Chapter 3963: Wise Ruler (Part 2)

"Away from the Sea Heart, we can speak only from up close. While inside the village, instead, the houses relay our voices to the Sea Heart, which in turn spreads and amplifies them.

"Inside its area of effect, we can instantly share good and bad news like you surface-dwellers do by yelling.

"The Sea Heart breaks the isolation of the darkness and silence that always surrounds us, creating a deep bond between us merfolk over time. Its song allows us to perceive when someone is hurt or ill and to coordinate our actions against predators.

"Without the Sea Heart, we are prisoners of both our houses and bodies."

"You’re going to need a new name for it once we find a way to make it work." Lith spoke with a confidence that lifted the spirit of his chaperon. "This is your village now, and you don’t live in the sea anymore."

"Blood Heart would be as ominous as redundant." The merfolk nodded. "Desert Heart, maybe?"

"It sure would make Grandma happy." Lith said as he stepped in front of the stone resembling a seashell.

First, he enveloped the Sea Heart in a Hush zone and then removed the porous soil from its internal cavity. Then, Lith wore the Ears of Menadion and tapped gently on the Sea Heart. The noise it produced was indeed awful, but the solution was simple.

’The merfolk just crafted the Sea Heart with materials from the deep and according to principles that no longer apply now that air has replaced water. First, I need to understand what kind of sound is pleasant to the merfolk.

’Then, I have to find a way to produce such sounds on the surface and lastly deliver the knowledge the merfolk need to craft a working Desert Heart without making it too easy for them to succeed.’ Lith thought.

"Can you please give me a demonstration of how the Sea Heart is supposed to work?" He actually asked.

"No problem." The merfolk replied, putting his hand on Lith’s shoulder. "The Sea Heart produces no sound on its own. Its role is to collect and amplify solely the songs my people produce. Songs like this one."

Lith felt a slow hum emanating from his chest, which then reverberated throughout the rest of his body. He had no idea what the vibrations meant, but they conveyed a feeling of hope and trust.

The Ears collected that data as well, recording everything about the merfolk’s physiology related to their songs in the Library.

"I see. What you call a Sea Heart is a selective resonance box." Lith nodded, instructing the Grimoire floor of the tower to devise an air magic spell that reproduced the merfolk song down to the smallest vibration.

In less than a minute, the Grimoire completed the task, and the Ears of Menadion confirmed that every note of the spell matched the original.

"I’m done for now." Lith said after sealing the inside of the stone shell again. "Thanks for your help. You can go back to the party."

’Solus?’ Lith said via their mind link.

’Is everything alright?’ She asked from the dessert table.

’I’m fine. I just need your help with a problem.’ Lith shared everything with her via a partial mind fusion.

’This is great!’ She said with so much enthusiasm that she surprised Lith. ’Don’t think of me like that. I find no pleasure in the merfolk’s unhappiness. I’m just glad we have the opportunity to make a difference.

’After all, we befriended the merfolk of Zhen and introduced them to Grandma. They wouldn’t have come to the surface if it weren’t for us. It’s our duty to finish what we have started, and the fact that it gives us an opportunity to practice Void Magic is the icing on the cake.’

’What does Void Magic have to do with this?’ Lith asked. ’Also, speaking of cakes...’

’I know.’ Solus grumbled, putting down her plates. Plural. ’Sometimes you sound like my mother. Let’s meet in the Grimoire. I want to make this quick.’

’There is no rush. No one is going to steal your bunch of half-eaten cakes.’ Lith inwardly clicked his tongue.

’I wasn’t worried about that!’ She inwardly blushed. ’I don’t want to be rude and skip the party the merfolk threw in our honor.’

’If you say so, I’ll pretend to believe you.’ Lith asked a merfolk for the nearest bathroom and Warped away the moment he locked the door behind him.

’We can start whenever you want. I already set everything in place.’ Solus kept the mind link active, not to waste time.

Lith looked around, noticing the Eyes of Menadion on the stone pedestal of the Grimoire and the Ears on Solus’ head.

’Start what? You haven’t told me your plan yet.’ Lith replied.

’It’s actually simple.’ Solus said. ’The merfolk song is just a series of harmonious vibrations that the Ears have already recorded, and the Grimoire turned it into a spell. We are going to use Void Magic to convert those vibrations into solid stone and then back into sound waves and see how they change.

’At that point, we can use the Ears to analyze the resulting vibrations and the Eyes to identify the composition of a rock capable of absorbing and relaying the soundwaves without distortions.

’Once we find the right material, we need to give it a proper shape. Something nice that can symbolize the merfolk’s new life on the surface as much as a seashell represents their old life in the sea.’

’And you expect all this to be quick?’ Lith was flabbergasted.

’Yes.’ Solus nodded. ’We are the only two Void Masters on Mogar, we have my mother’s tower to help us, and we don’t need to produce a perfect Desert Heart. Just something good enough to inspire the merfolk.’

’Still sounds like a mammoth task.’ Lith shrugged. ’What’s our battle plan?’

’Sit in front of me, please.’ Solus took position so that her extended arms were one meter apart from Lith.

Once he assumed a mirroring position with the palms out, she conjured the spell, playing the merfolk song and amplifying it until it became audible to the human ear.

Lith captured the incoming flow of soundwaves and converted them into a small replica of the Sea Heart. It produced a jarring sound, but not only was it much better than the one emitted by the original Sea Heart, but the melody could still be recognized.

’This is a great start. Now let’s wait for the Ears and Eyes to do their thing-’ Much to Solus’ surprise, Lith rearranged the replica’s structure on his own, turning the music into rocks and vice versa non-stop.

’I know how the song is supposed to sound.’ He thought while focusing on the memory of the merfolk song reverberating through his body.

He used body casting to produce the right sound waves with every beat of his heart and then Void Magic to reshape the Sea Heart’s replica. Little by little, the noise faded in the background and the song became clearer.

’I’m sorry, what were you saying?’ Lith said once he reached the limits of his current skills.

’Nothing important.’ The tower had already completed its analysis, but Solus had waited to see how far Lith could go.

A few flicks of her fingers adjusted the final details and turned the seashell into a Fire Orchid.

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