The moment Zeke came into contact with Jaihar’s Soul, it was as if a dam had broken. Images and impressions streamed into him like an unending flood. It was a strange sensation, distinctly different from observing one’s own memories.

All of a sudden, Zeke remembered why he had wanted to avoid doing this again after the last time. The memories streaming into him were not just information but a lifetime’s worth of experiences. In those memories, he saw what Jaihar saw, felt what Jaihar felt, and thought what Jaihar thought—decades of living condensed into a scant few moments. Zeke wasn’t just seeing Jaihar’s life; he was Jaihar.

Worse, he felt that he was being changed by this.

Zeke had long suspected that one’s personality was predominantly made up of experiences. By adding such an overwhelming amount, he would no longer be wholly himself but an amalgamation of Zeke and Jaihar—a fact he had not fully considered during his impulsive decision to destroy Jaihar’s Soul.

The thought disgusted him to no end.

Zeke fought back. He noticed that he could largely prevent the memories from influencing him if he digested them thoroughly enough, one at a time. However, his initial efforts bore little fruit, as he was unable to stem the tide. No matter how many memories he digested, a dozen others took their place. This didn’t mean that it was hopeless, though.

Zeke called upon his Mind Magic, once again entering the wonderous state of increased perception. Time slowed down, and the torrent of information ebbed. Even so, the amount wasn’t something he could deal with. Fortunately, he wasn’t alone—or, at least, he thought he wasn’t.

“Akasha?” Zeke called out mentally while doing his best to fight off the intruding memories.

There was no reply, but Zeke was certain that she had heard him. Their connection was intact, but for some reason, Akasha didn’t seem to be able to respond. It was almost as if… as if she was frozen. Zeke could have slapped himself upon realizing the problem. Of course, Akasha couldn’t respond; after all, time was passing many, many times slower for him. By the time she responded, ages would have passed.

Fortunately, that was a problem he could solve. Akasha’s mind wasn’t human and followed its own set of rules. For her, the only bottleneck to the speed of her thought process was the amount of Mana available.

Zeke flooded their connection with Mana. Gradually, he could feel Akasha acclimate to his own perception of time. Her drawn-out words became more fluid until her voice sounded just the same as it did normally.

[Answer]

I am here, Host.