Razor Maiden’s Boredom.
"Books, scrolls and stones. Nothing worth cutting," Razor Maiden grumbled as she scratched her claws against one another. She had been scratching the shelves and floor earlier, but the sound her claws made when doing so hurt her ears, and the surfaces themselves were blunting those aforementioned claws.
"Can’t even read yet. I think..."
As a proto-kaijin, Razor Maiden’s capabilities and ability to think were rather limited.
She was able to use aether, but not arts. She could understand words, but not read them. She could transform into carry mode just fine, but could not keep up the connection while doing so.
"Bah! Annoying as hell. Want to grow up now."
She understood that her current state was only temporary and that she would be able to be like the other kaijin over time, when she finally develops a "core" of her own, but she just wanted that time to be over now.
"Hateful and annoying! Why can’t that be. A desire?," Razor Maiden growled as she continued to aimlessly wandered.
At this point, she had long left the arts and formulas section and had entered the folk tales and stories, not that she noticed.
"Nothing to do. So freaking b-"*thud*"huh?"
Unexpectedly, a book from a shelf directly in front of her had fallen open before her feet. Thankfully, she noticed, otherwise she could have cut right through it.
"Wait...no words? Pictures?"
Laying before Razor Maiden’s eyes was a simple comic book of sorts, the kind that adapted fairy tales into four panels.
"Hmmm. Can’t really understand. Feels...important."
The comic she read involved a puppet being brought to life by a fairy descending from the heavens, and of the many many misadventures that he went on, until they were turned into a human being.
"Is that me? No. I am sharper," Razor Maiden said to herself as she read through the comic once more.
"Wonder if more. To this book."
As delicately as possible, Razor Maiden used a single claw to turn the page and to see what other stories were written inside.
"At least I am. No longer bored, I guess."
The next comic she read showed a tin soldier falling in love with a paper dancer.
"Huh... I’m a metal dancer. Do I need...paper soldier?"
For the first in her existence, Razor started to get...philosophical.
"If I become a kaijin. Am I no longer puppet?"
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A long awaited meeting.
=Almost and...there we go!=
"Okay, what the fuck is that?!"
After being subjected to what felt like a combination of an eel and a cotton swab snaking through his ear canals, Logos had pulled out a weird black golf ball that had a mouth on it. Waitaminute...
"Is that what’s been whispering in my head this whole time?!" Zhen Liu exclaimed in shock as he covered his ear. He didn’t know if that was an indicator for a floodgate being open, or the golf ball pervert would jump back into his ear, but he didn’t want to risk it either way.
=Technically yes, it was part of your mindscape, but I had managed to remove it and solidify it into a...let’s call it a [Remnant].=
At the name, Zhen Liu gave Logos a weird look.
"This the part you tell me that it can be used to make more kaijin or a core or something?"
=Not exactly, but it will prove useful to you later once you meet certain conditions, Kaijin Lord. Namely, get more materials ,= Logos explained as she manifested a glass jar and sealed the [Remnant] in it. The sight of this act made Zhen Liu do a double take.
"Really? A glass jar? Not like a crystal, a card, a scroll or anything fancy like that?"
=Fancy sealing items are for kaijin, prisoners and pets only. Materials get packed into jars,= Logos explained matter-of-factly, =and if it helps, it is vacuum sealed and a ten point aether array lock is applied to the lid.=
Proving her point, Logos tilted the jar in Zhen Liu’s direction, showing him the most elaborate looking aether array he has seen up until now. He at least had some foundation in this aether arrays, so he could tell that this was an incredibly powerful seal.
"Huh...you are a lot less cryptic than Pathos."
=It’s part of my nature to be frank and logical. Now then, enough chatter. There is someone you need to meet,= Logos said as she tucked the jar under her arm and began walking forward.
Sensing there was no room for arguing or questions, Zhen Liu just went along with it.
’So much for being less cryptic...’
Logos led Zhen Liu through several sections of shelves, some he was familiar with, but the rest of them were very alien to him.
’I can’t tell if it’s because I’ve never been section or if they’re new...,’ Zhen Liu thought to himself as he passed by a pair of shelves separated by a suit of black armor with four arms. He wasn’t sure why, but the armor gave off a feeling that felt both familiar yet threatening...it was probably nothing.
Eventually, Logos led Zhen Liu up a flight of stairs, and then stopped in front of a door that was right next to said stairs.
Zhen Liu had been expecting a huge set of intimidating double doors that would lead into a grand meeting hall, the kind with the giant solid wood table, thrones made of some valuable material and a chandelier because of asthethics. Instead, he was greeted by...a wall. A big ole empty wall.
"Uh...Logos? Did you take me to the right place."
"Are...are you sure? Because there’s nothing but an empty wall here."
=All doors need a key milord, would you mind holding the [Veteran’s Bone Club] aloft?=
=That weird beat stick you picked up from the Vault of Hel.=
"How did you-wait... you’re friends with Pathos, Pathos know what I did in there, okay that makes sense," Zhen Liu muttered aloud before checking his belt and drawing the bone club.
"Alright, here it-*poof!*-what the fuck?"
Once Zhen Liu had fully drawn the club, it transformed with a puff of red smoke into a key made of bone...a literal skeleton key. The next thing he knew, a key hole had suddenly manifested in the wall in front of him.
Zhen Liu stared dumbfounded at the sudden keyhole.
=I don’t need to instruct you on what to do next, right?=
"No, I’m just mentally preparing myself."
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Isekai rule #17: When presented with a magic door, secret tunnel or any other form of unusual entryways, mentally prepare yourself for either traps, treasures or unexpected encounters...or something pervy if you’re in that kind of world.
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Once he was properly psyched up, Zhen Liu inserted the key into the keyhole, causing a simple wooden door with iron bindings and stained with blood to materialize around the keyhole.
The sight of the door did not fill Zhen Liu with much confidence.
’Welp...nothing ventured, nothing gained.’
Zhen Liu threw caution to the wind and opened the door. Once he did, a familiar gruff voice entered his ears.
"Took you long enough. I was almost about to drain this whole bottle of wine."
Zhen Liu had only heard this voice once before, and it had been a long time since.