Chapter 346 - Suspicious Sirens and Swimming Squirrels Wavering bands of light danced across the vaulted ceiling, shifting with the gentle pattern of the water below over a mosaic of the Moons. Kai glided toward the edge of the swimming pool. His fingers brushed the smooth tiles; he tucked in his legs to flip and pushed his feet against the wall to dive backward for another lap. Using Blessed Swimmer, he slipped beneath the surface without creating so much as a ripple. The water was heated, and the slight chill he felt upon first entering had already disappeared. There were no floating ropes to divide the pool into lanes, but the geometric patterns on the bottom let him easily swim straight. The tiles were white and pale gray squares, nearly silver, larger than the thumb-sized ones he commonly saw on Earth. Still, the similarities were nostalgic, dragging up memories from his past life. Back on Earth in fourth grade, his parents had signed him up for a swimming course. The doctors said physical exercise was good for him. Naturally, he’d hated it. More for the imposition than for a real distaste. It took him a few weeks of sulking before he befriended another kid and started to enjoy himself. A round head with freckles and a gap-toothed grin flashed in his mind, the memory opaque and blurry. They had been friends for nearly two years, but he also hadn’t thought about that time for so long. Water sloshed in his ears as he completed another lap and flipped, diving back without taking a breath. No matter how he tried, that kid’s name eluded him—not a single hint or letter. Did I forget it for good? A wave of melancholy washed over him. The irony of failing to remember while training a memory skill wasn’t lost on him, but that wasn’t how Mnemonic Mastery worked. Frantically, he recalled the faces of his family back on Earth, his old room with the blue wallpaper and the overstuffed bookcase, snippets of way too many online streamers, TV shows, movies and Pokémon games, biting into a slice of hot pizza, the cracking cement of his middle school stair entrance. Flashes of a hundred places, people and events flooded his head. Kai breathed out in relief, letting a stream of bubbles rise, tickling his chin. He remembered a lot, though… What color was my bike? Did Uncle Kev have a mustache? The minor details were blurry, and the parts he remembered he wasn’t sure were all accurate, or if his mind was filling in the blanks. After accepting his life on Elydes, he had pushed away the thoughts of his previous life. Consciously or not, he’d known he couldn’t move on if he clung onto what he had lost. Later, he had simply been too busy to revisit those dusty corners of his mind. How much have I forgotten? The pale gray tiles of the pool stood in front of him—another lap completed. Kai kicked the wall with more Strength, sloshing water over the edge despite channeling Blessed Swimmer to reduce the drag on his body. The most update n0vels are published on 𝘯𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘭•𝔣𝔦𝔯𝔢•𝓷𝓮𝓽 How long till I start forgetting the important parts? He wasn’t yet fifteen, his birthday just weeks away. How much more would he forget in another decade? What of two? Or a century? Would he slowly lose every piece of Earth? No, I’ll remember. I should have learned a skill sooner. Perhaps it wasn’t a coincidence that these thoughts came up as he was working on Mnemonic Mastery. He had to order and catalog the important memories, and impress them in his mind so they’d last forevermore. His lungs burned for the lack of oxygen as he threw himself into another turn for one last lap, creating an actual mental note for this plan. It would take weeks to parse through just his important memories of Earth, though the prospect didn’t discourage him. He did need to level his skill. This would give his training a purpose beyond Raelion or experience. Mnemonic Mastery required him to actively focus on the facts, images or memories he wanted to preserve. That made it more limited in some ways, but also stronger and easier to level. While neat in theory, a passive memory boosting skill would have been almost useless till the first specialization and too slow to train. More recent images surfaced in his mind. The cold, humid air below the lake. Chased through the dark tunnels. The fear. Losing Niel when he thought they made it. The scared woman grateful for his cruel mercy. Having some choice in what he remembered might not be entirely negative. Some memories clung to his mind and were better left to fade. A stronger stroke pushed him toward the tiled wall. He emerged on the side of the pool, where the lower bottom allowed him to stand. Slowly heaving for breath, he pulled his wet hair back. Contrary to Earth, there was no smell of chlorine; the pool relied on enchantments to remain clean. They were somewhere beneath