The Cycle of Fate

Chapter 5: The Magazine

Night had fallen.

After dealing with a neighbor who came to borrow their oven, Lumière headed up to the second floor and entered the room that doubled as a study.

—In Cordu Village, many poor families lacked ovens or large stoves. When they needed to bake bread or smoke meat, they had to borrow others' ovens and use them on the spot.

Aurore had always been open-minded and generous about this. She allowed anyone to borrow the oven as long as they paid for the fuel or brought their own coal or wood.

Now, she had changed into a white silk nightgown and was curled up in an armchair. Under the bright battery-powered desk lamp on the table, she was engrossed in the book she was reading.

Lumière didn't disturb her. He randomly pulled a thinner book from the bookshelf and sat down in a chair in the corner.

"The Veil of Secrets"... What kind of magazine is this? Lumière wondered as he glanced at the cover full of strange symbols.

He flipped through it quickly and grew increasingly shocked.

This magazine talked about the forms of human souls, claimed that all things had spirits, and described how to communicate with different spirits through secret methods to obtain various kinds of help...

Even though Lumière's faith wasn't devout—he merely followed the crowd into the "Eternal Blazing Sun" Church for occasional prayers and mass—two words uncontrollably flashed through his mind:

"Blasphemy!

"Taboo!"

Although it made sense for Aurore, a witch who would surely be burned at the stake if exposed, to have such books at home, Lumière was stunned to see that this magazine had an official government publication permit!

Could something like this be openly published?

Wasn't there supposed to be strict censorship?

Or was the permit forged... Lumière looked up at Aurore and asked:

"Is this a banned magazine?"

Aurore tore her gaze from her book and glanced at her brother, answering nonchalantly:

"It used to be, considered underground literature. But for some reason, it passed the censorship and became officially published. The 'Eternal Blazing Sun' Church didn't interfere and just let it be."

"Literature?" Lumière didn't quite understand his sister's choice of words.

"Of course it's literature. You didn't take it seriously, did you?" Aurore laughed. "If what it described were real, do you think it would still be published? If you follow its methods, all you'll achieve is mental exhaustion and neurosis. Occasionally, there might be some real stuff, but without the corresponding ritual language, any attempt is futile."

This was the evaluation of a professional witch.

"Alright..." Lumière couldn't hide his disappointment. "I just find it strange that it can be published."

Aurore puffed out her cheeks as if seriously considering something:

"I'm not sure why either. Maybe in recent years, the number of supernatural phenomena involving extraordinary factors has increased, making it impossible to hide everything. This has created a certain trend of thought, and the government wants people to have a bit of understanding, so they've relaxed the control over such books. In Trier, the more popular magazines are 'Spiritualism,' 'Lotus,' and 'Esoteric.' I have all of them on my bookshelf. If you're interested, you can check them out. It'll help you create more believable stories for the tavern."