to lie about it. He had dated various women over his life so far, but none of them were credible as Karna’s mother. Not that he would ask them to lie in such a way either, as he was rather big on honesty. Additionally, there weren’t all that many things he could tell about Karna’s childhood either. That wasn’t just because of her heritage though.

Arjuna was the first to admit that he had been a horrible father to Karna, just as he had feared he would be. In fact, he had been the first to admit it, once his numerous mistakes had been pointed out to him in detail by the little girl. In his defense, Karna didn’t exactly make things simple either. Normal kids would cry out when something was wrong, but no, not Karna. She would stubbornly keep quiet and just suffer in silence. The only reason she hadn’t starved during the first months was because Godlings actually didn’t need to eat. They got their sustenance from the spiritual power in the air. They still got hungry and could eat, but everything they ate would be turned into energy, and the miniscule amount of energy they gained from food when compared to their natural absorption was a joke. He wasn’t sure why or how Karna had been able to resist that feeling of hunger and stayed silent more often than not.

So no true need for food, and thankfully no need to clean up poop either. A parent’s dream, right? Not when that meant that the child never drew attention to herself and you forgot she even existed sometimes. He was doubly glad of her nature as a Godling because she seemed quick to learn, as he certainly never taught her how to speak, although he suspected that the servants had a hand in that. Yet she seemed to pick up the skill perfectly fine, just like she seemed to be able to pick up anything. Oh he gave her lessons on thousands of subjects after he had noticed his mistake, and teaching was something he was good at so he might have been compensating for his earlier mistakes just a bit, but even those lessons seemed like they only worked as a prompt for Karna to learn a totally new subject all on her own. He certainly never held lessons on even half of the stuff that she seemed to have picked up somewhere. It was possible Duskclaw or the servants were teaching her, but the more likely explanation was that Karna was doing her own research in his extensive library. The girl certainly spent most of her time there. In fact, any time not spent on training was spent there.

Another problem was that her nature as a Godling had been quite obvious at a glance while she was a child. She didn’t have the childish appearance that normal kids and pre-teens had, and looked more like a small and underdeveloped adult or late-teen. Her hair and Aura were also somewhat obvious, so it was hard to take her anywhere without everyone noting she was different. Hopefully, that would now slowly change as she was becoming a little older. Nevertheless, the fact was that they had rarely taken Karna anywhere, which left her plenty of time to learn various things, but he was painfully aware that they had not given her the proper opportunity to socialize or learn social things. Or even make friends with people other than the servants. She seemed to be doing fine despite this, but Arjuna knew that there would have to be consequences for the years of mistakes and neglect. He’d heard about kids developing wrong if they were not raised right.

It was perhaps fortunate that Karna would soon be attending the famous schooling institution that had made the Magocracy the target of envy among the various worlds of the Higher Planes. The institute simply known as the Academy was the finest place of learning in this world, especially when it came to magic, and many of the neighboring worlds had no choice but to admit it. Some sects tried to contest that fact but always failed. A mage trained by the Academy could go into any world in the Higher Planes and be accepted into a high-ranking position. When accepted, Karna would need to learn social skills in addition to the academic curriculum, and as a guest lecturer, Arjuna would be in a position to watch over her without being overbearing.

“Another one is coming.” Someone said loudly, and most of the people present turned to stare at the swirling tunnel beyond the doorway that was now visible as the green fog had pulled back a bit further.

“It seems my son has succeeded. Before your girl I might add.” Wolfgang bragged a bit. He would recognize the large frame of his son anywhere.

“Congratulations. However, this isn’t a race of speed.” Arjuna deflected, hiding the fact that he was just a little miffed that his rival’s son had returned first. He was genuinely happy for their success though, so his smile wasn’t forced as he looked on as his old friend and rival beamed proudly.

The large and broad-shouldered boy stepped through the doorway and back into the ballroom, not taken aback by everyone staring at him as he arrived. “Son! Congratulations are in order I assume?” Wolfgang shouted in a loud and brash voice to make sure everyone heard as he stepped closer.

“They are father. I have returned successful.” The boy inside the large man’s body smiled a little bashfully. Even though he wasn’t bothered by the stares of the guests, he was still happy to make his father proud and a little embarrassed by his reaction.

“Haha! Good! Good! We will celebrate tonight! Doubly so if we get good news about your brother’s success!” Wolfgang embraced his son and hugged him fiercely. He was truly proud that his son had made it where he had not. As he gave his son a pat on the back and released him, the boy turned towards Arjuna.