the Hydralis Tower. The place was double the size of an Olympic swimming pool, crossed by two rows of columns that descended into the water from the vaulted ceiling. Apparently, it was one of the smaller ones. What do they even use them for? It was the first time Kai felt like he was going to a rich-kid school. He had even gotten two pairs of swimwear for free. The trunks reached above his knee, the same burgundy of his uniform with the wand and tome crest of Mana Studies on his right leg— “You okay?” A voice called behind him. “You were down for quite a while.” Kai turned to find Rain, watching him. His friend possessed an uncanny ability to cloak his presence underwater that he had yet to figure out. I won’t get spooked again. “Just got lost thinking. I’m good. It’s been a while since I went swimming.” “Ohh, I get that.” Rain nodded, bouncing around the pool floor. If the lack of fins or tail bothered him, he hadn’t shown it, gliding through the pool like a kid on a sugar rush. “I missed it too. It’s not like swimming in the sea. But still nice. A little odd that the water isn’t salty. And too warm, but nice.” He drew a hand over the surface, making a fat turkey construct hobble out of the water. “Do you know who invented this pool? It’s a great idea!” “Huh, I’ll ask Eleanor if she knows.” “Eleanor?” Kai frowned. “One of the librarians. She’s really helpful to find interesting books,” he said, creating a cub bear to chase the turkey, already on the next topic. “I read people couldn’t dive for long without coming up to breathe. But I also heard that some humans couldn’t swim.” He shook his head, chuckling at what he thought was a ridiculous idea. “You can’t believe every rumor. Anyway, why were you swimming in a straight line back and forth?” “That…” Kai blinked to keep up with the disconnected ramblings. “It’s… It’s easier to keep track of how much I’ve swam that way.” “Oh, I see…” He tilted his head, still looking perplexed. “But why do you need to keep track? And what about the distance in depth then? I guess it’s not too big a deal if you keep to the surface. The pool is quite shallow.” Kai glanced at the ten-meter-deep section as his friend kept talking. It was the first evening of their weekend, and Rain was only becoming more energetic with each passing minute. I can’t blame a siren for missing the water. “I don’t know. I just like to measure how far I swim,” Kai said. A shrug seemed the only good response to the endlessly spilling questions. He couldn’t exactly say that swimming laps was an old habit. It probably wouldn’t make sense to a siren anyway, and in fairness, he didn’t know if even the other students would understand. Rain didn’t seem to mind the non-answer. The herd of water animals had grown around him. With a flick of his hand, he sent the constructs back into the pool, giving a complicated look as they returned to the water. A moment later, his half-smile was back. “Sorry, I’m rambling. I hadn’t realized how much I needed this. Thanks for coming with me.” He crossed his legs and sat half a meter below the surface, floating on an invisible chair. “Thank you for accompanying me. You have yet to tell me the mnemonic. If you’ve forgotten, we’ll have to keep at it for who knows how many hours.” He gave a mischievous grin, as if the blabbering had been an elaborate ploy to distract him. “Not a chance. I remember,” Kai snorted. Since learning Mnemonic Mastery the day before, Rain had been helping him train it, coming up with random codes and stories to memorize. While Split Mind wasn’t like having parallel streams of thought—not yet, at least—it worked well for simple and repetitive tasks. Like casting familiar spells or keeping a mnemonic sequence in the back of his mind. Rain sniffed skeptically. The haughty act was undermined by his bobbing up and down, still sitting cross-legged. “Let’s hear it then. You said you get more experience if you tell someone else.” This story is posted elsewhere by the author. Help them out by reading the authentic version. Yeah… that was a mistake. Why did I tell him? Really, Kai knew why—he couldn’t relax swimming with everything he had to study. Training his new skill, along with his magic, had been a compromise with himself. Mnemonic Mastery wasn’t just about mnemonics, but it worked better when he linked what he wanted to remember in bundles with acronyms, rhymes, images or stories. The higher his skill grew, the wider and more flexible he could stretch the patterns. “So…” Rain watched him with an expectant grin. “Are you sure you remember?” “Yeah,” Kai said—recalling that ridiculous mnemonic wasn’t the issue. Do I really have to say it out loud? His senses spread to the walkway around the pool and the doors, making sure they were alone. The previous time, Rain had casually floated across the pool, forcing him to raise his voice, unaware that a