The Illusion of Balance

Noah POV

I sat in the office of my room in front of the window. I was looking at the box in front of me. This box contains the books that I chose from the castle's library, and these are the books that I will need to obtain general knowledge about the world in which I live now.

I took the key given to me by the porter, put it in the key lock, and turned it clockwise.

It made a creaking sound as it opened. Inside were the books I had chosen. I was going to read them tonight. not all of them, of course, but enough to have a superficial knowledge of what to expect. I know enough from my memory, but I don't know all what I might need.

I placed the load of books on top of the desk and thought about which book I should start with.

After a few moments of thought, I chose a thick book with a brown leather cover. On the first page, there was the name of the book, "THE VITALUS VEIL BALANCE," written in large words at the top of the cover, and on the bottom of it, there was the author's name, "ARTUR LYEAN," and the publishing house "IMPERIAL LIBRARY," as well as the date of publication, which was 25 years before the current date.

Yes, I ordered these copies because these books were renewed after the war. I did not know exactly what the difference was, but I have a good idea. Through my memory and the information in these old books, I can come to logical conclusions.

I opened the book slowly, skipped the author's biography because I didn't care about him, and went straight to the content.

'The Vitalus Veil Balance, or the Aether Balance, is a global system widely known as Vailus or Aether for short. It is a natural resource similar to water or air.'

'It exists everywhere and can be harnessed by anyone with the appropriate knowledge and training.The Vailus or Aether is governed by five principles that ensure justice and balance.'

Yes, there is something similar to magic in this world, but I do not agree with what the author says; speaking for myself, I cannot harness it. What Noah has been doing in the past two years is gathering the appropriate knowledge about harnessing the Vailus or Aether, but all he met with was failure, because I am already over sixteen years old.

We therefore conclude that this writer is simply a liar, or does not know what he is talking about, or the content has been manipulated.

Given the fact that this book is intended for the general public, the third option is the closest to the truth. It's as though saying to the general public that you too have the opportunity to improve your life and become better, stronger, and richer, so do what I say.

It's like selling dreams to numb the public.I can see that because I lived it and fell into that trap too, knowing it was a trap. We all did, and we were happy about it.

I let out a sigh.

'Life is definitely difficult.'

My life has not begun yet, yet I have already hit a bump, one of the factors that could make my life easier. I didn't even have the chance to try because I was over sixteen when I first arrived in this world.

But I won't let it break my spirit. I have a deadly weapon by my side, my dearest friend. I'm not shy about it; if I'm in trouble, I'll go straight to Eyo.

And yes, Eyo is one of the users of this Vailus; 'what a surprise', and she is amazing at it too. Her first interaction with the Vailus was when she was only fourteen years old, which is an incredible accomplishment, from what I've heard, and just from the way others look at her, I can understand.

I refocused on the book.

'The Vailus or Aether is governed by five principles that ensure justice and balance.'

'First, the principle of balance: Aether must be used in balance.Overuse of Aether can temporarily deplete an area, rendering it unusable until it regenerates naturally.'

This book is complete nonsense. The depletion of an area is the best scenario that can happen, as far as I can remember.

What is most common is blindness, stroke, sensory loss, organ failure, or it's complete death, and that is just what is common. Who knows how many mysterious cases have occurred due to excessive use of Aether, without anyone knowing about them?

But no, we will ignore that and state to our dear readers that the excessive use of ether only causes a depletion of nature.

I continued reading, cursing the name of this author.

'Second, the principle of reciprocity: every use of Aether requires exchange.To cast a spell, you must offer something of personal value, which can be energy (the Vailus/Aether heart or Core is formed in the second stage), memories (if your Aether Core is drained), or personal possessions. This ensures that the cost of Aether is personal and equal for everyone.'

Wow, I didn't know what to say. Well, he wasn't lying at first, but the poorer you are, the higher the chance of losing something, if not something unavoidable.

He said memories. Yes, one of the things that can compensate for a lack of energy is memories, and it's one of the things that you can willingly sacrifice it to avoid the violent reactions mentioned in the principle of balance.

This became very popular with people who could not afford the expensive Artifacts.

And also, when he said personal property, what he meant by that was a kind of Artifacts that stores Aether, with which a person could avoid a violent reaction, and also used as an exchange in the early stages.

But who can afford it? It's very rare, and only a certain type of people can make it. That's why poor people always sacrifice their memories.

It's unfortunate.

I'm starting to get angry. I'm used to seeing bullshit being sold to the public, but this is too much—too much, in fact, as if they're asking you to die.

'Third, the principle of Affinity: individuals have natural affinities to certain types of Aether, which are determined at birth.While one could learn spells outside of their affinity, they would never be as powerful as those that matched their innate talents.'

Well, this has not been completely distorted. The affinity of individuals is not determined at birth but rather at an advanced stage of mastering the Aether. It seemed like they really wanted to implant the idea that everyone had the ability to use Aether, especially the public, and that all they needed was guidance.

I was already tired of this book full of nonsense, so I started to speed up my reading pace.

'Fourth, the principle of mastery: skill and proficiency in using the Aether come from practice and study.No one is inherently stronger than another; it is the dedication to mastering the craft that sets individuals apart.'

Half of this content is true. You must have the talent within you first, then comes the stage of mastery through practice. Saying that no one is naturally stronger than the other is just a lie. If you do not have the talent, you have nothing. This does not only apply to the Aether, rather to everything in life.

'And finally, the principle of consequence: every spell has consequences.Beneficial spells can have positive ripple effects, while harmful spells can have unintended negative consequences on the casters or the world around them.'

Finally, some truth, although it is a little incomplete, but it is true. In the end, when it comes to harm, honesty suddenly prevails in the world.

I took a deep sigh.

'Life is definitely difficult.'