Chapter 37: Stone

Chapter 37: Stone

‘So it really is…’

Listening to Aldrich’s words, Dorothy let out a quiet breath of relief as she thought to herself. She felt no great surprise at the realization that the old man before her was indeed Grayhill.

Back when she was still in the carriage, she had already noticed the four stone-armored knights standing around Aldrich, motionless like statues. These four knights were extremely similar to the ones Dorothy had seen at the Grayhill gathering. From that moment on, she had already begun to speculate whether Aldrich was Grayhill.

Now that he had personally admitted it, Dorothy felt relieved—yet at the same time, new questions arose in her mind.

“So it really is you, Mr. Grayhill from the gathering. In that case, the one you were preparing to test back then was actually me? I wonder what it was about me that caught your attention?”

Dorothy asked Grayhill again. Clearly, he had already realized that she was the little girl who had traded with him at the secret gathering, but Dorothy was not certain exactly where she had exposed herself.

Hearing Dorothy’s question, Aldrich maintained his smile. He waved a hand lightly and said,

“I imagine, Miss Mayschoss, that you’ve never specifically trained in voice disguise. At that gathering, the voice you used was rather unnatural. I could tell immediately that you were deliberately raising your pitch—intentionally altering your voice.”

‘The voice…’

Hearing Aldrich’s words, Dorothy instantly realized where the problem lay. She had no professional training in voice mimicry. At the gathering, she had merely forced her pitch higher. To anyone knowledgeable in such matters, the flaw would have been obvious.

“You can fool ordinary people that way, but to me, your method was extremely crude—far from skillful or professional. Not only did I notice the issue, I also used a mystical item to secretly record your voice. Later, I tried lowering the pitch to restore it, simulating several possible original voices you might have had. What I didn’t expect was that, not long afterward, I would hear one of those voices in the corridor of this very school…”

Aldrich continued. Listening to him, Dorothy felt a sudden sense of realization.

“I see… so that’s how it was. That’s why you wanted to test me.”

“Exactly. But in the end, I didn’t manage to test you. Instead, some of your brother’s behavior exceeded my expectations. After that, I was never completely certain whether you were truly that little girl from back then—until you came to me on your own today…”

He gave a soft chuckle.

“Heh… a brother and sister, both with their own secrets. You wouldn’t happen to be from some hidden family, would you? Whether it’s ‘Mayschoss’ or ‘Dorothea,’ neither your surname nor your given name is common in this country…”

After finishing his words, Aldrich took another sip of tea. At that point, Dorothy spoke up in response.

“My brother is simply agile and skilled because he trained from a young age. We’re not from any hidden family. My contact with the supernatural came about due to certain coincidences.”

“Say whatever you like,” Aldrich replied. “As long as you don’t break my rules, I’m not particularly fond of prying into other people’s secrets. Very well then, Miss Mayschoss—do you have any other questions?”

Slowly placing the teacup back onto the table, Aldrich looked at Dorothy. Hearing his words, Dorothy glanced around at the many stone statues surrounding them.

“Yes. Then may I ask, sir—does the path you walk belong to ‘Stone’?”

Dorothy voiced her question. Although she already had a guess about the spiritual domain he practiced, she wanted confirmation. Aldrich answered her directly.

“Yes—Stone spirituality. The domain I pursue: the stone of engraving, the stone of shaping…”

Rising slowly from his seat, Aldrich swept his gaze across the surrounding works as he spoke. Dorothy then followed up with another question.

“You’ve carved so many stone sculptures. Does sculpting… constitute the cultivation path of a ‘Stone’ Beyonder?”

“Yes, but it is only one of them,” Aldrich replied. He slowly walked over to the bust he had been working on earlier and gently stroked its surface as he continued.

“Stone spirituality is the most solid foundation of this world. It exists within all rocks, minerals, metals… within all things that are most plain, most vast, and most straightforward. It is the most stable form of spirituality.”

“Rocks… minerals… metals… That really is everywhere,” Dorothy said with a sigh of admiration. “If that’s the case, gathering spirituality should be quite convenient, shouldn’t it?”

Hearing this, Aldrich shook his head.

“Not convenient at all. Although Stone is the most widespread, aside from certain gemstones excavated from deep within the earth—those that are naturally rich in high spirituality—ordinary rocks and ores contain extremely little spirituality, and what little there is is heavily diluted. It is very difficult to extract.”

“You’ve previously had contact with the Crimson Eucharist, so I’ll use the 'Chalice' as a comparison. In today’s occult world, because of the fall of the Afterbirth Cult, the mainstream accumulation of 'Chalice' relies on devouring flesh and blood. But people cannot eat stones. Even if you stuffed your stomach full of them, you’d absorb almost no ‘Stone’ spirituality.”

“Stone spirituality possesses the greatest stability and inertia of all forms of spirituality. In certain aspects, this is an advantage—but when it comes to absorption, it becomes an obstacle. Thus, Beyonders associated with ‘Stone’ have developed alternative methods of gathering spirituality…”

“The key word among them is shaping.”

“By pouring one’s effort, skill, and focus into shaping metal and stone, the craftsman’s spirit can resonate with the spirituality contained within the material, activating and concentrating it. In the process of shaping, the craftsman and the material enter into a dialogue, a mutual resonance.”

As he spoke, Aldrich picked up his tools once more and carved the final details into the statue.

“Using the chisel to shape the form of stone, and the mind to shape its spirituality. When a work is completed, the Stone spirituality within it changes—it becomes condensed, it becomes active, it becomes aware, and it becomes… easy to absorb…”

With those words, Aldrich made the final cut. He then set the tools down on the table and placed a hand on the bust’s shoulder. A faint gray light flashed across his hand, almost unnoticed. The bust immediately began to crack—fine fissures spreading across its surface—before it instantly collapsed into gray dust.

Seeing this, Dorothy understood that the Stone spirituality within the sculpture had been absorbed by Aldrich.

Spirituality within natural rock is extremely difficult to absorb, but the craftsman’s invested labor and focus can activate and condense Stone spirituality. Once the work is complete, it can then be absorbed with ease.

This was the mainstream method by which ‘Stone’ Beyonders gather spirituality…

“So that’s how it works… This really broadens my horizons, Mr. Aldrich,” Dorothy said, both astonished and intrigued. “But if absorbing the spirituality destroys the work, then why are there still so many outstanding pieces here in the school?”

Hearing her question, Aldrich let out a sigh before replying.

“Just as you said—they are outstanding works. If they are that excellent, how could I bear to destroy them? Crafting works rich in spirituality requires complete devotion and meticulous care. Every piece made by my hands embodies my own effort and heart.”

“If it’s slightly flawed, that’s one thing. But when I encounter a work that truly satisfies me, I find myself unable to do it… Heh. Perhaps, in a sense, I lean a little more toward being a craftsman than a Beyonder.”

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