Chương 69: Chapter 66: Memories of a Past Future

Doom. Impending doom. It didn't matter that Nolotl blinked and already found himself atop the frigid rooftops of the Central Tower of the observation room of the Void Tower, the feeling of impending doom was inescapable.

"I would give everything to start the loop a bit sooner or later," he sighed whilst peering at the skies, no longer illuminated by perfect order.

"Meeting this dreadful feeling every eight weeks will be the death of me. This cannot be healthy." Nolotl took a deep breath, his lungs being filled by the cold and humid air of the snowcapped peaks. He was feeling less and less every time he looped back in time, and he couldn't discern if that was a good or bad thing. Getting philosophical wouldn't do him any good, so instead he focused on his quest.

Lesser Alignment Assimilation Progress: - Light ▰▰▰▱▱▱▱▱▱▱ 28% - Arcane ▰▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱ 11% - Life ▰▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱ 12% - Time ▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱ 5% - Information ▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰▰ 100% - Space ▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱ 4% - Death ▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱ 3% - Chaos ▰▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱▱ 8% - Void ▰▰▰▰▰▱▱▱▱▱ 49%"Incredible how in one single loop I went from being behind the curve to jumping way ahead of it." Seeing that high Void assimilation calmed his sense of dread.

Impending doom was a nondescript feeling that only brought confusion, but seeing that number he could at least be sure that Enantyum wouldn't be expelling him out of the loop any time soon.

"Simply amazing how much I've progressed in four loops. It's not just the Void assimilation here, but when adding all of them, I've gotten closer to a full 100% progress. With some luck, I might even finish other assimilations with only the byproducts." That was, of course, hopeful thinking. But he preferred to have baseless hope to dreadful despair in his mind. It did wonders for one's mentality. Satisfied with his recent success, Nolotl walked to the Time Tower holding his head up high.

Before knocking on the door, Enantyum bid him to enter as usual.

"Have you progressed in this new enterprise of yours?" the chronomancer lazily swayed his cup of wine. It was violet this time around.

"I would say so, yes," the gnosiamancer nodded.

"Though I tend to call them side quests." Enantyum chortled at that replied.

"So I am the main quest?"

"Is there anything else that takes priority before you?"

"No, there's not," the blond eastern man took a long sip.

"Glad to see that you know your place. Not all interloopers do." How many have there been before me? Nolotl would never trust the Regressor as a slave could never trust their master, or rather, they were foolish to think that they could. He only knew that there was a graveyard lost in time of people that preceded him.

"This side quest has actually proven to be a Boon for the main one as I'm advancing far faster than expected," Nolotl accommodatingly informed the chronomancer.

"Does this mean that you won't need all the loops I offered you?"

"It means there will be no need for extensions." He calmly replied in the most diplomatic language possible. Working at the status offices for years had shown him that good workers weren't rewarded with better salaries or better working conditions, but rather, just more work.

If he let the chronomancer intuit that he was failing but that now he had progressed and was more aligned with the deadline, that would inform Enantyum that he wouldn't fail to meet the deadline, but he wasn't quite ready for more workload as he was already pressed for time. Workplace manipulation at its finest.

"Well, just make sure to be over by the deadline," the Asmarramilish drank from his glass again.

"The deadline will be met," the Tezlan obligingly bowed.

"Though I have some inquiries."

"Do ask, I always can afford to waste five minutes." It always hurt Nolotl that Enantyum referred to his questions as a waste of time. It only showed him how far from being useful to the man he was at that current moment. And it made sense, at the very least the Regressor wanted him to complete a future Alignment Assimilation Boon and he was barely two-ninths done with the Lesser version.

"First question, do you detect a greater load in my looping cost?"

"None at all," Enantyum lazily responded from his armchair.

"I thought that you hadn't managed to solve the issue just yet, but have you done something?"

"Yes," the diviner nodded.

"Beta and I have developed this system further more to create was she calls an akyrodata storage. Using Void instead of Information or Time to transfer memories of a past future we have reached greater efficiency. Even if the cost has remained the same, we have compacted more information inside."

