âSo⊠Argrave of Vasquer.â
The lead interviewer scrutinized Argrave from behind his glasses, golden eyes moving calculatingly. Despite the suit he wore, he sported many tattoos. It spoke to an accommodating workplace, or a poor one.
âThatâs right,â Argrave confirmed cordially.
âYouâre applying for the position of Upper-Level Human.â The man looked to the other interviewers, on his right and left. They all wore fancy C-suite suits, with luxurious black fabric and gold buttons. âThat would place you at upper management, here with us. Iâm Durran, and this is Anneliese and Melanie. Our chief executive officer, Elenore, will still have the final say, but we thought this interview might provide us something to present her.â
âNice to meet you all. Some of you I already know. All three of you, in fact. Upper management is something Iâve long looked forward to,â he answered cordially, bearing a hint of familiarity.
âAlright.â Durran shuffled some papers, taking one in hand. âLetâs start with your educational history.â
âSure.â Argrave shifted on his seat. âAs you know, I studied with Professor Erlebnis, majoring in Everything in the Known Universe, with a minor in Somethings in the Unknown Universe.â
âProfessor Erlebnis in Germany, right? His thesis on Everything in the Known Universe is quite renowned.â Durranâs finger traced the paper he held until it stopped near the bottom. âBut we couldnât find any information about your educational background before that.â
âAh.â Argrave scratched the back of his head. âI had a name change.â
âA name change?â Anneliese spoke up. âWas it due to any controversial or infamous event that could compromise the company?â
âNo, I just got transported to another world. Nothing significant,â Argrave explained.
âOkay, thatâs understandable.â Anneliese nodded, contented.
âYou came up through the sales department. People there had nothing but positive things to say about you, from your demeanor to your performance.â Melanie looked through some papers, then focused on Argrave. âWhat other roles have you had before our company?â
âWell, I was the King of Vasquer, managing a population in the millions. After that, I became the Commander-in-Chief of the Expeditionary Force Against the Barbarians of the Great Chu. Iâve also been acting as the de facto leader of the Blackgard Union, managing several high-level deities with large portfolios of divinity.â
âSo, youâre already well-accustomed to dealing with people that have rather inflated egos,â Anneliese said positively.
âIndeed,â Argrave nodded. âSome of them are here today.â
The joke landed, and the interviewers laughed. Argrave thought the process was going rather nicely, but Durranâs demeanor quickly became serious and the man leaned in.
âWhat do you think an Upper-Level Human does in his or her day-to-day? What are their responsibilities and abilities?â
The dreaded curveball came, catching Argrave off guard. He took a beat to compose his answer carefully, and the interviewers all waited in silence.
âWell, naturally, theyâre immortal. Thatâs one of the largest perks, but also the largest responsibility. Old age canât claim them. Any wound that they receive can be recovered from. Aside from that, it comes with a tremendous advantage against divinity. Theyâre sort of like⊠like an envoy for humanity. Not divine, quite, but like divine. A guardian, a protector. Not just a protector of humans, eitherâhuman-like mortals, too.â
âCould you elaborate on what you mean by âlike divine?ââ Durran fixated on that.
âWell, ordinarilyâŠâ Argrave scratched his chin. âIf a mortal uses spirits, itâs either in one of two waysâwith magic, or by strengthening the flesh temporarily by injecting it inside the body. While theyâre both effective adaptations, itâs not really âusing spirits.â Itâs jury-rigging divinity. But being an Upper-Level Human, we can finally utilize those vaunted existences properly. In a way, it could be said to be better than they use it, as Iâd have a great many of the perks without the responsibilities and restriction that true divinity brings.â
âInteresting. You think spirits are vaunted existences?â Melanie probed.
âWhat else can I call them?â Argrave shrugged. âMagic has rules, limitations, boundaries. S-rank is the peak. Even using spirits to enhance it, thereâs only so much that one single spellcaster can do. The gods, though⊠with the Domain of Law, I can slow time. It might be a very small amount, but it can be done. Is there magic that can achieve such a thing? Sataistador was a one-man-army in more than one sense of the word. Raccomen can open portals throughout the world, and Elenore has a cellphone in her head thanks to Lira. Erlebnis even implanted knowledge directly into my mind!â
âIs that an admission you cheated in university, Argrave?â Durran questioned.
Argrave raised his right hand. âI plead the fifth.â
âI see. WellâŠâ Durran once again shuffled through the papers in front of him. âAs we established, most of this information is something we already know. You have quite the resume, Argrave. And fortunately for you, we here at Being Co. are quite nepotistic.â
âMe too!â Argrave exclaimed excitedly. âI would also promote family members regardless of their skill. Fortunately, they just happen to be extremely skilled. Does this mean that I get the position?â
âIndeed you do.â Durran set down his papers and nodded at Argrave. âYouâre going to start your role as an Upper-Level Human as soon as possible. It should be a relatively painless adjustment period.â
âWhatâs wrong with him?!â Elenore insisted urgently.
