In the Greek mythology of Earth Erebus was a primordial deity born of the primeval void, Chaos. His very name meant 'deep darkness', the personification of darkness itself that was one of the first five beings to ever exist.

No way in any existing Hell would Li Mei ever trust an organization with a name like that! Even if it was a coincidence that they called themselves 'the shadow encircling the world', even if they had no concept of Greece or the Greek pantheon of gods, even if Faust tried to sell them as 'protecting the light of civilization'.

Their shadiness existed on multiple levels, and Li Mei appreciated none of them. Any big organization worth existing wouldn't have to purposefully hide itself from the world unless they were up to no good.

Besides, she really hated the idea of working alongside Faust.

Li Mei slipped into the bedroom and shook her friends awake. Thanks to her rigorous training, both Hana and Otto were fully alert within seconds without making a single sound. She smiled and held a finger to her lips to signal silence before speaking in her softest whisper. "My useless little master saw fit to finally come collect his... disciple. So we're leaving the forest now and heading to Brittalund. He's enrolling me in the magic academy there, and you two will be my attendants."

Hana nodded, her cute little face even more adorable when she tried to affect a serious expression. Otto, meanwhile, had a big grin on his face while his bright blue eyes sparkled with excitement.

Finally leaving the terrifying horror forest! He felt tears welling in his eyes, causing his vision to blur.

Until Li Mei tapped her finger against her lips three times, then tapped her ear. The established signal for 'be quiet, something bad's listening' that was so important when sneaking around the forest. Then she tapped her ear once and her lips twice again, signaling she'd explain more when it was safe to do so. Otto's grin faded in a flash, and he nodded his understanding.

Li Mei didn't speak much about her master in the year or so they were all together, other than to say she didn't like or trust him but he was the one who made their mountainside home. Hana already decided the master did something unforgivable and thus was automatically hateful, while Otto was curious what kind of person caused Li Mei to make such an uncomfortable expression whenever she mentioned him.

It was the same expression she made when sticking her hand in something gross while foraging for herbs or mushrooms. Or if an organ burst while she was removing parts from the inside of a carcass.

Revulsion tinted with a hint of anger.

"Don't worry about packing," Faust said from the doorway, lifting the curtain with a lazy sweep of his hand. "Let's go, my useless little disciple."

Li Mei scowled. She'd whispered so quietly, but he heard it anyway? And then couldn't be bothered to pretend he didn't eavesdrop with superhearing?

How annoying!

She ignored him since he didn't make it an order and retrieved important items left around the cave to save space in her storage. Data chips, the more valuable books, her favorite clothes and some bottles of various mixtures. Otto packed a rucksack full of food from the fridge, while Hana retrieved a box of weapons.

Faust watched, speechless, until they finished packing up. Then he led the four of them out of the cave, lighting his cigarette with a snap of his fingers. Up the familiar mountainside path, into Li Mei's garden where an unusual sight was waiting for them.

Hovering in the clear night air above the mountain summit was an enormous winged beast that reminded Li Mei a bit of how artists on Earth depicted pterodactyls. Long beaked skull, large eyes, massive leathery wings, and a thick ruff of shimmering rainbow feathers around its long neck matching the feathered crest on its brow.

It flapped its wings lazily, maintaining altitude with little effort. Sitting in the garden was an enormous wooden box covered in circuit-like array carvings, attached to the pterodactyl by way of a complicated metal harness.

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[Eubari]

Adult Great Crested Roc

Female

Rank 5 (2.3%)

When sensing danger Great Crested Rocs emit a pheromone that inflicts horrifying hallucinations, keeping them from being assaulted. They're strong fliers with efficient natural Cores giving them impressive wind-based magic, and are able to stay in the air for weeks at a time without rest by absorbing mana and eating smaller creatures they come across midflight.

Very valuable since they're ideal for people planning long distance air travel, but difficult to capture or tame.

Value: 78000000c for a live adult, 50000c per ticket for a ride.

