Gleam [Karma Cultivator Isekai] - Chapter 123: Riloose

“Huh,” Chance said, rubbing his chin with a frown. “That sucks.”

Lucy and Rilu stared at Chance in undisguised shock, but an amused grin flickered across Bella’s lips before she got her expression back under control.

“That’s not the reaction I expected,” Rilu said, tilting his head to the side in befuddlement. “Have I missed something? Or do you simply just not care about your life?”

“Probably neither of the two, although I really don’t know how much your Essence let you know. It’s just that… we’ve been at risk, of dying for so long, I’m surprised it’s been this long before someone told us that we were definitely going to die.” Chance rubbed the back of his head. “And, to be honest, I don’t imagine you called me here just to say I was about to get killed and kick me out the door. That wouldn’t serve any purpose. That means that you probably either have a solution, a warning, or some mixture of the two.”

Rilu was silent for several seconds. Then he let out a delicate laugh and gave Chance a respectful nod. “It’s rare that I meet someone your age this insightful. If I didn’t know any better, I would have thought you’ve a Karma cultivator for a hundred years.”

“Thanks, I think. So… what are we supposed to do about Vex? That is why you showed up, right? Because – and I mean no disrespect by this – but if I’m actually about to get killed, I’d rather spend my time in a different way.”

Rilu’s laughter intensified and he sent a pointed glance at Lucy. “You said he was so mild mannered that he wouldn’t even think about insulting a cockroach. Looks like you got your read wrong, Lucy.”

“Evidently he’s grown a bit.” Lucy gave Chance an approving nod. “Good for him. And the rest of us aren’t immortal, you little shit. We actually value our time. Why don’t you spit it out already?”

Immortal? Shit. He’s even stronger than I was thinking. How powerful do you have to be so that you can’t die? Or is immortal different from invulnerable? Either way, he’s got to be really high up there in the ranks. Maybe he could just kill Vex for us?

“I know what you’re thinking,” Rilu said, his smile fading as he grew more serious. He leaned forward, bracing his forearms on the table and interlacing his fingers. “I can’t kill Vex for you.”

“Why not?” Bella asked. “You’re at least a Rank Seven if you’re immortal. Vex is a Rank 6. Killing him should be child’s play to you, right?”

“Nothing is simple for a Karma cultivator. I am bound by a set of rules that a cultivator of any other Essence would never understand. Even Chance is still too young to properly feel the intricacies of the Weave of Fate. Karma is a vast Essence, and it is one that is not forgiving of our choices. Killing someone who has no karmic connection to me would be akin to you carving one of your own eyes out.”

Bella opened her mouth but stopped herself from saying anything. She sent a look at Chance that said so why not just build Karmic ties with us?

Evidently, Bella decided that actually voicing her words would be a little too rude for people that they didn’t really know. Chance was pretty sure that Lucy was kind and wouldn’t have taken offense, but it was probably wiser to play things a little closer to the safe side.

“Can you even help at all, then?” Chance asked. “Doing anything would create Karmic ties between you and Vex, wouldn’t it? If we’re going to die with the way things are currently going and you suddenly step in and help, that means you directly influenced the change. That should establish Karmic ties.”

Rilu smiled. “You are correct to a degree. However, the more control one gains over Karma, the more the rules can be bent. A direct interference is indeed too much for me, but slight shifts – who’s to say what they amount to? Certainly not I.”

“So you’re playing chicken with the universe,” Bella finished, her eyes twinkling in mild amusement. “Karma cultivators are a little insane.”

“We most certainly are,” Rilu agreed. He spread his arms out and the food on the table vanished as it cleared itself. “I have been thinking about what I can offer you, Chance. Originally, I had thought about taking you on as an apprentice. That is no longer an option.”

Bella blinked. Her hands twitched as she visibly stopped herself from speaking. Rilu glanced at her and waved his hand in an encouraging motion. “You don’t need to restrain yourself, Bella. I know your nature from observing you and Chance and if I were a man to take offense to anything a Rank Two told me, I would be a very poor man.”

I’m pretty sure that was basically an insult, but I don’t think he meant it as one. We’re just so far below Rilu that he genuinely can’t ever see himself getting pissed off at something we tell him.

“Why can’t you take him on as an apprentice?” Bella asked.

“Because Yamish has already done that,” Rilu replied. “And Yamish is too powerful for me to interfere with.”

“Stronger than you?”

Rilu grimaced. “Considerably. He follows a different path – one that is far more willing to let him kill when he needs to. I am restrained in ways that he will never be. No, I can’t actually do anything to Chance beyond speak with him. Yamish would know if I did more.”

“Then what’s the point?” Bella asked, her brow furrowed. “Just to provide us with a nice meal? I appreciate that, of course. It’s just–”

“Not enough,” Rilu said with an understanding smile. “Yes, I know. I have spent some time considering that very question. I have no desire to bring myself into true conflict with Yamish. It would be a fight that would go poorly for both of us. However, Vex is a plague on Centurion. He is a vile man, and the Weave would rejoice with his death. Much debt would be released as he passed on.”

Lucy rolled her eyes. “Rilu is a long-winded little shit. Ignore how he looks. He’s a hundred times older than the two of you, and he likes to prattle for far too long. Just get to the point, old man.”

“The person I can help is you, Bella,” Rilu said, completely unperturbed by Lucy’s outburst. Something told Chance that he was probably used to it by this point. They clearly knew each other fairly well.

“Me?” Bella blinked. “What, are you going to give me a secret weapon or something to kill Vex? I’m not sure I’ll get the chance to actually use it he’s trying to kill me, but I’ll take anything I can get.”

“Not a weapon. As you guessed, that would do little. However, knowledge is much easier to share. You’ve made recent advancements with your Essence, yes?”

