Chapter 72: Chapter Seventy Two

Grimmengap had a dorm on campus apparently, and we followed them back  to their place, chatting amiably with the group. Martin and Sarah were  talkative and friendly, while Celine was reserved, though not impolite  or cold. Still she was the boss, so she was the one we directed out  questions to. Callie gave her a friendly smile as she questioned. "So  you have a dorm on campus huh? How did you swing that? I didn't even  know that was an option." I was actually surprised Callie hadn't been  given the option, though I supposed her dad might have been trying to  force her to stay close.

Celine's calm didn't waver at all  as she responded, her voice remaining perfectly level. "It is a  diplomatic residence. I was admitted as part of an exchange. My family  is minor nobility in the Faerieland, able to trace our elven lineage  back for over twenty generations. My ancestor was among the first  settlers to study cultivation under the Queen. Not a close confidant or a  direct disciple, but still his place in our society earned us our  nobility." Despite the level tone, the pride in her her eyes and bearing  as she talked about her ancestor was palpable.

I for one  was fascinated. It sounded like nobility was at least partially based on  length of lineage in the Faerieland. It made sense in the context of  racial traits being able to manifest with alchemy. A strong lineage  meant the abilities had been in your family long enough to have a legacy  and proper teachers, as opposed to new bloods who had to figure it all  out on their own. Still, whoever Celine's family was must not have been  too high up the social ladder, or else she wouldn't have ended up on a  backwater like Callus.

We arrived at their dorm in pretty  decent time and they let us in to join them in their sitting room. The  place was lavishly decorated, lots of dark wood and plush cushions.  Mostly dark red and gold in terms of color scheme, unlike the  monstrosity of a house we were staying in this place was actually  tasteful. Celine sat gracefully on the couch before clearing her throat  to get everyone's attention. "I'd like to thank you again for your  timely interference the other day, and for the civilized way you handled  the aftermath. Not just anyone would have helped a group of strangers  and expected nothing in return."

I was pretty sure this  whole meeting was her way of extending an olive branch. She could  obviously tell we were interested in her culture and was hoping this  conversation would work toward repaying her debt. One of the few  consistent things I heard about all fae was a heavy respect for debt.  We'd helped her and this was her way of paying us back. In the spirit of  accepting that, I got right to the point. "We were happy to help, and  we appreciate the invitation to speak. I admit we're fascinated by your  culture, we'd love to hear about the Faerieland."

She gave  a long, slow, nod, as if I'd just decided what I wanted as repayment,  which maybe I had. "Very well, I am of course happy to share more about  my homeland with friends." She paused. "Within certain limits of course.  There are obviously secrets I shan't be revealing. Where would you like  me to start?" Her tone was as composed and measured as ever, but  something about her seemed...more at ease. I guess owing someone wasn't  something she liked, and getting the debt repaid was a relief.

Still,  an open invite to ask about one of the most mysterious places in the  universe was a big deal. I hadn't learned much of anything about the  place until I became an Ascendant and even then I barely got anything.  "Ok, well tell us how cultivation works? More in a broad sense than any  secrets." I'd heard about Fairieland cultivation a few times, but it was  always just a word or two, the way Martin described things was odd, and  I was dying to hear more about it.

That seemed to have  been expected. She took a second to frame her response though, making  sure she was representing everything in the best light, I'd imagine.  "Where heroic cultivation emphasizes the ability itself, essentially  creating a direct interface between power and hero, fae cultivation is  much more organized. Racial traits are our abilities, but we also have  jobs that we use, like Marvin's Knight job. I for instance am a Lesser  Elf Noble. Jobs provide us a way to distinguish ourselves within our own  groups, so not all elves will have the same amount of fame."

That  was interesting. "So it's a bit like to caste system in the Empire and  the rank system in the Church? It seems like most of the cultivation  methods emphasize fitting into a structure as opposed to the more free  form and individual heroic system." It took me a second to think it  through, but I finally realized why. "Recursion. They're all set up to  help manage recursion."

She gave a nod of acknowledgement.  "Yes. Jobs and ranks provide a layer of separation between ability and  perception, and between perception and the actual cultivator. People  have an idea of what a Knight should be. Even if Marvin does something  dramatic, that idea provides a filter for the recursion before it  reaches him. Heroic cultivation is more...raw. More direct. It's why the  Unity has been able to rise to power so quickly. His creation of this  particular method of cultivation put the Conglomerate on the fast track  to being powerful enough to be considered a faction."

I  could see the appeal of a cultivation system like that. "I imagine it's  much slower though. Less shock value in established roles. Does that  mean that the Job and Rank systems, all work like Sarah mentioned? The  ability becomes a skill? How does that even work? Does that mean they  can be taught or learned?" That sounded amazing, I couldn't imagine the  kind of chaos it would cause though.