janitor had stopped behind him. Kai had been shouting about a ravenous rabbit ravaging a giggling goose when he realized. It took all of his willpower to stare back at the guy and not dive underwater. Rain’s poorly concealed cackles still echoed in his ears. Keeping an eye out, Kai whispered the nonsensical mnemonic, a story about two families of squirrels that vaguely reminded him of Romeo and Juliet, only more ridiculous and filled with random alliterations and rhymes. It took him over two minutes to go through it, word by word. “Can you repeat the third part?” Rain furrowed his brows in confusion. “After the bandit turkeys attacked. Did you say 'sputtering squirrel' or 'sniveling squirrel'? You spoke so quickly and low that I could barely hear.” “It was a snickering squirrel. And I’m not repeating another word.” “Okay!” Rain raised his arms and gave him an understanding nod. “It’s fine if you forgot a few details. You’ve just learned the skill.” “Nice try,” Kai scowled. “I’m not so easy to goad.” “Of course not. If you really remember it, we can move on.” Once more, Rain’s sharp smile gave the impression that the whole conversation was part of some grand plan. And this time, Kai was less certain that it wasn’t. He’s messing with me. How does he do that with a single expression? “Here’s the next one.” Rain cut his musings to tell him a gory story about an optimistic otter hunting down the stuttering turkey who’d slaughtered his family. The contents were absolute nonsense, but had a pattern of letters and images to help anchor Mnemonic Mastery. Kai forced himself to pay attention, double-checking he’d linked every detail in his head. “Do we have to use talking animals every time?” “Hmm, fine. If you prefer, I’ll use elves and humans for the next one—” “Actually, I’ve changed my mind!” Kai said in a moment of clarity. “Animals are great. Thank you for the help.” Imagining substituting the squirrels and otters with sapient species, he couldn’t see it going well. At least, someone hearing him shout about talking animals could dismiss it as nonsense. Or mental instability, at worst. With people… he could think of far worse things they could say. He suddenly got a feeling he’d skirted the edge of a hidden cliff. I should have stuck with numerical mnemonics. “I can repeat it again if you need.” Rain asked. His face was the picture of unaware innocence—perhaps too innocent. “Don’t worry.” Kai narrowed his eyes. “I got it.” Am I overthinking? Or not overthinking enough? “Okay.” Rain shrugged. “Do you want to swim, or practice other skills? I promised Professor Alynne we needed the pool to train our water skills. I don’t think she’ll check, but I don’t want to lie.” “What would you like to do? Can we do both?” Kai asked, pulling up his new skills to check the pings. Mnemonic Mastery (lv1>9) - Lock your knowledge and retrieve it at will. You can memorize vast amounts of information and flawlessly recall details even under pressure. Using patterns, mental maps, images or codes boosts the effectiveness of the skill. Swift Learner (lv1>5)- Your mind grasps new subjects and experiences with uncanny speed. Every mistake becomes a stepping stone; every lesson an opportunity for understanding. The skill is especially effective in absorbing entirely new knowledge received in an easily digestible form. Once he’d set on the skills, it took two days to get Swift Learner. Learning already took most of his daily routine; he only had to shift his approach, working to fully grasp new concepts after hearing them just once. Mnemonic Mastery had been more complicated. Even with Jolene’s advice and the instructions from the skill path, it took him four days. Supposedly, most people took a couple weeks, but that didn’t sound like reliable information. At least it leveled faster once I did get it. Nine levels in little over a day. That seemed an absurd number even to him. He knew the speed would soon drop off. His growth was fueled by his attributes and the knowledge from the skill book, still… I can’t complain that Rain's stupid stories aren’t effective. Closing his window, he turned his full attention to his friend, following what he said thanks to Split Mind. That was quickly becoming his favorite skill—perhaps just behind Hallowed Intuition. “Are you sure you don’t want to do something else?” Kai asked. Is he feeling guilty for earlier? “I’ve already gotten what I wanted.” Rain excitedly bobbed up and up and down in the pool. “We’ll both be practicing with Water Magic and Swimming. C’mon, it’ll be fun.” “Alright then,” Kai said. “What did you have in mind?” If a siren offered to share some tips on Water Magic, he’d be an idiot to refuse. Even if he endured a hundred more pranks, he’d still feel like winning the lottery. “Something fun.” Rain motioned at the water at his side. A band of squirrels marched out of the pool, forming