Mythshaper

Chapter 74: Spatial Storage

Since the guests would be staying the night, I had enough time to finish another proper rune painting for Iris. I just needed some time to think about it, draw out the schema, and then manufacture inspiration and work tirelessly for a couple of hours—and bang, we’d have another showpiece. No pressure.

Thankfully, I got a good sparring session with Father to get the creative juice flowing. Obviously, I was struck by his stick more often, having my mind fixed on a different problem, but my bracelet helped me escape all the blows. It couldn’t solve any of the chiding, however.

Diana came for the afternoon study and kept Iris company. Iris’s mood had lifted considerably since her arrival, even her confidence seemed to rise along with her ability to manipulate her Influence, though I couldn’t claim anything about her conversation skills. Even with someone of the same sex and around the same age, she was as dry as a sun-cursed log.

No matter how Diana tried to engage her, Iris only responded with slight nods, speaking only when absolutely necessary. During all that, I noticed a domain of Influence flickering about the house many times.

Before I returned to my sketching, I once again had to entertain her, under the collective pressure of Mum and Magus Prisca. Well, I did learn more about the Dreamweaver path. I’d known that dream essence enhanced mental faculties and allowed one to enter the dream realm, and even weave dreams to their design.

But that wasn’t all. Iris could weave most of the elements of nature as I could. Her weaves weren’t like anything I had ever seen. It wasn’t something completely unique or complex, but to implement elemental forces with her silver essence threads, she was required to put a lot behind her spellworks.

Most of them felt like mirrored spells, replicating the elements. She could even mimic healing spells. While not as potent as those wielded by real menders with the Dawn essence, it was still extremely useful.

I couldn’t help but wonder if all Dreamweavers could manage such feats, or if it was due to her unique gift.

Without trying to be too nosy about it, I challenged her to a weave battle. Apparently, she hadn’t even heard of what it was, much less practised it.

But the rules were simple enough, and Iris was a rare genius. Despite being terrible at it at first, she absorbed all the lessons like an unused scrub. She could barely keep up in the first few rounds, relying on her superior class. But with the ability to see weaves clearly, she learned all my tricks and ploys in no time. She even implemented them with more Weight to defeat me at my own game.

But of course, my own self-esteem wouldn’t allow me to give up so easily. While she was a natural at the game, Iris lacked a cunning instinct. She only employed my own ploys against me, which made it easier for me to fool her. I would simply implement some half-baked strategy, and she’d mimic me without a thought.