Jade halted in front of the notice board.
It was much larger than the one back in his village, wide enough that several people could read at once without crowding. The wood frame was dark, its surface scarred by tiny nails driven in and pulled out countless times.
He scanned it slowly.
Most of the notices were unimportant-missing items, trade requests, job postings that required strength or experience he didn't have. He filtered them out instinctively, eyes moving without conscious effort.
Two caught his attention.
The first bore the seal of the library.
It warned of a nearby lake that had turned mutated, advising caution to travelers and locals alike. The wording was restrained, professional, lacking drama. No panic, no embellishment—just facts, locations, and a reminder to report abnormalities rather than approach them.
The second was marked by the Church.
An announcement for the New Year festival, to be held from the 28th onward at the local church. Decorations, offerings, open prayers. The tone was warmer, almost cheerful, as if the year had been kind enough to deserve celebration.
there were 4 days till the 28th.
Jade read it twice, then moved on.
As he stepped back, someone approached the board from behind and pinned a fresh notice onto it. The paper was new, edges crisp. Jade leaned forward again.
It referenced the mutated pond near Aran. His village.
The wording was similar to the library's notice, but the location made his eyes linger. Anyone heading in that direction was advised to be aware. The pond had been reported stable, but it did not make a difference as every mutated body was stable. The paper listed the same cautionary statements as the others, the same clinical distance.
Mutated water bodies.
Jade exhaled slowly.
They weren't rare, not anymore. for as long as one knew, they were less frequent, but a few years ago, the numbers started increasing. Any body of water could turn, given the right conditions. Rivers, lakes, wells. People fell in, absorbed the liquid. It wasn't friendly. no one could swim in it, so you needed someone outside to pull you out.
Drowning wasn't possible there. At least, not in the way water drowned you.
No one had tried testing how long one could stay submerged. No one sane, anyway.
One could dive multiple times, but only with a stable mind. Otherwise, the librarians would handle the now turned monster.
Handle was the polite word, but kill was the accurate one.
There were classifications. Depth, from zero to the highest recorded fifth depth. Anyone above zero was called a Diver.
Jade sighed, with a bit of nervousness.
Two months ago, he had become a Depth 1 Diver. He had locked himself inside and recovered in silence, riding out the aftereffects alone. The nausea, the heat, the way his thoughts had stretched thin and sharp at the edges.
the library was informed, and they asked Jade to come to Nort to get evaluated, but Jade asked them for time to recover.
Now he was here.
Nort City was his destination-not for travel, but for evaluation. The librarians would test him. If Jade wasnt a Independent diver, they wouldn't need to evaluate and could go straight to asking him to join them.
there were independent divers and dependent divers.
independent ones had fully unique abilties, dependent ones had less of them, most of dependent divers needed a mutated book as a catalyst.
Jade stepped away from the notice board.
The town continued around him, indifferent. Vendors shouted prices. Metal rang against metal. Footsteps crossed paths without pause.
He stopped at a nearby shop and asked about inns. The shopkeeper, a balding man with a permanent squint, gave him directions with vague gestures and little patience.
Jade followed them.
The inn was larger than he expected, its wooden sign swinging lazily above the door. Inside, the air smelled of oil and cooked grain. He asked for a room.
"Two hundred pennies," the innkeeper said without hesitation.
Jade frowned and haggled.
They settled at 160.
He counted his remaining coins afterward. Three hundred pennies and six silver coins left. Enough, for now.
His room was small but clean. He set his bag down, washed himself properly for the first time since leaving home, and changed into fresh clothes. The water was warm, the soap rough. He scrubbed until his skin tingled.
The meal the inn prepared was edible. Nothing more.
Jade ate without complaint, then sat by the narrow window and read until his eyes grew heavy. The town noises softened as night settled. He slept.
Morning came quietly.
Jade woke before the sun rose fully. Habit, more than intention. He dressed, packed his things, then reached into his bag and took out a small glass vial.
Inside, black liquid bubbled faintly.
He uncorked it and swallowed the contents in one motion.
There was no taste. Just heat.
He barely made it to the latrine before everything he had eaten evacuated his body violently. When it was over, he leaned against the wall, breathing slowly.
There was no trace of the mutate. No residue. No sign it had ever passed through him.
His throat burned faintly. His mouth felt dry.
Jade washed up, capped the empty vial, and left the inn.
A food stall near the main road was already open. He sat and paid thirty pennies for cut ribbon noodles. They arrived steaming, fragrant.
As he ate-
Elsewhere in the town, a young boy with brunette hair strained under the weight of a heavy vase. It was wrapped in white cloth, carefully tied. He carried it into a newly built shop and set it down with a controlled exhale.
The owner paid him without much conversation.
The boy pocketed part of the money, then headed to the same stall Jade sat at. He placed thirty pennies on the counter and took the empty seat beside him.
Back at the stall, Jade ate steadily. The noodles were savory, with a hint of sweetness. He finished them without pause.
"You're from a village?" the boy beside him asked.
Jade swallowed and nodded. "Aran."
"Joining the librarians?" the boy continued. "Or the church?"
Jade stood. "Yes. Getting evaluated at Nort first."
The boy's eyes lit briefly. He asked if he could join the carriage.
Jade saw no reason to refuse. "Come to the library tomorrow morning."
"Cain," the boy said. "See you tomorrow."
They parted.
Jade returned to the inn, read until evening, ate, then left again with the empty vial. He wandered beyond the town's edge until he found a lake.
It was black.
He checked the depth, stepped in until the liquid reached his ankles and bent down, and filled the vial. His feet burned faintly as he left. the previously still mutate was bubbling in the vial.
The town lights glimmered behind him as he returned.