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Sarah answered that  one personally. "They can. In fact you've seen evidence of that already,  at the crafting hall. Alchemy, Inventing, Enchanting, these were all  abilities before they were skills. The thing is most abilities are so  unconscious that teaching or learning them is nearly impossible. It does  happen, but it's much less widespread than you might think. It's part  of the reason Skill synergy exists. Because for people with a Job or  Rank their main skill often IS an ability. Unique skills are much less  uncommon in other parts of the universe, though most people still only  have the one."

It explained quite a few things about  cultivation here. The heroic system was newer, less refined. "So the Job  system is like a modifier for your species or racial trait. That's  pretty interesting. But if the weakness of heroic cultivation is how  unfiltered it is, I'm guessing there must be one for the Job system too.  Nothing is perfect."

It would have been understandable  for her to dissemble or dodge the question, but apparently this was  common knowledge where she was from so it didn't fall under the umbrella  of secrets she couldn't share. "Certain racial traits have certain jobs  they are famous for. As most in the Faerieland are born to their  species rather than made like the new bloods they are born with certain  roles that are easier to slip into. These roles are not always one and  the same with any talents they may possess. They can of course assume  any job and some do, but even for talented cultivators fighting implicit  bias can be difficult. The possibility of hitting a dead end causes  certain pressures for children to follow established paths."

Stagnation  then, or at least certain tendencies in that direction. Callie smoothly  cut in. "I appreciate you sharing all this, I realize we've focused a  bit too long on this particular subject. Your insight has cleared up a  great many things about cultivation for me. I think that makes us more  than even for the assist." Her shoulders slumped, clearly relieved to  have that burden removed from them. "We'd love to hear more about you  personally if you feel like sharing, just talking among friends, no  secrets or anything,"

Our of all  of us, Callie was the most used to dealing with the fae, and I'd gotten  my questions answered, so I deferred to the boss on this one. Honestly  cutting in like that might not have been the smartest move on my part,  but I wasn't sure Callie would have asked that stuff, she probably knew  at least some of it, and as someone raised in cultivation was most  likely less curious about it than I was. I chose to stay quiet now that  I'd gotten my information, I'd never been good at social situations even  with humans.

The  more casual nature of the conversation seemed to fluster Celine more  than anything, but not in a bad way. She wasn't upset, just kind of  awkward, and it made me think she didn't have a lot of friends. She  tucked a bit of her hair behind a pointed ear. "I'm not very  interesting. My home planet is mostly forested. Different species tend  to group together on the smaller worlds, though you see more blending of  cultures the higher up you go. I've heard tales that there is a member  of every single species on the capital planet where the Queen lives,  though of course I've never visited."

That  one was food for thought. What would a planet where a literal goddess  lived even be like? How many people were there, what kind of  concentration of power? I couldn't imagine that even somewhere new to  that level like the Conglomerate, but judging by the whole 'twenty  generations' thing, combined with the fact that cultivators could live a  LONG time, I was guessing the Faerieland was old as dirt. Assuming it  was the same Queen as they had at the beginning currently occupying the  throne, and since she was a deity I had no reason to assume otherwise.

Celine's  face was soft as she continued filling us in on her home. "There was a  great many forests on my home planet, elves have always been at home in  the trees, and many of our most prevalent Job's relate to nature and  growth." She smiled over at Jessie. "Your abilities would be of great  value where I am from Agria, based on what I have heard about you." She  flushed. "I admit I looked into you all after we met, though I did not  find much, given your recent arrival in the city."

I  didn't blame her for that. I'd have done my research too if I had  sources. Well...I guessed I did have sources, but I didn't want to pay  exorbitant fees to have someone dig up information on a bunch of H  rankers. I recognized the bias there, but the extra Impact really did  make me feel so much safer around anyone lower ranked than me. We spent  the rest of the visit chatting, Celine filled us in on her culture and  customs, telling us about elven cuisine, music, theater, literature, and  any number of other subjects she'd been classically trained in as a  noble.

Benny  spent the entire time hanging on her every word, and it was all I could  do not to smirk at his enthusiasm, though Celine didn't seem to mind. I  knew he'd back off if she wasn't interested, so I wasn't too worried. If  she decided to let him down easy she wouldn't be the first. While they  did that though I pulled Sarah aside. "Hey, I wanted to ask a favor."  She gestured for me to go ahead and I exhaled in relief. "I need an  introduction to a local member of the Church. Can you get me a meeting  with the guy they call Saint Aiden?" Before we went back down to G  district to poke around I wanted to use every angle I could find. I  couldn't wait to meet my first saint.

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