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Li Mei swallowed back an impressed whistle. She'd long started Scanning things to get as much information as possible, and that included having a general idea of what value stuff had in the world. As far as she could tell from rough comparisons, 1c was worth around 7¥, or 10¢, on Earth.

'So just chop off a zero from the total to make it something more familiar, huh?' Li Mei mused, craning her neck to get a good look at the hovering Roc. 'Those are still pretty big numbers though.'

"I wasn't expecting you to bring along strays when I chose this size." Faust sighed, patting the side of the box. The array patterns glowed purple and the door snapped open. "But you all seemed awfully cozy in that little cave so it shouldn't matter that we'll be in here for two weeks, right?"

Hearing that, Li Mei, Hana, and Otto took another few moments to rescue a few plants from the garden before following Faust into the box. Bao sniffed around the entire structure before reluctantly following them inside, watching Faust with a suspicious gaze the whole time.

The box was a furnished little townhouse on the inside, complete with lavatory and bathroom. Otto stuck his head out a window to make sure they were still inside that weird wooden box and not instantly transported somewhere weird.

"That thing can carry something so heavy?" Li Mei asked Faust, pointing up to indicate the colorful Roc.

"It's called a Great Crested Roc, and it could carry this box with us in it even if the weight-reduction arrays get damaged." Faust exhaled a mouthful of smoke, bolting the door shut to seal everyone inside. "Take a seat everyone, we're lifting off."

As though receiving a signal the Roc furiously flapped its wings to lift the box upward in a startlingly smooth motion, rising higher and higher toward the apex of a transparent dome that materialized as their altitude increased.

The air wavered when the Roc and its cargo reached the dome. Its pointed leathery wings punctured its transparent surface, causing it to shimer and undulate like the surface of a soap bubble. Everyone's vision distorted into a strange blur of colors that left them all nauseous.

Once the nausea subsided, Li Mei rushed to a window and pressed her face to the solid pane of glass trying to look down.

As she thought, the forest once again looked as small as it did when she was on the ground.

The estate was unrecognizable. Everything as far as the eye could see was charred black, and even the little lake had turned a disgusting muddy color from all the debris polluting its waters. Only the forest remained untouched, as verdant and proud as ever.

Farms, fields, hills, even the Fera stables... All burnt to the ground without a trace left behind.

At the thought of the innocent and clever Fera being killed by Oriole soldiers, Li Mei clenched her hands until her knuckles turned white.

"The Ancient Elderwood Forest is a unique magic artifact," Faust said with a quiet drawl, leaning to look over Li Mei's head. "Thanks to the same layers of ancient magic that compresses space within and disguises it as a plain forest from the outside, it was ironically the safest place in the estate during the attack. My subordinates will retrieve the relic later."

"Can I have it?"

"No."

"Tsk..." Li Mei scowled, turning away from the window. She pretended to cross her arms and sulk, pressing her trembling fingers into the 44 brand on her left arm.

Li Mei didn't manage to get revenge on Vigen with her own hands, having received his head from Faust over a year ago. Everything 44 hated and feared was burnt to the ground or long dead, yet the one responsible for her terrible situation was very much alive and amusing himself by blowing cigarette smoke in a disgusted Fera's face.

It left an odd, bitter feeling in Li Mei's mouth.

Back before Faust left, leaving behind a teenager to fend for herself in a violent and dangerous forest for over a year, he gave Li Mei two data chips. One had the Training Room program which her Interface absorbed, and one had a mana circulation technique she had no choice but to use since no other options were available.

However, Li Mei had two other data chips in her inventory.

She never peeked at them before since she kept getting distracted. But after more than an entire week of absolute boredom?

Days were spent tutoring her friends in reading, writing, and arithmetic under Faust's derisive supervision. He occasionally forced an impromptu lesson on her, or conducted an obnoxious test. With the Archive and Interface in general, such tests and memorization were child's play.

He also gave lectures and instruction on social etiquette in Brittalund, forcing them to memorize patterns of speech and colloquialisms. Posture, hand gestures, dining manners...

Otto and Hana learned quickly, but they were still exhausted at the end of every day. In many ways, it was harsher training than what Li Mei put them through!

