Why would Zaru gamble offending magus Lilissy for a badge?
It was because inside the Eternity Tower if one wants to access from resources to knowledge it was required to identify itself but its core functionality it to register a neophyte contribution or access task that is issued.
Although Zaru didn´t lose is badge but if he wants to have double the benefits he should have twice the way to do it.
After walking a while Zaru arrived at the Administration hall.
ADMINISTRATION
At the entrance a stood engraved symbol which resembles as if word and patterns was scramble together. This was Gafat langue one of most use langue by the magus community.
Most of the langue focus on giving meaning instead of just description. Zaru after 3 years of learning it e could be considered of medium proficient.
After taking his eyes off the Gafat symbol Zaru stepped inside the Administration.
An old woman with a grey-white hair and brown eyebrows was seated at the wide, black office counter. She was scrawling something with a feather pen, and beside her was a stack of parchment.
Behind her, countless bookshelves reach over to the ceiling, and sheepskin paper and even crystal balls were disorderly arranged on them.
“What affair do may I help you with?” The old woman put down the feather pen in her hand, and her wrinkled face smiled mildly.
"I lost my badge" Zaru had arrived at the counter
“Well, that's unfortunate!” Said the old woman
And then she looked at Zaru and her eyes flashed brightly. He scanned through the Zaru, before finally landing on the red raven badge on his hand.
Then the old woman raised her hand and a big sheepskin book floated out of one of the shelf and landed in front of her. As soon the sheepskin book landed in front of her it starts to unfold quickly as if by its own and as soon it stops a string of light shot out of the book straight to Zaru.
Zaru was caught by blow but by the time he realized the light had entered his body and shoot back to the book.
The time the light entered the book the old woman brow frowned. Then she made a thoughtful look at Zaru then landed on the bag in his back. Then enlightenment filled her eyes
As if in contemplation the old woman said to herself. "Aint she gone a little too far this time"
"What is your name" The old woman asked.
"Zaru..." Zaru was still under shock, everything happens so suddenly.
"Zaru Ligneth Shaen Whelts Vyss Thekore Ezior" But he quickly recuperates and starts talks his full name as it forces himself out of its memory. It turns out that each of his surnames belongs to each noble that had taken him when he was young.
The old woman didn´t seem impressed to this long string of name. She then raised her hand again and the book pages in front of her start moving again.
"Here it is, Zaru..."
"From the Tercarres archipelagos arrived four and a half years ago a... no mentor nor a preceptor, a low-grade aptitude and was a level 1 neophyte..." The old woman started uttering series of information about Zaru while he would only shake his head in confirmation.
"Was?" Zaru caught something amiss.
As if not earing Zaru, the old woman raised her hand and a badge flew to Zaru.
"What about the lost one?"Zaru caught the badge and careful look at it, then turning to the old woman and asking.
"Not much difference to that". The old woman said lazily.
"Tell me something brat(Zaru), how much did you sell your life for"Seen the Zaru giving a bow and turning to leave the old woman curiously asked.
"What?" Zaru was confused by the old woman word.
Then Zaru felt the bag on his bag moving by it own and ending on the old woman hands.
"Well, it seems your life is pretty cheap." She cast more careful eyes on the bags as if she could see through it.
"Oh, cheap and stupid too." Add as she could still see that Zaru didn´t understand her meaning yet.
"You have been poisoned by dark energy and that wasn't even the worst...". Then a crystal ball flowed in front of Zaru then it starts to slowly become dark.
...
Zaru had arrived at his dwarf tower and just lay down on the floor.
Zaru look carefully at the parchment in on his hand and then understanding dip his mind. It turns out that he didn't come harm-free out of the experiment and the reason dead ancient blood had this name was because of the deadly poison the blood becomes as it slowly decays when injecting on a living body. There also some myths that dead ancient blood are cursed by time to never fully appear again.
'Yah, if science could bring someone back from the dead, imagine what magic could do..'. And it turns out that magus Lilissy besides poisoned him also went a step further to kill him (old Zaru) and brought him back to life again. This way she could trick the decay effect for a while to best perform a long time experiment.
