Chapter 201: Child of Wisdom, and Disaster

"The Wisdom Parasite, after entering their bodies changed into a Frenzy Parasite."

The auditorium turned silent, the silence deafening. A heavy aura shrouded the atmosphere, with the seated students experiencing fear and part paranoia. Jyorta wasn't shaken as much as the rest, broiled in thought as he tried to think up the reasons by comparing his memories to that of the Floating Spiders he had comprehended.

A couple of moments later, he sighed, unable to link anything. He then noticed Haesha biting the nail of her thumb, wondering what to think and what to fear. It wasn't the notion of the Wisdom Parasite changing into a Frenzy Parasite—when administered to a Frenzy Beast—that induced fear in them.

It was the very fact that the Wisdom Parasite could change into a Frenzy Parasite in the first place. This implied a threat to their lives.

Any being with a Frenzy Parasite was under the absolute control of Rhachis Ancestor Parasite, with only the Ancestors among the Frenzy Beasts able to resist this influence to a certain extent. Even then, there hasn't been a precedent of a Frenzy Beast extricating itself from the influence of Rhachis Ancestor Parasite.

It wasn't witnessed normally thanks to the fact that Rhachis Ancestor Parasite didn't try to exert its influence on any Frenzy Beasts, allowing them to survive and develop on their own terms.

Only when it plans to strike humanity did it ever exert its influence, that too on a subtle level. Even then, if it so desired, Rhachis Ancestor Parasite was capable of making any Frenzy Beast lose control on the spot. Only the Ancestors were exempt from this, thanks to the changes they experience once entering the realm of Tier 6.

Rhachis Ancestor Parasite had an irreconcilable hatred towards humanity, the feud between them running deep. This was expressed ever since the dark ages, with it being the prime reason for the fall of human civilisation in the bygone era.

The epoch of the Dawn Era signalled the arrival of Rhachis Ancestor Dawn, the leader of humanity who took the brunt of resisting Rhachis Ancestor Parasite, the sole existence keeping the other party in check.

Even then, not once had Rhachis Ancestor Dawn ever been able to one-up Rhachis Ancestor Parasite. Only through a joint resistance by Rhachis Ancestor Dawn, Rhachis Ancestor Reef, and Rhachis Ancestor Light were they able to prevent humanity from annihilation, managing to thwart many plans and also retaliating blows towards Rhachis Ancestor Parasite.

But, everything would change if their Wisdom Parasite becomes a Frenzy Parasite. This would allow Rhachis Ancestor Parasite to make all of humanity—except the Ancestors—lose control with a snap. By then, the Ancestors wouldn't even retain the morale to put up any resistance, having witnessed everyone from their brethren suffer a fate worse than death.

"Your fears aren't without a basis but, listen to the rest before you decide whether the emotion you wish to feel is fear or something else." Madam Rizenne sighed once, "The Wisdom Parasites are manufactured by the Ancestors, with the production method solely in their hands. They use a certain mechanism to imbue a layer of protection over the Wisdom Parasite, shielding itself from Rhachis Ancestor Parasite's influence."

"But," She shook her head, "This protection is only limited to humans. For some reason, this protection disappears the moment a being other than a human is implanted with a Wisdom Parasite. Without protection, it slowly changes into a Frenzy Parasite."

"This is the reason why I mentioned once, long ago in one of our classes," Madam Rizenne controller herself, preventing her boiling anger from being unleashed, "If not for the presence of Rhachis Ancestor Parasite, the Children of Wisdom would have been the boon of humanity."

Madam Rizenne turned silent, taking in deep breaths, controlling her psychic energy from being emitted. Even then, small gales were stirred upon each of her exhales. The students could feel her turbulent emotions, their emotions too getting affected.

Jyorta too wasn't different; after a moment of hesitation, he decided against using his false persona. It wasn't wise to stand out for no reason whatsoever. He went along the flow, allowing his emotions to become affected by Madam Rizenne, getting an inkling as to how Madam Mary had been able to affect his emotions the previous day.

Five minutes later, she continued, "A Child of Wisdom is born with a Wisdom Parasite, fused between his brain and spinal cord. They have a perfect hundred percent Sync Rate, the majority of which is distributed to either the brain or the spinal cord."

