Blade Over Magic

Certain Truths II

”A... hole?” Xander frowned. What the hell did that mean?

”Hm. Alright, think of it this way. If a cloth gets ripped, what happens to the threads surrounding said rip?” Xander paused.

”They become strained and... deviate from their original connections.” He answered slowly.

”And has there been anyone around you who has experienced a rapid deviation from the initial path they were taking?” At that question, Xander’s eyes widened. Because there was someone who showed such rapid deviations. Multiple people, actually.

Aubrey who went from a simple perception mage to creating her Library. Curtis who came to terms with his nature as a lycan and his ice diamond. Falael whose gender change happened ahead of her birthday and the star that fixed her defective mana pool.

The hatching of Keir, Mary’s training, Landor and the problem it faced on three points, especially the ants.

Xander’s propagation of swordsmanship being a threat to Bellion, him training the Lowell knights, and so one.

A single one of these events individually was already a lot, yet they all happened in quick succession. And the core of all of this, was Xander. And keep in mind, it hadn’t even been up to a year since Xander transmigrated. Yet all of these things happened.

And now here he was, speaking with the youngest princess of the kingdom.

”Seems like you got it.” The princess nodded. ”Because of you, the fates of those in your proximity were forcefully deviated from their original paths, causing things to develop in drastically different directions. You are an anomaly. One whose impact is far more significant than your current strength should allow.” Xander was silent as he digested all of this.

It was absurd, but when one zoomed out and looked at everything at once... it made a strange amount of sense. All the incidents and people that seemed to get pulled in his direction, was it really a coincidence?

After a while, Xander finally spoke.

”Okay, you’ve explained the impact I caused, but what exactly led to my transmigration?” That was another thing. Because while his existence certainly had numerous impacts, the cause was still a mystery to him.

”I was getting to that, and the answer is a bit complicated.” The princess sighed.

”To be frank, I can’t fully explain what happens after death. Both because of my own lacking knowledge and the fact that what I do know shouldn’t even be made privy to me at my level. I only know due to certain means, but others can’t know.” She faced him, and again, Xander felt like she was looking right at him even though her eyes were closed.

”Simply put, when you died in your original world, the original Xander of Tatonia died at the same time. Now, souls have different frequencies, but sometimes, two souls can have frequencies so similar that it’s hard to distinguish between them. I believe—and this is just a theory—but I believe that when you two died, somehow, your souls which had very similar frequencies established a connection and ’flew’ towards each other. So rather than going wherever souls usually go after death, they were drawn to each other instead, and the degree of this pull isn’t equal. Meaning one soul could have crossed most of the distance between the two while the other was only just leaving its body.” Xander snapped his fingers.

”Which is to say that by soul was the faster one. So rather than both meeting at some center point or the original Xander entering my original body, my soul reached his body and soul first, then entered.” Xander finished, and the princess nodded enthusiastically.

”Yup, you’re getting it.” Xander felt a strange sense of relief at the prospect. It sounded strange, but one worry he always had was whether or not his Transmigration was a coincidence. If it wasn’t, then who or what was behind it? And what was their goal? But if it was like this...

”Okay... but how about the body somehow starting again? Putting a soul into a body that has ceased all function won’t really work, now would it?” Xander ventured.

”Ordinarily, yes. But here’s the thing,” She gestured towards him. ”Bodies are normally only meant to have a single soul. So when your soul crashed into the original Xander in his body, yours, which I’m assuming was larger or stronger, acted as the primary soul of the body, while the original Xander’s soul, which was couldn’t leave due to being drawn to yours, remained, and I assume that it gradually broke down. Some of it must have been absorbed by his body which restarted his bodily functions, while the other bits, like his memories and some habits were assimilated into your soul. So to an extent, you carry parts of the original Xander in you.” Xander blinked slowly.

”That’s... huh.” He wasn’t really sure how to feel about that. Granted, he did recall how after his Transmigration, he kept directly addressing Xavier as ’father’ even though he knew that it wasn’t truly the case, and it took him a while before he managed to end that particular habit. Now it made sense why it happened.