Everyone crowded around Argrave after he had bitten into the Fruit of Being. It was because, moments after his first bite, he had slumped against the table and fallen to the floor. Everyone had moved quicklyâAnneliese quickest of all, who held Argrave in her armsâbut rather than unconscious, Argrave seemed to be in a trance.
Anneliese studied Argrave intently. He muttered something as he chewed on the golden fruit. His eyelids flickered, alternating between open and closed. The hand which held the Fruit of Being continually raised it back up to his mouth, taking fresh bites out of it as he zoned out. The movements were more like sporadic spasms, and his mutterings somewhat sounded like groans and coughs beneath his mouthfuls of food⊠but Anneliese saw neither pain nor disgust on his features. Still, the oddity of it all made her declare nothing for certain.
âWhat can you see with your [Truesight]?â Orion asked her, calm yet insistent. âNeed we pry the golden fruit from his hand, that it might not again grace his lips? Would that harm him?â
âWhat I seeâŠâ Annelieseâs gaze went past the surface, into Argraveâs very being. She saw much the same thing she had seen within the fruitâan infinitely-expanding universe of possibilities with neither end nor beginning. It was as though he ate the starry skies themselves, taking in the unknown and chewing it up with his teeth until it became part of him. As for whether or not it was doing him illâŠ
âHis soul isnât weakening,â Anneliese said, unable to convey much else sufficiently. âRather, itâs growing in brightness, in intensity. Most notably, however, is what the spirits inside him are doing.â She looked up at Raven.
âI see it too.â He kneeled down before Argrave, the gray eyes on his head glowing green as he called upon [Minor Truesight]. âItâs fascinating. Iâve never seen spirits behave in a way like this, ever.â
âI canât get through to him,â Elenore said, massaging her forehead as she paced around nervously. âThe connection between us is still there, but I just canât get through. Can we stop him from eating? What if heâs in pain?â
âPain has proved an insufficient obstacle for him in the past,â Raven observed passively.
âDoesnât mean he needs to go through it all at once.â She looked at Raven, and fearlessly said, âDid you have to encourage him so? Can you take responsibility for what happens?â
Anneliese slid her arms under Argrave, and picked him up. In his trance-like state, he was much easier to carryâhis arm even slid around her neck, like it was natural. He had grown a fair bit heavier, but the enchantments on her armor made such a task easy.
âI believe all he needs is a place to rest easy. Rest in quiet, without undue stimulus to interrupt the process.â She looked around. âI shall find a bed for him to rest in, for now. Rest assured I will have any of you at hand in a momentâs notice.â
Argrave opened his eyes. He saw a blue bed canopy, and turned his head about. He felt quite clear-headed. He remembered eating the Fruit of Being, then⊠a strange dream.
âHello there,â Anneliese saidâhe recognized her voice at once. He turned his head to see her sitting on the side of his bed.
âHey,â he greeted, in no hurry to move. âHad a dream about you. You looked rather⊠ravishing. You usually do, butâŠâ his mind went back to Anneliese in a suit, with her long legs... Was that something to keep in mind? He certainly wasnât eager to forget it.
âThatâs the first thing you say?â Anneliese scoffed. âEveryone was panicking about you dying or being in pain. You do remember eating the fruit, yes?â
Argrave sat up. âVery vividly, yes.â
âI insisted that you would need low stimulation due to your changed mind when you awoke, but I really just wanted some peace for my own inquiries.â Anneliese leaned in. âI cannot think it was painful. Am I wrong? Is it painful now? It looks like you continue to change, but I detect no pain. Thatâs rather unlike your past incidents.â
Argrave touched his face. âContinue to change, you said? What does that mean?â
âInternally, I meant,â Anneliese clarified. âOnly internal changes, for now. How do you feel?â
âPretty good,â Argrave said, nodding slowly. âNo different than normal, really. Like nothing happened at all. ButâŠâ Argraveâs mind wandered back to the dream.
âBut?â Anneliese repeated.
âI think I know how I changed,â Argrave looked at her. âI think the dream I had told me what was happening. But the things that it said⊠itâs a littleâŠâ
âYou seem skeptical, yet hopeful.â Anneliese tilted her head.
Argrave replayed the memory in his head. It was almost too clear to be a dream. âIt claimed I could use spirits as divinity could, but that I wasnât a deity.â
Anneliese took a deep breath, closing her eyes. âWhy donât you look where we ordinarily keep spirits for shamanic magic?â
Argrave obeyed her instructions, but it was like grasping at an empty void. He touched his chest in alarm, only to realize that much more than that alone was off. All of the energies inside of him, even his blood echoes, were astir. They were changing, morphing, making room for something new deep within.
Thrusting his body to the edge of the bed, Argrave rose up and looked around. âI think we need to go outside. Not just outsideâmaybe back home, to the mountains in Blackgard. Quiet place, to test this out.â
Argrave rubbed at his neck, imagining what exactly this new state of being would make him into. He couldnât say he hadnât asked for, even expected, this change, and yet⊠how deep did things go?
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