“Grand Medjai! My father mentioned that you might be coming, though I missed your arrival. It's good to meet you again." They had met a few times before, and Arjuna had a favorable impression of the boy. He was more polite than his father at least, and could at least wear his clothes properly. The boy took more after his mother, unlike his brother who was a copy of their father. Arjuna had heard that the brother and the boy's mother were traveling in her homeland, and it looked like that rumor was true.

“Of course you didn’t!” Wolfgang exclaimed with a laugh. “The Shadow Weaver can’t resist making an entrance at the last minute. He simply cut it even tighter than usual this time.”

The boy made a bit of a face at his father’s words but continued in the spirit of polite conversation. “I had heard rumors that you also had a child, though you’ve never spoken about the subject. Can I assume the rumors are true?” He was a little curious what Arjuna’s kid would be like, as they would inevitably spend some together considering the bond between their fathers.

Arjuna was just about to reply when he noted that he didn’t have to. “Well, you’ll get to confirm that yourself. I believe that’s my girl arriving right now.” It was hard to miss the white dress and tiny form gracefully making their way out of the mists further beyond the door. “Also, Wolfgang, I do believe Karna started later than your son, so…” His implication was that Karna had actually been faster.

"Well, you yourself said that this isn't that kind of race. Also, she didn’t start that much later.” Wolfgang threw Arjuna’s words back at him. “Besides, starting late is just an excuse. Show up on time next time if you can’t admit your defeat.”

“Father.” Karna’s cool voice interrupted their little argument. “Please tell me you didn’t place bets on who finishes first.”

“Eh…” Arjuna was about to defend himself while Wolfgang was about to continue his teasing.

Karna’s next words threw all three of them off though. “Because if you do make such bets, then you have to tell me beforehand. I could’ve finished an hour ago if I knew there was something to win by doing so. I could’ve also placed a bet if I knew there was going to be gambling.”

“Bwahaha! It seems your daughter has more balls than you my friend.” Wolfgang burst into a mad cackle. This girl had given him a great impression.

“An hour ago?” Siegfried asked with a raised eyebrow, taking a more precise look at the girl that was literally half of his height. Not that he could see much due to the clothing that concealed just about everything. The only thing he could tell was that the girl’s eyes were showing a lot of mirth at the situation, which was telling in itself.

“Yes. Time in the Spirit World is weird. It doesn’t matter how long you take. If you know what you’re doing, you could spend a year in there and return a minute after you left.” Karna explained simply.

“Of course your daughter would figure something like that out.” Wolfgang wheezed out, finally managing to get his laughter under control.

“Karna. Did you get what you came for?” Arjuna interjected, looking at his daughter meaningfully.

“Yes. And I do believe we should get going. I don’t think we need to stay for the rest of the festivities.” Karna replied, the message clear. They had talked about this beforehand, and they had recognized the possibility that it might be better to hide the exact nature of Karna’s spirit for the time being, as her spirit was likely to be something different. It was customary for the ones that chose to stick around to celebrate their success to also show off their spirits a bit, even if the new bond didn't really allow the proper utilization of the spirit's abilities just yet. It was a way for both the parents and the kids to brag a bit.

“I see.” Arjuna nodded in understanding. He turned to his friend. “Wolfgang, Siegfried. It was nice to see you, but we need to get going. Have a pleasant evening.”

“Are you sure you don’t want to join us to celebrate. We all have a reason to let loose a bit now.” Wolfgang asked, his jovial expression hiding the small probe hidden inside his question. Despite his appearance, he wasn’t a stupid man and Arjuna’s rush to leave was pricking his curiosity.

"We'll have to take you up on that at some later date," Arjuna replied and went to give their goodbyes to the hostess along with Karna.

“What was that about?” Siegfried asked his father. He had detected something in the tone of his father’s voice. He was perceptive but didn’t have the experience to fully understand his father’s thoughts and machinations.

“Arjuna is hiding something. Something juicy. And I'm pretty sure they hit the jackpot in the Spirit World. Otherwise, they wouldn't have run off in a hurry like that.” Wolfgang whispered quietly.

“Speaking of, I don’t think we should stay either.” Siegfried also murmured.

“Truly?” Wolfgang turned to his son with a genuinely surprised expression. He would’ve been happy no matter what kind of spirit his son had acquired, but it seemed there was more to this.

“Yes. They were not the only ones to hit it big.” Siegfried admitted.

“That’s my boy!” Wolfgang patted his son’s back again.