’So you’re still with me to an extent, huh? I wonder... are you happy with how things turned out?’ He sighed. The original Xander... had truly been pitiful. Xander was a hijacker, he wouldn’t deny that. But if some part of the original Xander of this body remained and was seeing everything going on, he sincerely hoped that he was at peace.

”Alright. Next question.” He said, and the princess hummed.

”Ask away.”

It’s three questions, actually. First, how come my Transmigration caused me to be a ’hole’ as you said? Second, how exactly do you know so much? And third, what is your goal in all of this?” Hearing this, the princess lingered for a moment, then she exhaled.

”Hm, Alright. For the first question. In that case, if the weaving of fate are the way they are, your existence is like an existential razor. In the first place, you aren’t meant to be here, so you tore into fate rather than get assimilated with it. And the more your actions affect those around you, making their original paths deviate or snap, the larger this hole becomes with you at the center. I don’t know how large it will get, but it’s already pretty big as is.” She rubbed her chin.

”As for how I know so much, well. Let me ask you something. Solvaren is the only human kingdom on this continent along with the barbarian tribes scattered around its edges, right? How old do you think this kingdom is?” Xander paused and closed his eyes as he recalled the history he learned.

”... It should be 1,600 years now?” He ventured.

”More or less. And before then, how technologically advanced do you think humans were?” Xander suddenly frowned.

”Records state that we were still using stone tools before then... wait.” He suddenly realized something.

Back on earth, at least around when he died, records stated that the stone age ended around 4,000 to 6,000 years ago.

Even if magic exists on Tatonia, to transition from stone tools to an advanced civilization capable of standing against the other races like Elves who have a very rich history sounds absurd.

...

Unless...

Xander’s eyes grew wide, and the princess grinned.

”Seems like you’ve figured it out. It’s as you suspect, the founder of Solvaren was a transmigrator like you.” His brain buzzed.

That... explained so much.

The Victorian style architecture of the buildings. The medieval earth Nobility system. The airships that just looked like medieval ships that could fly, and so on.

It would explain why humanity was somehow able to contend against the other races effectively. After all, the history books literally talk about just how significant the Kingdom’s founder was, with his innovations and feats. He wasn’t just a prodigy. He wasn’t even meant to be there in the first place!

Was the founder of Solvaren a transmigrator from earth who came from around the medieval era there?

Xander covered his mouth as his pupils trembled. This information... was far too shocking!

”As for how I know this. Well, it’s actually a closely guarded secret within my family. Only my parents, the Royal Archmages, and direct descendants are privy to this information. Well, there’s you as well, now. That said, no one actually knows how transmigrators come about. Except for myself and a few others. And Samuel and I are the only ones who can actually identify this fact. Me due to my special sensory abilities, and Samuel... well, he’s something else.” Xander had to take a few deep breaths to regain his composure. Then he gave the princess a deep look.

”And... how many transmigrators have been identified besides me?” The princess fell silent, then she raised a finger.

”Including you, we have managed to identify three. The second is currently with me, as for the third... we’re still having issues locking them down.” Xander swallowed.

Two other transmigrators.

And that’s just the ones they managed to identify.

He massaged his temples. This was... so much information, more than he could have ever hoped to get. And it was clear she still had more to say.

”... Alright, and the third question? What’s your goal in all of this? Are you operating under your father’s orders? Someone else? Or are you acting alone?” When he said this, her smile finally faded, and the air turned somber.

After a few seconds, she sighed.

”I have two reasons. First, well, like I mentioned earlier, I’m not able to move around much due to so many eyes being on me. Your existence... provides an avenue for that to change. So rather for me to follow a bleak fate where my actions are decided for me due to my disability, your presence means that could change. I want you to make my fate deviate, like you did with others. As for the second reason...” She leaned forward.

”I believe Samuel has warned you that something might happen soon in the future. Correct?”