Rot Heart: A LitRPG of Rot Magic in an Ancient World (Book 1 completed)

Div and En walked out of the school, ready to head home and pick up Cassandra's journals. But as they passed the gate, they noticed Gennorina was waiting for them.

"What was that about?" She asked.

"Vedovessa overheard us," they said. "You shouldn't wait too long if you want to keep your achievement a surprise."

"Oh… Then the other thing we talked about?"

"I'm going to deal with that now."

"Are you sure you don't want me to come with you?" She asked.

"It's fine. Don't worry."

"Then, I'll go see Brigaseta. She's the one teaching me druidic magic, I need to report to her. Good luck, Diven."

"Thank you, Gennorina."

Div and En walked quietly to Belilamos and Carmeta's house. They were trying to figure out how they would announce Cassandra's death to Theaphilia.

Nothing came to mind.

They had to speak to her. They owed her. Even if they didn't, both of them agreed it was the right thing to do.

Maybe they could have been more respectful with Cassandra's remains. But their situation had been dire at the time. They had done what they could.

Why were they so anxious? It's not like they could have done anything to save her. Cassandra was gone long before even their parents were born.

Before they knew it, they stood before the door of their new home. They opened it.

"Diven!" Dubnonamos called as he noticed them enter. The kid had been playing in the living room. He jumped toward the entrance, making sure his feet stayed glued together.

"My legs are stuck together."

"Really?" Div and En asked. "How did you do that?"

"A monster cast a spell on me!" Dubno said.

Div and En wanted to humor the boy, they had grown closer over the past weeks. But their mind wasn't into it. They wished Dubno would leave them alone.

"Dubno," Carmeta said as if noticing their distress. "Don't be silly."

She looked at Div and En, and asked them how their day went.

"It went well," they said. "But I need to talk to Theaphilia."

"Now? It's a bit late…" Carmeta said.

"It's important."

"Then go, I'll save a plate for you if you're not back for dinner."

Div and En stopped by their room to grab the bag where they kept the three journals. Despite everything they'd been through—and the books' age—they were still in good condition.

By the time they arrived at Theaphilia's house, it was already night. They had grown accustomed to the faint drizzle constantly falling on Camboaci, so they didn't mind waiting in front of the door for a moment.

Just a moment.

To catch their breath.

They didn't know what to say. Their heart was pounding. They almost felt dizzy.

Stepping from one foot to the other, they hesitated. Of course, they knew they couldn't delay forever, but they still didn't know what to say.

Something inside of them was hoping that Theaphilia wasn't home.

But they wouldn't know until they knocked on the door.

[En, let's do it.]

They took a deep breath, counted to three, and knocked on the door.

Three knocks. Not too loud, but strong enough that she should have heard them.

Then they waited.

Maybe she really wasn't there.

Just as they were about to turn their heels and return home, the door opened.

"Div, En, what are you doing here this late?" Theaphilia asked.

"Theaphilia," they said. "Um, there's something we found out… Today… I mean in the rift."

"Yes?" Theaphila said, confused by their blabbering. "Speak clearly."

"It's, Um, how do we say it…"

"Alright, come in. Maybe it will be easier inside."

Sheepishly, Div and En stepped into Theaphilia's home. She sat them down in her living room and asked, "So, what is it? Did you get another ridiculous skill that's messing with your head? Did you figure out something about your evolution? Don't tell me you actually went and told the truth to your friends. If so, that's good."

"No," Div and En said. "It's none of that."

They paused again, trying to find the words.

Did you know this story is from Royal Road? Read the official version for free and support the author.

"Then what is it?" Theaphilia asked.

[It's even harder than I thought.]

(I know, let's just start from the beginning.)

"When we were exploring the rift," they said. "We found something. We weren't sure if we should tell you about it at first. But today, after talking with Gennorina, we realize it might be important to you."

They breathed heavily. It was time.

"Go on," Theaphilia said, encouraging them.

"In the rift, in a secluded cave, we found the remains of Cassandra Opheo."

Theaphilia's face froze for a moment. Then her brows furrowed, her eyes were glistening under the fire's warm glow

"Are you sure?" She asked.

Div and En took out the journals and handed them over to Theaphilia.

"These were in the cave."

Theaphilia received the three books from Div and En's hands and opened the first carefully. After reading the first pages, she closed her eyes. A single tear rolled down her cheek.

"This is real," she said, her aged voice cracking. She clutched the book in her hands and whispered, "I've finally found you," as a sob escaped her throat—one she had been holding on to for a lifetime.

Div and En stayed silent as Theaphilia resumed her reading.

They remembered all of it, Cassandra's determination when she was left alone, her experiments with mind magic. When she found the rift and decided to enter, how she quickly mastered the fifth direction, all the multitasking exercises she devised. The pride that shone through the page when she unlocked Facet of the Multimind.

(We may not have fallen into this situation if not for her, but we would probably not be alive to appreciate it.)

Soon, Theaphilia reached the end of the third journal. She flipped through the remaining blank pages and raised her head toward Div and En.