At least she only scolded them when they were honestly responsible for a mistake through bad choices or slacking off in training, instead of scolding them for making mistakes through ignorance.

Her criticisms of their progress and ability was a bit harsh, but always fair. She even praised them from time to time!

And they watched her put herself through even harsher training, so neither Otto nor Hana felt they had any room to complain or ask for leniency. Otto felt bad watching someone younger than him do more difficult training without complaint on her own initiative, while Hana just felt inspired to work harder to catch up no matter how tired she got.

Faust mocked them the entire time regardless of their progress, and made them feel stupid with condescending sarcasm. Even if they got questions right, he attributed it to luck, a fluke, or his own skill in teaching. When he wasn't teaching, he was filling the wooden box with cigarette smoke and sleeping in one of the two bedrooms which he claimed for himself, forbidding anyone from bothering him unless the box was on fire.

It only took a day of lessons for them to understand why Li Mei disliked him so much.

Li Mei slept less frequently than her friends, aside from Bao who kept similar hours. She often lay awake long after bedtime, studying the Archive or scrolling through the EXP Shop for ideas.

After more than a week of being bored to death, one such sleepless night she finally remembered the data chips she took from Vigen and pulled them from storage.

'You'd think air travel via giant dinosaur would be more exciting,' Li Mei thought, rubbing the pad of her thumb over the smooth surfaces. 'Maybe it'd be fun if Faust wasn't around. Though if he weren't, would I have gotten so bored that I remembered the data chips? I forgot about them for so long...

'Ah, speaking of which. I also have those whatchacallits... Right, here they are. Two-Color Mist Pearls.' Li Mei pulled one out after scrolling through the screen displaying her cramped storage inventory. Another treasure pilfered from Vigen, but mana quality wasn't an issue before she formed a Core, and afterwards...

Honestly, she just forgot about them. Her attention kept getting yanked around to more pressing matters at the time, like the Training Room, and they didn't take much space in her storage.

The Two-Color Mist Pearls were pretty little spheres, swirling with pink and blue colors that made them resemble candies.

'Increases mana quality on consumption, eh?' Li Mei swallowed one little pearl after the other, until all ten were resting in her tummy. They didn't have a particular flavor beyond a slight metallic tang, much to her disappointment. At least they were small and easy to swallow.

Warmth spread from her abdomen to her fingertips and made her scalp tingle, but the feeling faded in just a few moments.

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[Mana Quality Increased]

Your Mana Quality increased by 1★!

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'Not bad!' Li Mei smiled and laid back in the bed, directing mana into the data chips to check their contents.

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[Black Jade Data Chip]

Encryption: None

Content: Contract spell.

Estimated Value: 28000c

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[Successful Contact With Black Jade Data Chip]

Copied content to Archive. Added Contract to spells.

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[Contract]

Create a contract between two individuals with binding terms that must be agreed to voluntarily. Both parties must be capable of understanding the contract terms in their entirety or the Signing will fail. Individuals with low or otherwise inebriated intelligence will not succeed in Signing.

Minor infractions or breaking the contract will alert the other party, and punishment depicted in the contract will be issued. Terms of the contract can be summoned by either party at any time and shown to others for verification.

In many countries, contracts using Contract magic are legal and binding, as the magic contains a unique signature that can be immediately verified as genuine.

The creator of the contract must contribute at least 70% of the mana required upon Signing the contract.

Each contract requires at least one obligation, and one contract breach punishment as well as established terms of what constitutes a contract breach. Minor infractions and punishments thereof are optional.

Spell Rarity: A+

Spell Quality: S

Mana Cost: 10 mana to summon a contract page and start discussing terms. At Signing, final mana cost is determined as follows - 100 mana per obligation listed in the contract, 50 mana per listed infraction, 200 mana for minor contract infraction punishment, 500 mana for non-lethal contract breach punishment, 1000 mana per Rank of highest Rank signee for lethal contract breach punishment.

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[White Jade Data Chip]

Encryption: None

Content: Message spell.