"In normal cases, this would allow the Child of Wisdom to attain the powers of both a Warrior and an Esper. Though they would be weaker than a pure Warrior or an Esper, the advantages outweigh the disadvantages."

"As a Warrior, they will possess strong bodies, developing powerful Skills. As an Esper, they will possess psychic energy, able to detect anything within their domain, also having their thought process, computational ability, etc. develop as a whole. They would become terrifying battle strengths once they reach Tier 3 and beyond."

"But, the presence of a Wisdom Parasite in them since birth changes things. Since it hasn't passed through the hands of the Ancestors, despite being a Wisdom Parasite, it lacks the protection imbued in the Wisdom Parasites we possess. This allows Rhachis Ancestor Parasite to easily detect them."

"After all, based on what Rhachis Ancestor Marble had said, the presence of each Child of Wisdom or Frenzy is like a massive beacon among all the other Parasites to the senses of Rhachis Ancestor Parasite." Madam Rizenne felt her voice choke, forcefully stabilised using her psychic energy.

"Therefore, under the influence of that blasted Rhachis Ancestor Parasite, the Wisdom Parasite in a Child of Wisdom slowly turns into a Frenzy Parasite, hindering the growth of the child as it becomes the sole existence to grow and mature. In the span of 5-10 years, it completely takes control of the child, the process of losing control being subtle, unable to be detected by anyone below Tier 4."

"Before this happens, we…give them…peace…" Madam Rizenne felt words failing to form in her mouth, her trembling vocal cord unable to produce any sounds. She closed her eyes, taking deep breaths, her shuddering body becoming more and more pronounced as the seconds ticked by.

Haesha covered her mouth with her hand, leaning towards Jyorta. Seeing her approach, Jyorta directed his ear towards her, listening to her careful whisper, the sounds muffled to the extent even he felt trouble hearing.

"I heard the seniors mention this; apparently, Madam Rizenne had given birth to five children to date but, every one of them had been a Child of Wisdom."

"That is…cruel…" Jyorta felt shocked, feeling something in his mind shatter. Madam Rizenne was a grand Sky Controller, an existence only beneath the Ancestors. Also, she possessed the Unranked Skill, Regen allowing her to treat any life-threatening injury like it was a piece of cake.

But, despite her strength and abilities, she failed to give birth to a successor, one who would have grown up to become her pride and joy. Now, she didn't have a child to call her 'mother', an instinctual joy that she had been deprived of for a lifetime.

Despite the tremendous powers they possess, the bodies of Espers were no different from regular humans. Going through childbirth five times would have already put a considerable strain on her body, not to mention her aging self.

She was the right hand of Madam Mary, having been in power for many decades. She wasn't as aged as Madam Mary but she was still in her sixties, having long since experienced her menopause. Now, even if she wanted to give birth, her body no longer had the ability to.

"Like the rumours you Cadets have heard, I had given birth to five children in total but, all of them ended up becoming a Child of Wisdom. I watched them grow, watched them lose to the Frenzy Parasite in them…watched their final breaths as I gave them peace…" She gritted upon the pronunciation of each syllable, using her sturdy willpower to prevent herself from flipping out.

"In my youth, I was unrestrained. Having obtained a Sync Rate of 93 percent during my Induction Ceremony, I possessed the greatest battle strength in my Batch. Even after I graduated from the military academy and was sent to the Wilds on various missions, my lead never fell. I was always among the best."

"In search of fame and glory, I undertook dangerous missions one after another, completing each one with staggering success. Finally, through our many missions together, I fell in love with my husband. Having accumulated many merits, we finally decided to marry. I was 37 years old by then, having already become a Ground Controller. My husband too had become a Shifter."

"When you go from Tier 3 to Tier 4, you will feel an elevation in your very being. You would feel like an almighty, capable of achieving anything. The boundless strength you would come to possess will further assert your delusion. But, here lies the trick of fate."

Madam Rizenne wiped the tears that streamed from her eyes, "When two Tier 4 beings have an offspring, it has a ninety percent guarantee of being born as a Child of Wisdom. In my case though, thanks to the superior strength of me and my husband, it was almost a hundred percent guarantee."

"Our overconfidence prevented us from having a child of our own. Strength isn't the sole deciding factor in this world. Everything has its time, only when you follow them would you have no regrets, unlike me."