Rya, Dalia, and Nieren were walking down the hallways of the palace corridor towards the stairs that lead to the basement.

"Ow! Ow! Ow! Please! Alpha, I'm sorry!" Dalia said as Rya pulled her ear again.

"Are you going to behave yourself? Or do I have to drag you around again?" Rya questioned as she walked beside Dalia.

"I'm sorry, Alpha! I promise to behave," Dalia replied as she stared up at Rya with her pathetic, sad, puppy dog eyes.

Nieren smirked while Rya finally relented with a sigh.

"Ok, but don't make me regret this," said Rya as she let go of Dalia's ear.

"Geez! Why are you so aggressive today?" Dalia asked as she rubbed her sore ear.

Rya stopped and turned to Dalia abruptly stopping her in her tracks. "...2E, she found the God's Tear," She said with a coy tone while trying to hide her excitement.

"What?! So you are saying?" asked Dalia as she quickly moved in closer to Rya to hear her whisper.

Rya broke into a lopsided smile, "We're making that damn stone. And I need one of my best friends to watch my back. So you will be coming with us."

"So, you think you can assemble the artifact? I thought you needed an Artificer to create it?" Nieren inquired curiously.

"Turns out you just need three different sources of mana to start the process of making the artifact. The Artificer just does the focusing and makes sure that all the mana interacts with all the correct materials in the right order and BAM! Brand new artifact. So, I have you and Nieren. And the demonic tome has all the information on going through the process." Rya answered with a confident smirk.

"Well, if you say so Alpha... But that demonic tome gives me the creeps!... The stench of demons is all over it." Dalia said nervously.

'It sucks that they can't read the old tome like I can. Lord Grazon has a good sense of humor in his writing... Hehe... Should I spook Dalia and Nieren?' Thought Rya as the urge to tease her friends for fun started to take hold.

"It's just a book written by some dead old demonic sage. What's the worst that could happen?" Rya shrugged as if it wasn't that big of a deal while she made her way to the basement.

Nieren looked anxious and quickly interjected, "I-I wouldn't say that last part out loud, Rya... A lot of people have been cursed by these old demonic tomes. But I choose to believe in you."

"Oh? Oh, yeah! I was wondering why there was some weird page in the tome... There was something about getting turned into a frog or something if you do the combinations wrong. I'll just double-check before starting the incantation." Rya said as she recalled the passage in the book while holding herself back from smirking.

"H-How about you triple-check it!?" Nieren suggested with a panicked look.

"Y-Yeah! I agree with Woody... I don't want to be a frog!" Dalia added with a scared expression.

"Ladies!... Ladies..." Rya said while putting her arms around the shoulders of Nieren and Dalia as she pulled them into a reassuring hug. "I promise to you two that nothing will go wrong. Besides, don't you two want to know what type of mana vein you have?... Come on... Have some faith in me. I'm not going at this half-assed. You have my word."

"..."

"..."

"..."

Nieren and Dalia were starting to get uncomfortable as Rya continued to squeeze them, but they both slowly nodded their heads.

"You know what, forget I mentioned anything!" Nieren blurted out looking down at the floor.

"Don't worry, nothing bad is going to happen," Rya said reassuringly as she released Dalia and Nieren.

But before they continue to the stairwell. Rya noticed Dalia's bloated stomach. It wasn't obvious at first but being so close to her body made it more apparent. "Wait... Dalia? Can I check your stomach?" Rya asked as she looked at her friend worryingly.

"Huh? What for? AH! Alpha?" Dalia replied nervously as she felt Rya's hand start to rub her belly. "Oh! Ha ha... I know I've been eating a little more than usual but I can stop and burn this off anytime I want!"

Rya met Dalia's eyes with a skeptical gaze.

"This isn't fat Dalia... I think you're pregnant."

"Pregnant!? Pfft!... No way... I haven't made it to mating season yet, Alpha!" Dalia retorted back.

'Mating season?... That might be a myth, Dalia. But I'd still like to confirm this.' Rya thought to herself.

"I-I'm not sure, Dalia... Is there a way to double-check to see if she's pregnant? Like... a test or something?" Rya asked curiously.

"Umm... Well, there is a way to find out if you're carrying a child but it requires an artifact called Lifebloom Relic. Buuut it's something that Royalty and maybe some nobles would have?" Nieren said as she thought it over.

"Alpha!? I'm not pregnant... Geez! First, Gamma, now you two... I'm just getting fat from eating too much sweets! And I can stop anytime..." Dalia blurted out frustratedly.

"...Hm... It's possible... I wonder if Quin's family has one? We should ask him when we get back." Rya said as she turned around and walked down the stairwell.

Before Rya could go any further, Dalia grabbed her arm.

"You don't need to go through such lengths just because I'm fat... And I am NOT pregnant!" Dalia yelled out indignantly.

Rya looked at Dalia with a slight smirk. "Hey... I thought you would like to know, but if you want to live in denial. Go ahead."

Dalia sighed in relief.

"And... I'll eat less sweets... I promise... I'm sorry..." Dalia said apologetically.

"No need to apologize, Dalia. Alright, we messed around long enough. Let's make a artifact." Rya said as she started to saunter over to the stairwell.