Estimated Value: 3000c

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[Successful Contact With White Jade Data Chip]

Copied content to Archive. Added Message to spells.

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[Message]

A skill that allows you to send a message to someone you've spoken to before, creating a small letter that flies to its target and can be opened even by those without a Core. The further away they are, the more mana it costs. Mana will drain constantly until the message reaches its destination.

Message travel speed is alleviated by caster's Mana Quality. Base travel speed is 1 kilometer per hour, with a 1/8 kmph increase for each ★.

The letter's appearance and unfolding effect is determined by the caster's visualization when creating the message. Only the target can comprehend the contents of the letter, though others can see it until the message is opened. Target will also be informed of total mana cost for delivered message, in case they are willing and able to respond.

Despite being a common spell, it has high utility function and quality making it more valuable.

Spell Rarity: E

Spell Quality: B

Mana Cost: For a text message, 5 mana per message per kilometer of distance between caster and target. For a voice message, 15 mana per message per kilometer. For a video message which includes voice, 50 mana per message per kilometer. Voice and video messages require at least 3★ and 5★ Mana Quality respectively.

-----

Li Mei resisted the urge to let out an impressed whistle, storing her data chips away again. What a haul! She really regretted not checking the data chips out sooner, and couldn't help wondering why Vigen never bothered to use the chips himself.

Maybe he didn't have a Core? Since using a data chip required manipulation of mana.

Or he was just bad at mana manipulation and couldn't use the chips well. Or... Maybe he wanted to sell them?

Their value wasn't low, either in monetary terms or practical ones, though one was obviously a much greater windfall than the other. Since the Interface copied the contents without breaking the chip, Li Mei could use then turn around and sell them along with the Green Jade Data Chip containing Hecatoncheires!

Jade Data Chips were meant to be single-use, and their color indicating the amount of storage space available. White and black were top-tier quality, while green was below average. More complex information, such as stronger or more intricate spells and techniques, required better quality jade to pass on.

Data was essentially encoded into the very structure of the jade. Accessing the data with a thread of mana allowed one to sense the amount of information inside and the quality of mana used to encode it. Absorbing data was a literal description of the action used, as the jade chip was consumed much in the same way as a mana core: by breaking down and assimilating the mana - and thus data - within its structure.

Such a process left only remnants of a brittle jade shell behind that couldn't be used again. Copying data without destroying the chip was truly an enormous cheat.

'I have the data chips, a bunch of valuable books, and a bank token. When we reach Brittalund I'll be able to get my own funding right away without having to rely entirely on Faust for everything. I'll wring him for what he's worth as much as possible, but it's also good to have my own means that he won't know about.

'From there I'll need to build more capital and gather information. I'll also need to network with other people at the magic academy if I'm going to make my own organization. People with useful backgrounds or skills, and most importantly, the right personalities and attitudes. I don't need backstabbers before I've built a foundation so I'll have to be selective, but the Contract spell will help a lot.'

An organization at her beck and call would solve many problems. Lower ranked minions for collecting information and gathering resources, and higher ranked minions to manage them. And she'd sit in the boss chair, reaping the benefits of hard work and loyalty!

Of course, setting up a decent organization was a lot of work, and Li Mei wasn't going to shirk her duties. She wasn't shy about rolling up her sleeves when necessary, and establishing a group of her own to eventually stand toe-to-toe with something like Erebus would take time and effort.

And money.

So much money.

She clenched her fists, staring through the darkness at a point beyond the wooden box and its Roc carrier. 'If I'm going to find out the truth about 44, I'll need to be a lot stronger. Not just myself, but my backing too. That filthy slave-owning child-neglecting bastard is Rank 7, so that's my long-term goal. Rank 7 for me, competent allies at my side, and a strong organization at my back! Then, when it comes down to it... I'll kill that bastard Faust with my own two hands. How much he suffers first depends on what I find out about poor little 44.'

After a long few minutes of silence, Li Mei rolled over and pulled the blankets over her head. With the vague outline of a plan establishing itself in her mind, she fell fast asleep.