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And there consequence to that too, when one died even if was for a fraction of a second he or she would already be contaminated by dead energy, which explained why he wasn´t trowed again into a lab and scrutinise. Because the dead energy has a very strong breath that obscures any living breath.
The dead energy wasn´t so troublesome as one could just clean then self with a potion or using some other method. And that was the parchment in his hand was, a way to slowly drive out the energy out of his body.
But the decayed blood it was another mather. Even if you take a potion it would only be postponed for a while. All this had a very strong effect on his life expectancy as the old woman gave him at most 15 years and that if he could become a level 3 neophyte in 7 years and also if could he become a Magus before that he could probably extend it further, but the old woman didn´t even mention it as Zaru could only derivate.
"Sight" After pondering this he becomes very distressed. He felt like if he went to the doctor and was told that he has terminated illness and just a matter of time till he died.
Zaru still lost in his depressed though when the door start to open. He then raised his head looking at the door calmly as Ryan enters through.
"I already deaded once, NOT gonna wait for the second". Zaru eyes glimmered with determination.
Zaru raised from the floor and sat on his bed then he started meditating.
"NONE, not even a trace".After a long moment Zaru face seems to twist. In his mind, it was like he(old Zaru) went to sleep as level 1 neophyte and wake up like a normal person.
He had expected to fall from neophyte level but didn´t expect that to fall even to any memory relates to neophyte meditation techniques to disappear.
Zaru force himself from the bed and walk to the wall, then he reaches his hand into a hole and gave a slight push, exposing a small space inside.
Then he walks again to his bed with the crystal ball held in his hands.
Zaru rub the crystal ball, his eyes slowly turned hazy flaring a dark glow.
"Hhh" An spiked pain pokes his brain as if some worn his crawling inside.
“Oh my…... “Zaru discovered that many images, symbols and words flowed as if nowhere and firmly imprinted in his brain along with the pain.
After a while, Zaru belatedly recovered from the pain, but still feeling dizzy.
This crystal ball was given to him (Old Zaru) when he arrived at Tower, it contains information about neophyte meditation techniques and some other information about the Eternity Tower.
It ould input information straight into the neophyte’s brains, but the process is a little too rough and it may need to be repeated from time to time as neophyte could not completely remember it at a single time.
Neophyte meditation techniques are, as the name implies, special techniques given to neophyte, and are the most rudimentary of techniques. After countless adjustment, the meditation techniques have already reached a nearly perfect degree, and even in other places, its contents didn't vary much.
They are similar to visualisation techniques. A neophyte engrave mind runes inside their mind to increase their spiritual force, and as more mind runes are engraved, their spiritual force grows stronger and thick.
As neophyte classification thought out levels is defined by the progress in meditation.
When one can meditate with 10 arcane runes, they have passed the criteria for a level 1 neophyte. Being able to meditate with 100 arcane runes is the sign of a level 2 neophyte. As for level 3 neophyte, there seemed to be additional requirements needed.
As for the meditation speed, it is closely related to a neophytes aptitude.
The neophytes aptitude is divided in seven grade. Where its further divide in low-grade from 1 to 2, medium-grade from 3 to 4, high-grade from 5 to 6 and a grade 7 is known as legend as only in ancient time it seemed to appear.
The superiority of a high-grade neophyte is remarkably clear; they can leap into level 1 in only one to three months. As for a medium-grade neophyte, the time needed to become a level 1 neophyte is approximately six months to one nine months. The low-grade neophyte will need a year to several years.
And the difficulty in advancing will only sky rise when ascending to level 2 neophyte and level 3 neophyte.
“I can finally start practising!” Zaru murmured to himself.
"Only with strength could he control his life"If at first, he decides to take it calmly but now understanding had come to him.
When Zaru was about to begin he stopped. Then his mood improved a little. Here remember that he had a partner and was the most reliable one at that. Himself.
"Ryan, Come here". Zaru called Ryan.