"Sven... can you tell me how we got here?"
sven perked up.
"i was in your shadow! and when that thing came, i wanted to come out and help you! but he blocked everything out with darkness..."
similarly. when can was inside the [mind] space, a sudden darkness blocked away james and the otherworld from the [mind] space, which is why james was not able to connect with the rest of the spirits.
"but when you defeated that guy, the darkness disappeared and i was able to come back out, i wasn't very helpful... i only brought you back to your bed..."
sven's words made it sound like he barely did anything, but genetically modifying yourself to that extent was something that only a genius could do.
can patted sven's head again. can was about to open his mouth to say 'you did well' once again, only to realize he's starting to sound repetitive.
"sven. do not underestimate yourself. you didn't 'only' bring me back to my bed, look at you. you've changed..."
after comforting sven, can hid his own pain under a kind, fatherly smile.
"lets go... Sven, we have a whole new world to explore."
can and sven departed from the castle once again. sven clenched his hand against the air and pulled down, bending the dimension and leaving it with can.
before they departed from the forest, can sat down with Sven.
"Sven, let me help you have your first awakening."
sven sat down and started taking in every word Can said.
"look inside yourself... deep inside. inside your body, inside your soul. inside your consciousness, can you see your tree of existence?"
sven did as instructed, and looked deep inside, the body housed the soul, the soul connected the body and the consciousness. and the consciousness housed the tree of existence.
originally, can did not realize that the tree of existence was inside the consciousness, but now that he had time to see every detail, it was as obvious as the sun.
while teaching sven, can himself was also learning more and more.
one example was the placement of each component, the body was in the physical realm. and it housed the soul. but the consciousness was in a different realm, the [mind] space.
the soul is what connects the mind and the body. without a soul, a person would lose connection to their [mind]. and would either become braindead, or go berserk.
"will your tree of existence into making divine energy, and send it to your soul..."
inside the [mind] laid the consciousness, it was possible for multiple consciousnesses to be born inside a single mind, but only one can be connected to the body at a time.
"keep pouring the divine energy into your soul until it becomes purer... as pure as possible."
each consciousness houses a tree of existence. the core of each being. the tree grounds the person in time, space, life, and death.
"circulate the purified divine energy through your body..."
as can gets better understanding of his power, he can sense his tree of existence grow, their roots burrowed deeper into the fabric of reality.
with his tree of existence growing, it became strong enough to drive out the small impurities inside it.
both can and sven suddenly had muck leave their bodies.
"master..? did it work?"
"yes... it did. congratulations on completing your first awakening"
"t-thank you... but... what is this... muck?"
"those are impurities that were in your body and soul. specifically, they were in your divine energy circuits. your divine energy drove them out of your body."
"stand still, i'll use a spell to clean us up."
can readied himself to use Cass's spell. but before he knew it. Cass herself perked up.
"you're gonna use my spell aren't you? weren't you the one who said 'you use a holy spell to bathe!!!'?"
"shut up cass."
"who are you talking to?" asked sven.
"just an idiot that lives in my mind.. don't worry about it."
can took a deep breath and started casting "Through day and night, through land and sea, purify that which is impure."
holy light covered both can and Sven. taking away the muck and replacing the bad smell with a nice floral smell
'cass really went overboard in adding techniques to this spell... a perfume technique is unnecessary..."
the fact that the spell is a holy spell made can even more mythical in sven's gaze.
'master is so amazing! a holy spell for bathing!! of course he uses a holy spell for bathing!! he's THE king!!'
Sven felt bloodlust. summoning his sword, he slashed without thinking. the corpse behind? a weird mix or a dog and a man.
the corpse dissipated into nothing within seconds.
"master. what was that?" asked sven.
"... that was an Inugami. it's a clinging dog spirit that refused to move on... but those were folklore... why would a yokai appear in the physical world??"