-------

Karna and Arjuna walked towards the area designated for travel. Most magisters of sufficient ability could utilize some sort of long-distance travel magic that was sufficient to move them around the city, but it would be inconvenient for the mages to simply appear all over the estate of the Duchess hosting the event. Many magisters decided to take the more ostentatious route by arriving via methods that allowed them to show off their wealth and might, such as fancy flying vessels or flying magical beasts. Thanks to that, the path through the gardens towards the teleportation point wasn’t very crowded.

“So how bad is the situation?” Arjuna asked, referring to how big of a stir Karna’s spirit would make once it was seen.

"Hard to give a simple answer to that," Karna said slowly and thought about how to answer the question exactly. Normally people didn’t get too much information about their spirit when forming the bond for the first time. It would take some time to fully explore all the abilities that came along with a new bond, made even worse by the fact that the spirit might be new to its abilities as well. The spirit would also grow in power and abilities as the master grew stronger and the bond between the two strengthened. In fact, exploring the abilities of your spirit and training with it was one of the most popular courses in the Academy. It would’ve been mandatory if not for the fact that most of the students didn’t actually have a spirit companion.

Karna of course knew exactly what her spirit could do thanks to the fact that they had spent several lifetimes together. However, she wasn’t supposed to know most of those things yet. “My spirit’s name is Gemini. It’s a bit of a unique spirit.”

“Unique as in special, or unique as in uniquely powerful?” Arjuna honed on the important distinction.

“Both. Definitely the first, but I suppose the latter depends on how well I can utilize the spirit. That said, the potential is there.” Karna clarified. Gem was perhaps the most powerful spirit in the entire Spirit World, but she wasn’t going to reveal that fact just yet. Most of that power was less obvious and could only be utilized by someone like her and Gem that shared a bond over several lifetimes.

“Gemini you said? That name implies a double of something or copying something.” Arjuna speculated thoughtfully.

“Yes. From what I understood from the little I was told, Gem can copy the abilities, powers, and appearance of other spirits. Of course, she has a limited amount of power currently and what spirits can be copied is directly related to the power Gem has available and the power I feed her.” She didn’t bother mentioning that just because Gem had a limit, that didn’t mean the limit was low. Still, it was true that she couldn’t just have Gem destroy everything by assuming the abilities of some high-ranking spirit right off the bat.

“That’s…well it certainly does sound extremely useful. I’m assuming you have to be familiar with these abilities and spirits that you want to copy?” Arjuna questioned, already imagining all the possibilities.

"Correct. As far as I know, that is." She confirmed, remembering to add a caveat to signify her "ignorance".

“Wait, you said she?” Arjuna suddenly noticed.

“Well, Gemini assumed my form when we met, so that’s what I’m going with, but the spirit doesn’t really have a form of its own, so the term is inaccurate, but calling a spirit it feels disrespectful. Here’s the thing though. Gemini has absolutely no abilities on her own, so if I want any benefits from her, I’ll need her to take on the abilities of a spirit that does provide some. And just because she can replicate the abilities of other spirits, that doesn’t mean she’s equally good at using them. The original spirits have a lot more practice after all. A fire spirit that has spent decades practicing throwing around fire will be better at it than Gem doing it for the first time. I was thinking that it would likely be a good idea to play her off as a support-type spirit for now. Maybe something that helps me with magic?” Karna suggested. She also didn’t mention that they’d had a lot of practice already and they had some favorites that they had mastered a long time ago.

“An item-type?” Arjuna asked for details, liking the idea. Supporting-type spirits came in many forms. Some were generic items that could be used as a focus, a weapon, or something similar, some were tools that would make specific activities easier, some were familiars that acted more like a companion, and some were nothing more than a tattoo or some other type of symbol that granted a slew of random but constant benefits.

“That would likely draw the least attention. I already have something in mind. I’ve done some studying on the subject and I think I know of a spirit I can have Gem copy for the time being. It’s going to take a bit of time to get it right, but we’ll get there.” And by a bit of time she meant five minutes as the process wasn’t instant, but once again, that didn’t need to be mentioned. When they had first started off so many lifetimes ago, Gemini couldn’t change the spirit she was copying more than once a week and it took quite a bit of time to complete the change. They had come a long way since then.

Arjuna gave a sigh of relief. They could make this work. “How about the Academy? Do you think you can start attending this year? Technically the limit is 10-years old, but most don’t start until they are at least twelve. The entry requirements are quite stringent after all.”

“I still have six months until the tests. With the help of Gem, I should be ready when the time comes. At least I can take the test. If I don’t succeed, then there’s nothing lost. And I'll be eleven before the semester starts.” Karna replied with a mysterious smile. There was a reason why she hadn’t been making a lot of advancement in her cultivation yet, but that reason would not apply for much longer.