[NR] Taking It Outside (The Game) - Chapter 551 (Patreon)

Jason sighs, “I doubt the Deep Wilds are somehow planning these waves. Still, it is suspicious that two days in a row, the first wave was the most concerning. And speaking of ‘concerning’, Courtney, any feedback from the purification?”

Courtney made a face before sighing. “I don’t know what was there, but whatever it was took a lot of my Mana. Well, saying it took a lot of my Mana is a bit of an understatement. After all, it took my full Mana pool’s worth three times over and then some. The good news is even if it had the potential to be an airborne threat, it was contained by the fire.”

Jason pinches the bridge of his nose. “There are more reasons than just powerful beasts for why you need strength to explore the Deep Wilds. I don’t know what that was, but I’d be willing to bet it wasn’t something the System allows. In fact, it wouldn’t be out of place if it had been airborne, the System suppressed it in some way.”

Rosha, “So we aren’t going to say what we think it was?”

Jason, “Courtney couldn’t tell what it was, which means she needed to use her more general purpose purification spell numerous times. Back in NeoRealm proper, that would simply mean the effect was too great for the more target spells to deal with it.”

Rosha interrupts, “What does that mean, anyway? Why would the general spell work and not the targeted? I would have assumed that if something like break curse couldn’t manage it, a more general purification spell would be powerless.”

Courtney explains that, “Targeted spells are all or nothing. Either ‘break curse’, breaks the curse or it fails. Purification and others of its ilk are, hmm, more gradual.

“To explain it, consider having a piece of gum stuck under a table. The specific solution is a scraper. But if your scraper isn’t able to get it off, nothing will have changed. The general solutions, on the other hand, are like sandpaper. Whether it is gum, rust, paint, or what have you. If you work at it long enough with sandpaper, they’ll eventually be sanded off.

“Sure, it isn’t the best tool for the job, but if you have the time, it will get there. Mind you, ‘have the time’ extends exponentially with power difference. Whatever that was, likely was only so easy to clean up because there were so few instances. I bet if we fought them in their territory, it would be like trying to carve a canyon with said sandpaper. Could you? In theory, yes, but even in NeoRealm and with current life extension tech you wouldn’t live long enough.”

Jason nods, “It would be like the difference between purifying a cup of sea water and trying to purify a cup’s worth of sea water while it is still in the sea.”

Rosha, “So why aren’t we being more specific?”

Jason, “Because there is a second option. Courtney has a bunch of specific spells for stuff like this. Whether it is a curse, poison, demonic corruption, or what have you she likely has a spell for it. However, the Deep Wilds are throwing stuff at us that just aren’t allowed to exist in NeoRealm proper.

“There are no spells to break true mind control. Not because they don’t exist, but because such spells are like the other side of the coin that is mind control. To break it, instead of just resisting it or the person suffering from it being able to throw off the effect, requires similar knowledge to applying it in the first place. Sort of like how vaccines were originally all just weakened versions of the actual disease. So, since the System doesn’t allow mind control, the knock on effect is that you also don’t get access to the spells to break it.”

Jason, “And I fear that we… hmm, let’s move this to one of our rooms.”

Courtney frowns, “And leave our bodies undefended?”

Jason nods, “It is important to know what we might be up against. So far, Rosha has kept properly circumspect, but we need to have more grounding on how to avoid stuff.”

Courtney couldn’t argue against that and so everyone logged out and joined up in Rosha’s room.

Rosha hugged a bunny pillow as they sat around a fire pit where the flames were animated to look like rabbits hopping around. “So we should be safe now? You aren’t going to reveal that even here we might be in danger, or some such?”

Courtney nods, but is very unhappy when Jason doesn’t.

Jason can only shrug, “One of the possible options is memetic. NeoRealm is real and thus, a memetic infection could potentially breach the dimensional barrier. Though I find that unlikely, the possibility exists.

“However, that isn’t on the top of my list when it comes to suspicions. Though it is my main reason for coming here.”

Rosha, “So what do you suspect that was, then?”

Jason, “There is literally no way for us to find out at this point. But my suspicion is some form of ‘manual’ control. Most common forms of mind control work through supernatural means. This makes them benign to a certain extent.”

Courtney raises an eyebrow, “Benign? I feel we might have different definitions of such things. Just the potential for long-term side effects even after being released makes it horrible.”

Jason nods, “True, however, I am comparing it to what I suspect this was. At least you can remove the mind control and have someone mostly the same, if in need of therapy. Though I will note that for this, I am talking about slave magic and mind control magic, not ‘doll’ magic.”

Courtney, “What’s doll magic?”

Jason, “I guess I should also note that the true name for it isn’t doll magic. Doll magic is controlling actual dolls. Heavy air quotes on the doll part because what it does is turn people into dolls. You don’t just control someone like a puppet, they are a puppet. It will destroy their minds and if someone is under the magic for more than a few days, there will be permanent damage. After a week or so? There will be nothing left of the original person.”