Three days after Archivist Kael’s ‘Evasion Cadre’ video inadvertently established his burgeoning reputation as a ‘Sovereign of Subterfuge’ across Aethelgard’s interwoven data-nets, Jory found himself attempting, with limited success, to pay attention in his Applied Aetheric Manifestations elective. His personal data-slate, however, had other, more pressing, and decidedly more annoying, ideas. `[Notification: Project “Accidental Ascendance” Verified! Objective: Aether-Stream broadcast reaches one million cycles. Completed!]` `[Rewards: 1000 Credits, 1 random Guild-Skill Acumen (Tier 3), 1 random Arcane-Grade Artifact (Purple)]` “Right,” Jory muttered, more to himself than the hovering Aether-Wisp currently engaged in an overly enthusiastic demonstration. “So the ‘Evasion Cadre’ video actually crossed the million-cycle mark. Fantastic.” This meant that hitting the 100,000 Aether-Stream follower milestone couldn’t be far off. And that, in turn, meant the day he’d have to reveal his identity to a sprawling, judgmental populace was rapidly approaching. The very thought was a monument to inconvenience. The class itself was, in essence, a gloriously over-credentialed session of advanced physical education. Out on the sprawling simulation field, plenty of junior initiates had paired off for some decidedly sloppy, low-tier Aetheric skirmishes – glorified sim-dueling, really. This particular elective, Applied Aetheric Manifestations, was worth a respectable four credits, primarily for attendance. But Aether-Wisp, it seemed, was preternaturally inclined towards… well, *manifesting* its dominance. It had already placed Praetor Fenn’s Chrono-Snail into a complete Stasis-Aura — an energetic immobilization — five or six times now, leaving the poor temporal creature spiraling inertly in the dust. From across the field came Praetor Fenn’s predictably pathetic cry: “Chrono-Snail! Regain coherence! Respond to command!” Jory sighed, a deep, world-weary exhalation. “It’s merely a Stasis-Aura, Fenn, not a full energy drain. Why must you dramatize every minor inconvenience?” “Ah… So that’s all it is?” Praetor Fenn, a perpetually bewildered figure even on the best of days, scratched his scalp through his regulation Guild-Cap. “I thought it was, you know, completely… nullified.” Beside Jory, Scrutiny-Adept Lyra, a student whose primary mode of interaction was an ongoing assessment of everyone else’s shortcomings, clicked her tongue in amazement. “By the Spire, Jory! You only manifested that Wisp recently, and it’s already this potent?!” Jory looked, and felt, conflicted. “What if I told you I haven’t actually ‘trained’ it in any conventional sense—would that information even penetrate your analytical framework?” Lyra scoffed. “Spare me the sophistry! You’re already outperforming most Manifestation Guild Novices in raw output!” The truth was, Jory had been so preoccupied with the accidental ascension of his Aether-Stream, he hadn’t dedicated a single deliberate moment to Aether-Wisp’s development. The ethereal manifestation, it appeared, was entirely self-sufficient, a veritable autonomous learning algorithm. It had even, much to Jory’s bewildered exasperation, picked up the Stasis-Aura ability on its own, adding yet another layer of unsolicited capability to its already inconvenient repertoire of dirty tricks. “Sometimes,” Jory mumbled, observing Aether-Wisp’s latest, devastatingly effective Stasis-Aura, “I feel like… I’m just an entirely useless bystander. Like my presence is entirely extraneous to its… evolving competence.” Recalling the now-victorious Aether-Wisp back to its latent state, Jory retreated to the edge of the simulation field to review his data-slate’s notifications. `[Notification: Sub-discipline Unlocked: Aether-Confection Synthesis (Tier 3)!]` `[Aether-Confection Synthesis (Tier 3): You can now fabricate high-quality Aether-Cakes. Possess expert knowledge of nutrient-glyph strains and properties. Synthesis success rate +60%. (Jory’s Unofficial Aether-Cakes: Efficient and Unappetizingly Potent!)]` `[Random Arcane-Grade Artifact (Purple): Pyric Infusion Shard]` `[Pyric Infusion Shard: Brimming with volatile pyric energies, it augments a manifestation’s flame affinity and enhances Pyre-aligned capabilities. (Discreet memo from the Arcane Council Registry: Single-use. Do not disclose this functional limitation to the primary user.)]