Bella nodded, but there was a moment of hesitation before she responded. “Yes.”

“But not enough. You are still finding yourself at odds with your Path. Advancements never seem to bring you as much understanding as you’ve been hoping for, do they?”

Shock passed over Bella’s features. She gave Rilu another nod. “Yeah. I think it’s because I swapped my Path after leaning on Vex’s coattails for so long. I’m sure that probably ended up holding me back and I’m still getting over it.”

“You are unfortunately correct. Your mind is muddled. Even if you survive Vex, your current Path will not take you beyond Rank Four.”

Chance’s skin prickled. He couldn’t even get angry or defensive for Bella – she’d voiced her concerns about her Path in the past. There wasn’t any malice in Rilu’s voice. He was simply speaking what he believed to be fact.

“Are you bringing this up because you think you can fix it?” Bella asked hesitantly, a tiny note of hope entering her voice.

Rilu inclined his head. “We must speak alone. Lucy, would you mind?”

Lucy heaved a sigh and nodded. She rose to her feet. A pillar of golden light enveloped her and she vanished with a pop. Chance looked back to Rilu, then froze as he realized that the same golden light was falling over him.

“What?” Chance asked. “Wait–”

Chance vanished.

***

“What did you do with him?” Bella demanded, jumping to her feet. Her chair fell back behind her, but it somehow managed to right itself before it hit the floor. Rilu didn’t budge from his spot at the table. He just gestured for Bella to sit back down.

“Please. Sit. Do you really think I would hurt him? And, if I was going to, do you really think there was anything you could do about it?”

Bella pressed her lips together. After a moment, she sat back down.

“Thank you,” Rilu said. He splayed his fingers out over the table. “The answer to your question is yes. I can aid you in repairing the damage to your Path.”

“At what cost?” Bella asked without a second of hesitation. “Nothing like that comes for free.”

“No, it doesn’t.” A small smile flickered across Rilu’s face. “There are two costs. The first is personal – and the extent of it is unknown to me. You may come out unscathed, or you may die. It depends on you.”

“Figures. And the other?”

“A favor. One that you will not be opposed to doing.”

Bella waited, but Rilu didn’t say anything else.

“Are you going to say what it is?”

“No. I haven’t decided yet.”

Damned Karma cultivators. I’ll need to make sure Chance doesn’t start spewing out a bunch of oracle bullshit.

“Fine.” Bella’s shoulders slumped, but her eyes burned with determination. “I’m obviously not going to pass up the opportunity to fix my broken ass Path. Chance trusts you, so I’ll do the same.”

“Actually, he trusts Lucy,” Rilu corrected with a wry chuckle. “But yes, that is functionally the same. I’ll ask again – are you certain you want to do this?”

“Do I have a choice?” Bella raised an eyebrow. “If I don’t, we get killed by Vex. This will be what gives us a way to win, right?”

“A small one,” Rilu allowed. “It may be some time before Vex finds you, though. You have the option of living your life as it is. Time is precious.”

“With all due respect, if I can choose between months or forever, then I’m going to take forever.”

“Spoken like a true cultivator. Very well, Bella. Then we will begin.”

Rilu drew in a deep breath. Bella tensed – she wasn’t sure what she was expecting, but she was expecting something. Instead, Rilu just let the breath out and leaned back in his chair.

“What is your purpose?”

“I – what?”

“Your reason to live. The drive that motivates you.”

“Uh… I guess it would be protecting people?”

The look that Rilu sent Bella was so dry that she nearly withered beneath it.

“What?”

“That is not your real answer,” Rilu said, shaking his head. “You must answer honestly. If we begin the process and you cannot be true to yourself, then you perish.”

Bella threw her hands up. “I don’t know, then. I barely just got out of being a pawn. I haven’t really figured out what I want to do.”

“That is… more accurate. It does not feel complete to me, though. There is more. Rip deep into your soul for the core of who you are, Bella. Not the answer you wish to find, but the one that is true.”

Clenching her fists, Bella forced her eyes shut and dug through her mind. The exercise seemed completely pointless.

Those were the answers, damn it. That’s actually what I want.

“I wasn’t lying.” Bella opened her eyes and stared Rilu down. “That’s what I believe.”

Rilu raised an eyebrow, then shrugged. “If you are certain. Conviction will take you far. If this is the way you wish to do things, then we will proceed.”

“Proceed with what, exactly? How are you going to fix my Path?”

“Me? I won’t fix it,” Rilu said with a soft, almost sad look on his expression. “You will. I will simply enable you to have the chance.”

“How, exactly?”

Rilu rose from his seat. Golden bands wound around Bella’s limbs and pulled her back into her chair, tightening as she instinctively struggled against them.

“Calm yourself,” Rilu said. The table vanished as he walked straight through it, stopping directly before her and pressing his hand to her forehead. “Breathe. We do not change your Path but instead reveal what it has been all along. You have been chipping away, revealing it piece by piece. However, your method is flawed and your tools unsuited.”

“What are you going to do?” Bella demanded.

“Bare your Path to you,” Rilu replied. Golden light enveloped his hand, tingling against Bella’s skin. “A small portion of it, in its truest form. It will not be easy. Maintain your grip on this world, and remember that speed is of the essence. If you peer into your soul for too long, it will leave your mortal body behind.”

“You mean I’ll die if I’m too slow?”

“Oh, that will happen regardless. A mortal cannot see their true soul without dying. The question is not if you will die – it is if you will come back.”

With that, the golden energy flashed. Bella slumped forward against her restraints, her limbs falling slack.

And there, bound in a chair in a well-lit dining room with only a strange, childlike Karma cultivator for company, Bella died.