"Commendable," the Interlooper was taken aback by the compliments of the time loop master because they seemed… veritable.

"This discovery pales in comparison to the true utility of a true looper, or even a plain Interlooper, but it is something. Alas, I have the feeling that shoving information in people's minds won't work with everyone. I will tell you already, I have the feeling that Beta Methasome might be the exception to the rule rather than the standard."

"I will have that in mind." His words weren't a lie. Nolotl was painfully aware how divergent Beta was from the average person. Most wouldn't accept to die as easily as her. Was it apathy or sympathy that allowed her to walk to her death in the hopes that one version of herself would finally succeed?

"Now for my second and last question." His question was one that wasn't born in this loop, but a previous one. There were two reasons why he hadn't inquired about it before. First, Enantyum was a bit pissed with the increase in cost so Nolotl didn't want to push his luck. Second, he didn't want to explain what the real cause of the issue was as it could lead to the Ehecatl. Now, however, he had an excuse.

"I've developed a spell for the processing of all of this compacted information, and I got quite the queer notification from Real-Time Status. It said the following 'Warning: You have taken a first step into understanding the totality of reality' and I have no idea what it means. Do you have any clue?"

"Huh, I didn't expect you would get to spellcrafting this early," Enantyum added relaxedly.

"Is that a yes?" The diviner frowned. The chronomancer nodded.

"I've never gotten that notification myself as I don't have sufficient Information Alignment for Real-Time Status to be that useful to me, but I do know where it comes from. It's one of the requirements of the Archmagi Title."

"Wait…" Nolotl didn't know how to react to that.

"The Archmagi Title is created?"

"Lots of Titles are created," Enantyum shrugged from the comfort of his armchair.

"It's only that most of them don't give any benefits."

"I… I thought it was like some kind of institution-certified Title like Tower Master?" Most of his Titles came from institutions, after all. The faith of Nochochenca and the Empyrean Academy respectively.

"I mean, you could have a modified Title that does that, but no. Archmagi is a Title that is earned not given. And let me tell you, it's certainly worth it," the chronomancer smiled in a mixture of melancholy and predatory hunger. Nolotl, quite literally, couldn't describe what type of smile that was.

"Erm… could I know the rest of requirements?" the young gnosiamancer gingerly inquired. Perhaps he was no longer a teenager, but he was still a young adult in front of an ancient mage.

"No, you cannot," Enantyum instantly turned him down.

"But… Hmm. If you do manage to complete Alignment Assimilation, I will tell you."

"That's… years away," Nolotl replied defeatedly. Support the author by searching for the original publication of this novel.

"Yes," his master added casually.

"It's not like you could get the Title before that anyways. And beyond that, I doubt that you could even get it without Alignment Assimilation. You're progressing fast and in a very biased manner. You're far from what one would expect from an Archmagi and that will play against you."

"I think I know what you're saying…" Titles were the 'physicalized' thoughts of the collective unconscious, what people thought that a person was. Yes, Titles could be earned without an institution of thousands or millions behind it, but they still rippled on the Cognition. And it was an undeniable truth that Nolotl Xocoyotzin didn't see himself as an Archmagi and doubted he ever would.

"What I can do, however," the chronomancer continued, "is use a bit of the carrot and stick. I know how you can get the Diviner Title."

"There's a diviner Title?!" Nolotl shouted in mighty surprise, which earned an unamused gaze from the Regressor.

"…sorry."

"Yes," Enantyum disregarded him.

"There's a Diviner Title. The thing is, the communal school titles aren't that powerful, so people don't go out of their way to get them even if they know the conditions. But theoretically speaking, you could get it in a single loop."

"How?" the diviner was practically begging. Nolotl didn't care that the Title wasn't powerful, it was just a matter of pride. And the fact that Enantyum said that is wasn't that powerful meant that it at least gave some effects.

"And that's where the stick comes from," the Regressor commented with some amusement in his tone.

