Demon continent Alsace in the year 237 in the 10-month Asmodum on the 5 day after the shattering of the empire
It hadn't taken her long to find some Larrua who could help her find the building with the books and scrolls. Even though it was not entirely voluntary and she had to do some convincing. But since the individuals in question had been sneaking after her for some time, it seemed that it would have to be okay for her to confiscate them and use them for her purposes. That way they could find out what she was doing without any problem and all the sneaking around, she doubted that whoever had her shadowed could do anything with the possible information she discovered.
After all that time underground, it was really refreshing to be out in the fresh air and open skies again. Especially the far, which could be quickly lost underground since everything was so cramped, was a joyful rediscovery. So she had hung up her plans to train her arcane skills for the moment. Doing something else first that might get her further with her Diva problem.
"Do you have any Larrua among you who can read the writings you have in this building ... what did you call it?" The two Larrua avoided her questioning gaze, before either of them answered, they put their heads together. Not that she couldn't understand them, but it seemed to give them both a sense of security. Which was why she didn't get involved in these little conversations.
That was something she was surprised about, the Larrua didn't seem to have their own languages, but spoke the language of the demons. What she could already learn from them was that they did not call their languages Demon languages, like the Demons themselves. Which called their language Glossa, the Larrua called the language Mihia Alsace. Which means as much as languages ore tongue of Alsace. So simply the language of Alsace, which was also the name of the demon continent.
Even Diva talked about it being the language of Alsace, which seemed to have something to do with the wars between the gods, or the whole thing was even older than this distant history of Arcana. Something she hoped to find answers to when she was in the library, which the building hopefully was. In which the books, like the objects and furniture in the houses, were kept in good condition by the magical runes under the city that maintained the city.
Like the other times, she had asked her two companions something, after only a few minutes they stopped putting their heads together and the one Larrua who had always answered her until now, answered her again. "Gurdailua Liburuak a hoard of scriptures. As our Priests call it." She nodded that she understood and returned to her thoughts.
Since she wasn't in a hurry to get back underground, she didn't stress and enjoyed being in the fresh air and thinking about everything that distracted her from her momentary problems.
Like the fact that the Larrua seemed to be ruled or led by their Priests. The topic of Larrua society hadn't really come up in her conversations with Diva, and the Larrua were wary of her. Which, after all, she was too, so she couldn't blame them for that.
"Can your priests read the scriptures there? And what about you, could you read them as well, or is that only reserved for the priests?"Again the two Larrua put their heads together and consulted for some time until again the slightly taller of the two Larrua answered her, who had always answered her until now.
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"The priests or aspiring priests read the scriptures or other texts they can get their hands on." He paused in seemed to hesitate before continuing to speak. "To us other Larrua who are not in the same caste as the Priests, these are only recited at festivals and the like. I don't know about other castes but we are only recited the scriptures by the Priests." He paused in seemed to hesitate before continuing to speak. That was an amazing amount of information, in an answer to her question. Which caste or clan the Larrua had belonged to who she had killed, all those years ago?
Which caste or clan the Larrua had belonged to who had killed her, it seemed to her, all those years ago.
"Do you also have a clan leader that you follow? I'm just wondering since you always call yourselves a clan." She hoped to get an answer to this question as well, to the same extent that she had gotten it to her previous question. This time the Larrua put their heads together for just a few moments and it was the smaller Larrua who answered her this time.
"Yes we have a clan leader, it is old Grigolin, leader of Clan Ahaztuta named after our fortress and dwelling place." At these words, the little Larrua which went only up to her chest seemed to literally grow. With his head held high and his chest swollen with pride, he walked beside her.
"And does Grigolin have more to say than the priests, or is it the other way around?" Immediately the smaller of the two Larrua, who was still walking beside her with his chest puffed with pride, answered.
"Of course there is no difference, for Grigolin is the chief priest of our clan, as has always been the custom." She asked a few more questions to her two companions, who seemed to be slowly warming up and answering her more and more willingly, with more and more detailed answers.
So she learned that this was the case with all clans, the clan head or the clan elder was always also the highest priest within the respective clan. A Priest could become everyone with which such a talent in young years could be determined. No matter from which caste he was, he could be chosen and was then trained as a priest. The training to become a priest takes a lifetime and according to the two Larrua, Eder was the youngest priest of the three acting priests of the clan.
Also, not all clans had it as good as theirs, which inhabited a real city. The other clans were always searching, scouring the land, always expecting that one day they would find a home. However, as many clans lived as they had once lived, many also lived in old Larrua cities or had built new cities of their own. Between them and these cities, there was plenty of trade or war, but they had the golems which would protect them if there was an attack, as they had done the last times.
Then they arrived in front of a building that reminded her of one of the big round theaters from her old life in the empire. Not only that, but the way it was built with its columns was not unlike the ones she knew.
To get to this building, they had followed a long wide road, which was shaded by ancient trees that bent protectively over the road. It must once have been a beautiful avenue, but today no sky or house could be seen through the trees.
The library, or Gurdailua Liburuak, as the Larrua called it, had four large double doors of dark wood, decorated with coats of arms at eye level of the same metal as the streets and golems. Which were in the center of quadrangular depressions, which had been worked stepwise deeper and deeper into the wood. These squares were about a meter in height and length and six pieces decorated each door. Everything was enclosed in a frame, outside of which, at the same height as the coats of arms, large metal rings were attached to the inner edges of the doors, which served as door openers.
Without even a thought or a movement of the hand, she pushed open the door in front of which they were standing. The sight, which was hidden behind the door, was something she had hoped for, but still had not counted on. It was a small reception hall, behind which she could see through a door a larger room, in which shelves full of books were lined up. Smaller golems were busy sorting the individual books and the scrolls which were lying on the floor, also the library was in a surprisingly clean condition.
"Well here we go, are you coming in, or do you have to wait outside?" She asked as she turned to the two Larrua who were still waiting behind the threshold.
"No we'll wait here... -" Said the taller of the two, hesitating to speak further. Which prompted the shorter of the two to continue. "No one is allowed to enter the Gurdailua Liburuak, not that you disturb the peace of the scriptures and they devour you." After briefly processing what she had just heard and taking another look at the library and seeing no traces of bookworms, she turned back to the two. "Ok then wait outside or report that I am here as you please." With that, she turned and disappeared into the depths of the library closely followed by Lerna.