She didn't need to ask. They knew what she wanted to know.

"We don't know what happened. But when we found her remains, she was lying in the cave," they said. "We buried her inside the rift."

Theaphilia didn't say anything for a time. She was looking at the ceiling, her eyes opened.

Div and En could imagine what was going through her head. They didn't interrupt.

Eventually, she spoke, "Div, En, I have to thank you for bringing this to me. You have no idea how much it means."

"We should have told you as soon as we learned you were of the Opheo clan."

"I understand why you didn't," Theaphilia said, waving her hand. "It doesn't matter now."

She sighed, "It explains how you ended up splitting your personality. It's dangerous to practice Mind Magic, Cassandra must have been particularly gifted for her to have so much success so quickly."

She must have been," Div and En said. "We have to admit—we were jealous of how quickly she progressed when we read her journals."

"Ah, don't let anyone else in the village hear you say this. All your peers are already envious, no need to add fuel to the fire."

Div and En were startled. They hadn't thought about it from this perspective yet.

She put her hand on the first journal's cover and added, "You must have guessed it by now, I'm the sister Cassandra wrote about in her journal. The one who exiled her."

Div and En nodded.

"I wasn't thrilled about it. But at the time, I was convinced it was the right solution. I was sure that with her Mind Magic, Cassandra couldn't be allowed near other people. I would understand if you'd rather avoid me now. It must bring painful memories back to your minds. Memories far fresher than mine."

Div and En shook their head, "We have mixed feelings about Uncle Basil, but this is unrelated to you. We are grateful for your help."

"I see," Theaphilia said. "Would you take me to the rift? And to the place my sister is resting?"

"Now?"

"Yes, now. I've waited for so long, don't blame me for being impatient."

"But, it's dark outside. And there are three Evolved Ranks monsters in the rift," Div and En warned.

"Div, En, those monsters are nothing. Don't take it personally, but considering you were able to escape from them, I'm not worried about their strength. Let me show you what someone at the Evolved Rank can really do."

(Do you really want to return there?)

[No, but I'm curious about what Theaphilia can do.]

"Fine," they said. "The rift is located underwater, upstream of the point where the Lien River stops being navigable."

"Good, let's go," she said.

"We don't have our weapons," Div and En said.

"You won't need them. You have me."

As soon as they stepped outside the house, Theaphilia warned Div and En that she was going to use a spell.

"I'm sure you've already seen the Opheo clan's sky magic in action."

"Seen, not experienced," Div and En said.

"There's a first time for everything," Theaphilia said. Then, she waved her hand, flexed her mana and, without giving Div and En the time to process what was happening, they were flying into the night.

The lights of Camboaci slowly faded behind them as they flew toward the Lien River. With the constantly cloudy sky, there wasn't much light illuminating the forest at night. However, the river was large enough that they could see it.

Theaphilia hovered at a low altitude with them as they passed the point where Diven had been abandoned by his uncle. Soon, they saw the faint purple glow of the rift portal shine from the riverbed.

"Is it this one?" Theaphilia asked.

Div and En confirmed it was. They had only seen it once, but the memory was imprinted into their minds.

Theaphilia checked if Div and En were truly willing to return into the rift.

They were.

Theaphilia had helped them so much, they couldn't let her down.

With the power of the Evolved Rank, they dove into the river and, in an instant, passed through the portal.

They landed in the snow. This familiar snow that had been the backdrop of their lives for so long.

[In a way, this is our birthplace.]

(It doesn't feel good when you say it like this.)

"Let's start by dispelling this pesky mist," Theaphilia said, reminding Div and En that without the appropriate skill, the rift was covered in fog.

But all Theaphilia had to do was blanket the area with her mana, and she was free of the Feline's skill.

"Which way is it?" She asked.

Div and En pointed toward the mountains.

With Theaphilia's ability to fly, it took less than an hour to reach the cave.

Div and En stood to the side as Theaphilia crouched in front of her sister's grave.

"Cassandra," she said. "I'm sorry. Back then, if only I had the strength and the wisdom to stand up to the elders."

She shook her head, placing her hand on the snow beneath which Cassandra rested.

"And yet, we call the Lienien people barbarians."

After long minutes spent mourning, Theaphilia stood up.

"Div, En, do you know how rifts are closed?"

"By killing the most powerful creatures inside," they answered.

"That's right. For a Basic Rank rift, it would mean exterminating the entire monster population of the rift. But since this is an Evolved Rank rift, hunting those three self-proclaimed guardians will be enough to collapse the entrance portal."

"Are you going to kill them?"

"They killed my sister," Theaphilia said. "I wouldn't be true to myself if I didn't seek revenge."

Div and En wanted to argue that the guardians weren't directly responsible for Cassandra's death. They were even quite distressed that they didn't get the chance to steal her skills.

Still, it's not like they wouldn't have killed her if they had the opportunity. Plus, Div and En had their own revenge to accomplish.

Theaphilia flew them into the sky, in search of Dog, Feline, and Bird.