"Only when you complete the Void assimilation will I tell you about it." The implicit message was crystal clear. If you want it soon, then you should hurry up and use less loops. That was basically what Enantyum was saying. Alas, Nolotl valued his free time and mind more than whatever any Title could offer. Especially if he would get that Title no matter what in six coils. But he wouldn't deny that he was tempted to know what it did. With a courtly bow, Nolotl put an end to the meeting.

That was one of the few powers the diviner had here. As the chronomancer didn't care much about him, if he was polite he could just walk away from his presence. It wasn't much of a power, but it was something. He was just glad that this periodic meeting didn't end up with some status effect. As for the rest of the first day, Nolotl had intended to recreate the first loop, but he was well aware that he was falling into monotony and stagnation.

He needed to spice things up lest he lose himself in the rocking that was the cradle of the time loop. When Cillin met him by the morning, he decided to confront her about a certain subject.

"Hey, do you remember Luminol?" the Empyrean of Information asked once the girl made a leaving gesture.

"Xanax's secretary? Yes, I do," the Tamorean responded without thinking about it much.

"I have the suspicion that he might be mentally unstable." Cillin frowned at him.

"Nolotl, I know that you and him don't mix well, but that's no excuse for such accusations."

"Oh, fret not, they are not baseless. But, if anything, you truly underestimate how much I loathe the guy," the Tezlan added without a kernel shame.

"I say this to you so you can run a covert examination as this is something I can't do myself."

"And why would I even do that?" she crossed her arms.

"Contrary to popular belief, I don't like to work for work's sake." Ironic that the workaholic said that, but he could understand where she was coming from.

"Because the role of Empyrean of Information will be free soon." Without any delay, the instant Nolotl finished speaking, Cillin's mind started to spill into the local Cognition. Your mind, Cillin, he informed her through telepathic means. The female gnosiamancer tensed up at her rookie mistake, but she was less embarrassed than on the first loop as no thoughts had yet to filter out this time.

If spilling into the Cognition could be compared to being spotted naked, then what Cillin did was simply noticing when she was undoing the first button of her shirt. Embarrassing, yes, but nothing had yet to happen.

"I see," she cleared her throat after recomposing her mind.

"How?"

"I will have to return to Tezlan after the total celestial alignment, so I thought that it would be better to ease the transition."

"And you're doing this out of the goodness of your heart?" Cillin crossed her arms in suspicion.

"That, and also because I fucking hate Luminol and I wish to see him dead." His harsh words and tone rattled the Tamorean, who lost her composure.

"Er... right," she was struck speechless.

"I'm being serious here, Cillin. Luminol is a cancer that must be extirpated, and he might even prove more dangerous to you." Nolotl had no way of telling how deep the astromancer's fascination with the Tamorean girl ran, but it was already disgusting enough that this graduate man older than 25 was fascinated with this barely adult woman. Truth be told, Nolotl wasn't sure if Amoxi Cillin was an adult. Cultures varied greatly, after all.

As Tezlan culture was a bit matriarchal due to the fact that biomancy favored women, the first adulthood started at the moment terians usually bled for the first time, so around age 9. Of course, no one considered this actual adulthood, it was mostly symbolic. Real adulthood was around the age of 15, or the age students entered the Empyrean Academy normally. This was more acceptable, especially considering that terians matured—at least physically—slightly faster than celestials.

But the truth was that Nolotl didn't feel himself like an adult at 19, and that hadn't changed after becoming 20-years-old. Tamor, on the other hand, also had two adulthoods. 18 for the first one—though they counted age weirdly and not directly through birthdays—and 21 for the second one. This was the true adulthood for them, the societal adulthood or so they called it. This one allowed you to be a government official and drink, which was a stupid segregation.

Meaning that for Cillin, even his current Interlooper self wouldn't be an adult. And that was why dealing with cultures and their aging was so weird. But even weirder was that starless astromancer interested for someone 10 years younger than him, not even taking into account the lack of adulthood or not. Which, of course, was still of great importance.

"I... can see that you're passionate about this, and you seldom are without reason," Cillin said.

"And I won't deny that there's a lot in it for me... so I will help you."

"Glad to hear that," he nodded.