` Jory stared at the rather unexpected rewards from his million-cycle video, his feelings a complex blend of mild interest and profound irritation. “The random skill is… marginally useful, I suppose,” he mused, tapping a finger against the glowing surface of his slate. “Aether-Cakes are always absurdly priced, so a fabrication skill might offset some future, inevitable cost.” “But this Pyric Infusion Shard…” His pragmatic instincts, honed by years of trying to survive comfortably without attracting the attention of overbearing Guilds, screamed. “My financial sensibilities dictate that I should liquidate it for credits immediately!” The ‘system,’ as he begrudgingly referred to the mysterious data-stream, had never explicitly forbidden the sale of its bestowed artifacts. Yet, Jory, with his inherent distrust of any unsolicited cosmic benevolence, harbored a distinct premonition that attempting such a transaction would inevitably lead to a cascade of catastrophic unforeseen consequences. Probably involving an audit from the Mercantile Guild, or worse, a summons from the Arcane Council. After a prolonged moment of internal debate that amounted to a weary sigh, Jory conceded. “Forget it. Aether-Wisp already has that rather inconvenient Will-o’-Wisp ability. Might as well let it… ‘experiment’ with this thing.” His manifestation, being a creature of pure Aether, could absorb latent energy from materials. This Pyric Shard, then, was essentially a top-tier supplement for it. With this, perhaps Aether-Wisp’s mastery over its pyric capabilities would improve even further. “…Why does this feel like I just took another reluctant, inconvenient step toward becoming an Arcane Controller?” he muttered, the thought chilling him to his core. “No, no,” he admonished himself, shaking his head. “Preemptive self-sabotage is key here. I can’t go jinxing myself like that. Besides, I’m entirely unsuited to being a legitimate Arcane Controller!” It had been a standard cycle since the Grand Conflux, the cataclysmic event that had subtly, yet irrevocably, altered the very fabric of Aethelgard. Jory now possessed a much deeper, and far more harrowing, understanding of what being an Arcane Controller truly entailed. If ‘danger’ was a key defining trait, then the biggest one was, without a doubt—how obscenely expensive it was! Without burning millions of credits, you couldn’t even adequately maintain a Proto-Arcanic Manifestation, let alone elevate it to true utility. And tens of millions? That was the starting price tag for an Arch-Magos Tier Manifestation. To put it bluntly: the more credits you immolated, the stronger your manifestations became. And the more attention you attracted. Even with this infernal ‘system’ backing him, Jory had zero confidence he could afford to raise, let alone maintain, a top-tier collection of such powerful, credit-guzzling entities. He’d even, in a moment of sheer fiscal anxiety, cautiously queried Guildmaster Thorne on the Guild-Net Comm-Link about the monthly cost of maintaining his formidable retinue: `[Jory_Finch: Guildmaster Thorne, what’s the average monthly expenditure for maintaining your… manifestation retinue?]` `[Guildmaster_Thorne: …The Colossus-Automaton is the primary drain. Approximately two million credits per cycle.]` `[Apprentice_Roric: Two million isn’t particularly exorbitant.]` `[Initia_Lark: What?! Σ(°△°|||)︴ My monthly allowance is only two thousand!]` `[Apprentice_Roric: Initia Lark, you only manage a Gutter-Scuttler and a Zephyr-Moth. Naturally, your maintenance costs are economical.]` `[Jory_Finch: Wait, two million per *retinue*?!]` `[Guildmaster_Thorne: No, Jory. Two million for one Colossus-Automaton.]` Jory instantly severed the comm-link. Just… what kind of ludicrous, disconnected-from-reality financial strata were these people inhabiting?! Being trapped in a group chat with such flagrant displays of affluence was inducing a nascent anxiety attack. Setting down his comm-slate, Guildmaster Thorne turned to Apprentice Roric, a faint, almost imperceptible frown etched into his brow. “Why the sudden inquiry from Finch about operational costs?” Roric, ever the pragmatist, replied, “Likely attempting to estimate the projected maintenance for a fully developed Aether-Wisp, Guildmaster.” Thorne merely hummed. “How much did Arch-Arbiter Volkov spend on her prime manifestation?” Roric consulted a mental archive. “Only about fifty million. A trifle, really, for that level of Aetheric integration.” Thorne nodded slowly. “Sounds about right.” *** After class, Jory returned to his modest Spire-Level Habitation Module. Aside from reluctantly surrendering the Pyric Infusion Shard to Aether-Wisp — which promptly consumed it with an unnerving, satisfied hum — he also planned to experiment, with a healthy dose of skepticism, with his newly unlocked skill. `[Aether-Confection Synthesis (Tier 3): You can now fabricate high-quality Aether-Cakes. Possess expert knowledge of nutrient-glyph strains and properties. Synthesis success rate +60%.]