into ranks. There were eight of them, each one shaped with an impressive amount of detail. From their fluffy tails to their skittish movements, each one holding an acorn in its little paws. Kai marveled at the skill involved, tempted to pat the closest one. “You must teach me that?” “Sure, next time.” Rain watched him with a worrying grin. “I want to play a game first. I’ll sit still and just use my squirrels. Only Water mana is allowed and you can’t exit the pool. Each one you dodge is a point for you. And each hit a point for me. Highest score wins.” The crackling of ice alerted Kai first. He turned to see the acorns freeze solid when the first squirrel pulled back its paws and pitched the thing at him. The projectile flew at him with an angle and power at odds with the small critter. He got no chance to protest the incongruity before he had to dodge. Instinctively diving, he realized too late the acorn didn’t slow in the slightest upon crossing underwater. The hit was more stinging than painful. Kai rubbed his arm. His mind was still trying to puzzle out how the spell worked when more squirrels pulled back their paws to fling the acorns. Channeling mana into Blessed Swimmer, he swam deeper into the pool. Acorns trailed after him, ignoring the drag of water while Rain laughed and ordered the band of critters to give chase. “You cheated.” Kai harrumphed as he pulled himself out of the water. “You said you’d only use the squirrels you had summoned.” His body was covered by many red pinpricks where the acorns hit him. He wasn’t really mad—quite the opposite, actually—but he didn’t want to immediately reveal his unexpected gains. “I never said I couldn’t summon more.” Rain came out beside him. He sported many fewer hits, but the fact that he got any was already a victory. “A two-meter-tall squirrel?” “I’ve read that some species can grow very large. And besides, you’ve cheated too,” Rain peered at him. “How did you do it?” “I don’t know what you’re talking about,” Kai shrugged. He dried himself with a spell. Noticing the towel he left on a bench, he wrapped it around himself anyway. It was so satisfying to finally know a trick that Rain didn’t. “I can’t tell you what I don’t know.” He turned away before letting his smile show. “I saw it!” Rain strode after him with a pointed hand. “If you really want to know, we should do this again. What’s the fun if I tell you immediately? Or do you think you can’t figure it out on your own?” Rain had kept laughing right till Kai cast his own salvo of frozen acorns. It had been so long since he had gotten a chance to use Echoing Empath that he had forgotten his profession skill could copy the skills used against him. And it was even better after the evolution. The siren suspiciously narrowed his eyes, knowing there was a trap somewhere, but unable to see it. “Alright. Next weekend, again.” He smiled brightly. “But I won’t sit still.” “Okay, if you need to change the rules to win.” “I’m not falling for that.” “Of course not,” Kai chuckled. He didn’t really care about changing the rules. After all, his goal was to get hit by Rain’s skills. The more he got hit, the better Echoing Empath worked. He had already made a pretty decent copy of his skill to cast projectiles underwater, ignoring the drag, but he could always improve it. Or copy more skills. That wasn’t even the most exciting part. He pulled up the blinking notification with a thought. New skill learned! Water Shaping (lv1) – Enables you to finely manipulate water in all its forms, sculpting it into living patterns at higher levels. Walls rise from the sea, whirlpools churn in still ponds, and streams weave themselves into weapons and shields at your command. It sounded like an extremely specialized skill, and he probably wouldn’t use it, but it opened a new world of possibilities. This was the first time he got an actual version of the skill he copied—even if it was probably a grade lower than the original. Kai made sure to dismiss the window before Rain noticed him watching his Guide. It really wouldn’t be fun to reveal his secret so soon. They continued to tease each other as they headed toward a very fancy locker room. “I forgot to tell you I saw Valela this afternoon,” Rain said. “She wanted to talk to you about a few names she read in those books. You know, the ones you gave her?” “Yeah,” Kai said. He had lent her the cultist journals he’d recovered from The Intrepid and Limgrell since she was interested. They had agreed to stop poking around after ‘the accident’, but she was still quietly researching what they had. “Did Valela say what it was about?” “Uhm, she wanted to ask if you knew something about a few names that kept repeating across the journals.” Rain scratched his brow. “She wanted to look into them. I think there were four she mentioned in particular, Rowan, Eselya, Salmen and… Elijah.”