"Though first I would like to have a nap," she added.

"I would hate if you didn't," Nolotl said with a smile. It was weird using a normal one with Cillin as he only learned to smile with honesty recently. The other gnosiamancer seemed to become aware of that because she slightly squinted, but she failed to comment on it. With a Tamorean bow, Cillin excused herself and walked away. From there it was business as usual. Working at the status offices, meeting Enantyum without much fanfare for his periodic examination, and lunching at the canteen with Clonazepam.

After that, he repeated the events of the previous loops by asking Beta for a bit of secrecy and making her invite him into her room out of her free will.

"So, are you going down the path of obscuramancy?" Beta spoke the same sentence after seating down on her desk's chair and protecting the room with a powerful abjuration.

"In a way, I already have," he pointed with his eyes at the cyan sigil of his Intellect Fortress that he had to summon to play out the script.

"But for you to understand this better, you need to examine my mind," the tall man—as far as celestials were concerned—knelt down and placed his forehead at Beta's armlength.

"I don't know if you're aware, but akyromancers don't inspect minds, that's why we have obscuramancers," she stated dryly. Her speech had returned to that mechanical aspect where she mostly repeated sentences and expression she had heard before.

"How am I even going to do that?"

"Place a hand on my forehead and you will instantly know it." Unlike the previous time, Beta hesitated a bit. It was her who had pressed the hand without any input beforehand, yet now she was suggested to do so. Of course she was reticent. But she looked at him with her obscure eyes, squinting and realizing that he was beneath him, both physically and power-wise, so there wasn't much of a threat." Akyrodata Storage Release," Nolotl said aloud the moment Beta placed her hand on his temples.

A polite way to say he was casting a spell as the divination didn't require any verbal component.

"This is... interesting..." the akyromancer mused, lost in words.

"Has the transfusion of memories worked?" the kneeling diviner inquired, already hating how the sweat beads were starting to form in the woman's hand.

"... not quite," she replied after a long while, finally removing the hand.

"This is very interesting, Nolotl, but this remains mostly information rather than memories. I cannot assimilate any of this in a timely manner. Was that the intent?" Beta was utterly confused, and how not? She had eight weeks of memories shoved into her head. Yes, they were trimmed—or pruned as akyromancers would say—but still weeks worth of memories along with the previous discoveries.

Due to both the encryption aspect tied to the Void and the fact that minds worked differently from one another, Nolotl couldn't read the memories of the past future that the previous Beta had decided to send to her new iteration. A rather simple yet robust method of encryption: plain obfuscation.

"More than intent, it was hope," Nolotl elaborated.

"We had the feeling that your next iteration—or I guess, the current one—wouldn't be able to deal with this much information unless we refine the process. The spell at my disposal is only the key, but you're the one who's developing the whole safe."

"I see, I see..." the abjurer tapped on her open palm repeatedly in thought.

"I would like to have a day or two to assimilate these memories of the past future. Past future... what a strange concept."

"Truly," the diviner nodded as he was equally lost most of the time with the shenanigans of the loop.

"Anyhow, can I ask that out of you?"

"Yes, I expected as much, so I will take care of some chores in the meanwhile," and this is a confirmation that I will need to come here before going to sleep at the start of the loop to get a headstart.

"But how you will notify me when you're ready?"

"I... if these memories are true and not a supreme fabrication of your invention, which I'm rather inclined not to believe given the proof I've placed myself in this akyrodata storage, then I will go out to look for you when I'm ready."

"Really? Will you do that?" Nolotl was surprised by his fellow Empyrean's offer. Especially one that deviated so much from the norm.

"I could simply come here to ask myself every so often."

"No, I... insist," she nodded.

"I want to see if I can fulfill such a basic task with the same spring that my previous iteration showed." Nolotl couldn't read the complex encryption that was Beta, and he always had difficulty scraping any detail out of her at the start of the coil, but now... he had the feeling he saw something. Not lament from her previous dead self, but rather... envy. The Empyrean of Information wasn't sure if he was reading this correctly, but Beta Methasome seemed envious of herself.