` Aether-Cakes provided essential nutritional and energetic sustenance for Aetheric manifestations. Some Arcane Controllers deployed them strategically, tailoring their manifestations’ dietary intake to specific needs. For example, Crystalline-Fruit Cakes were known to boost Psionic Projection, while Swift-Scale Cakes enhanced Velocity Matrices. These fabricated confections greatly improved the Aetheric potency of raw nutrient-glyphs—hence their exorbitant market price. Everyone knew they came in four quality grades: Crude, Standard, Refined, and Pristine. “A refined Aether-Cake should fetch at least ten thousand credits on the Guild-Net Bazaar, shouldn’t it?” Jory murmured, a flicker of opportunistic calculation in his weary eyes. “Maybe I should just acquire some raw nutrient-glyphs, process them into cakes, and offload them?” The words were barely out of his mouth before he mentally slapped himself, the thought a fleeting, shameful aberration. “Exhibit some self-respect, Jory!” he internally admonished. “That paltry profit margin? You’d accrue more simply hawking illicit bio-mods in the Under-Spire for one night!” He looked down at his reflection in the polished surface of his data-slate. “Do I appear as someone who relies on his (admittedly, above-average) aesthetic appeal for income?!” In the end, Jory decided the slightly less humiliating route was to procure a fabrication unit to simply improve Aether-Wisp’s ‘meals.’ A household-grade Nutrient-Glyph Pulverizer, a basic model, cost ten thousand credits on the Guild-Net Bazaar. After confirming the order, Jory was left with only about five thousand credits in his account. “Hsss~!” he hissed, a familiar pang of fiscal despair seizing his already beleaguered heart at the expense. That evening, a hulking Load-Bearer Construct from the local logistics depot trundled the pulverizer up to his sixth-tier habitation module, nearly giving his landlord a localized cardiac event. The thing was less a household appliance and more a compact, industrial-grade piece of excavation equipment. “Acknowledge delivery,” the construct rumbled, its optical sensors glowing green. Jory’s mouth twitched as he pointed to the waist-high, crudely welded contraption currently occupying a significant portion of his living space. “Are you certain this monstrosity qualifies as ‘household-grade’?!” “It’s an ‘economy-spec’ model, designation 3.0-alpha,” the construct emitted a series of mechanical chuckles, a sound disturbingly akin to grinding gears. “Perfectly functional for its tier! The more compact the machine, the pricier it gets. That’s just how the Aether-Economy functions, primary user.” With ten thousand credits, Jory could only afford this ancient relic of a model. The pulverizer’s thunderous roar, once plugged in and operational, made the landlord below assume Jory was initiating an unscheduled structural renovation, resulting in an immediate, irritated comm-link message about noise ordinances. Staring at the shimmering, translucent cube that emerged from the pulverizer’s output chute, Jory gulped. He pressed a button on the side of the unit, and his data-slate chirped. `[Aether-Confection Synthesis (Tier 3) Verification—68! Success!]` `[Vitality-Glyph Cake (Refined Quality): A foundational Aether-Cake that restores a manifestation’s energetic reserves. (Experience the complete spectrum, embrace the radiant flux!)]` Vitality-Glyphs, the raw material, had a notoriously unpredictable flavor profile—sweet, tart, bitter, all contingent on the specific strain’s Aetheric resonance. But the restorative effect? Undeniably potent. Aether-Wisp, manifesting from a shimmering pocket of air, extended a long, crimson tendril of its ethereal form and elegantly slurped the Aether-Cake into its core, its single, luminous eye squinting with what Jory could only interpret as sheer, unadulterated bliss. The sight was, frankly, a little disturbing. That oddly lovestruck, blissful expression even piqued Jory’s curiosity. “Is it really that… transcendent?” He tentatively bit into a remaining Aether-Cake. A peculiar explosion of sweet and tart flavors detonated across his tongue, followed by an oddly earthy, metallic undertone. In his mind’s eye, a vision, fleeting and bizarre, bloomed: a pristine, sun-drenched Aether-farm, a long-haired Arcane Weaver in a straw hat shyly turning around— Only to reveal Aether-Wisp’s horrifying, disembodied grin. Aether-Wisp, now fully energized and apparently quite pleased, zipped happily around Jory in frantic, erratic loops, leaving trails of iridescent Aether in its wake. “Alright, alright,” Jory sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. “Stop clinging. I’ll fabricate another batch!” This was precisely the kind of escalating, ridiculous situation he had always tried, and repeatedly failed, to avoid. His comfortable, independent living was rapidly becoming a relic of a simpler, less-Aetheric past.

The Unwanted Upgrade