"Yeah, just don't curse us, please," Nieren added.

"You know I was teasing you, right?" Rya laughed.

"... it's not a good joke," Dalia muttered as she followed behind Rya.

Nieren nodded in agreement.

'Damn! When did these two lose their sense of humor? I swear I can't joke around with these two anymore!' Rya thought to herself. She felt like they were ready to blame her for anything bad that happened in the future.

***

While walking down the stairs, Rya couldn't help but smile when she saw Arathar working in the forge.

"Oye! Wasn't expecting you three lasses to be down here! I know getting a new magical blade is enticing but I need a couple more days until it's ready, my lass. Just one more day, I promise. Come back tomorrow, okay?" Arathar chuckled to himself as he continued to work.

"Heh... Really? I didn't know you were that close to finishing... We came down here to use the laboratory. The royal laboratory, I mean, to do research for a few artifacts..." Rya said.

Arathar smirked and patted his beard with a thumb.

"I see! I thought I saw one of your doubles running about here today. So you're doing research, eh? Well, I'm glad to hear it! Artifacts aren't my thing! They're too brittle for my liking but still glad to see you three interested in creating something! That's more than I can say about my son!" He said with a chuckle.

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'Geez! There he goes about his son again... He needs to give Zellin a break already. He's just not a smith and that's fine,' Rya thought to herself.

"So, are you making anything else or are you just making my sword?" Rya asked.

Arathar grinned.

"Aye! I had enough leftover liquid ether to forge a pair of gauntlets for the Prince. It will have some anti-magic properties, should he need them. It's going to take another week before I'm done. I reckon the Royal Guard would love to get their hands on a set of these gauntlets. Oh! And I have been wanting to create a couple of maces made out of that white obsidian that knight gave me."

"A knight? Are you talking about Sir George?" Rya questioned.

"Yeah! He said he grabbed the ore back when you cleared out the dungeon core. I just don't know how to make it into a usable weapon yet. I think I'll need to find some diamond dust or similar materials to mix in with it. I haven't seen any in the market though so I might need to go mining myself... Plus if I heat the white obsidian with standard coal it will neutralize the properties that make it special and then it's just your average obsidian that ain't worth crap! Oh! Sorry, my lasses! I was never good with the polite stuff! I should get back to your sword! Ain't going to Smith it'self now!" Arathar chuckled and walked away from the group towards the extreme heat coming out of the furnace of the forge.

"I don't know how Baron Zellin is related to that man," Nieren muttered.

"What!? That's simple Woody! He just mated with—" Dalia said before she was interrupted by Nieren.

"I KNOW HOW BABIES ARE MADE, DOG!" Nieren snapped at the wolfkin. "I was talking about how different those two are! Personality wise!"

"Whoa there, girl! Calm down! You wood elves get so touchy sometimes?" Dalia said while rubbing her ear.

"Dalia, stop playing dumb and Nieren, you need to not let her get under your skin... She finds it fun when you get mad so easily..." Rya said trying to help settle the situation.

"I'm not playing dumb! I'm being nice! Woody seemed confused so I tried to explain things to her." Dalia said with a smile while wagging her tail.

"I WASN'T— Fine! Fine... It was my fault that I expected better from you, Dog!" Nieren said with a sigh.

"Okay, okay! Just calm down! We're all here to get what we came here for! Right?" Rya said with a chuckle.

Nieren wanted to protest her statement, but knowing Rya was right she decided to keep her mouth shut.

"Come on! 2E should be waiting for us in the laboratory!" Rya exclaimed as she pulled out the key and unlocked the door to the lab.

Rya turned the key as the large oak door opened revealing the room beyond. The magical torches were lit. Several wooden tables and chairs littered the main floor of the lab. There was a counter that ran along the wall to the left of the entrance. Behind the counter was 2E. She was waiting patiently beside a long table covered in various tools and devices.

"Creator..." 2E said with a smile.

"Sorry for taking so long 2E. We had to deal with some distractions," Rya apologized.

2E smile disappeared and she looked at Dalia.

"Oh, not you too!... I didn't know that you found the crystal thing, Cloney!" Dalia said while tapping her head.

2E snorted and shook her head.

Rya closed the door behind them and walked up to the counter.

"Okay, show us the God's Tear, 2E," Rya ordered.

2E's skin around her stomach started to turn into dirt and rocks as it opened up to the light emitting from the crystal that was in the shape of an egg. It shined brightly as the dust flew off into the air.

Dalia and Nieren stared in awe at the beautiful sight.

"Yeah, it's prettier than I could have imagined," Dalia said with a giggle.

2E nodded happily.

"This is the first time I've seen this thing. I remember as a child, seeing one fall to Tertius back in the Wood Elf Kingdom, but I wasn't allowed to go look for it. Can I touch it, Rya?" Nieren asked nervously.

"Sure thing... Just don't expose it to sunlight. If you do it will disintegrate," Rya warned.

Nieren stepped forward and reached out to the crystal. Her hands glowed white as she touched the God's Tear. As she pulled it out of 2E. The golem reformed her stomach just like it was skin.

"Wow! Is that supposed to happen?" Nieren asked surprised.

"Hmm...? Don't know if that's normal or not... Anyway just hold on to it, while I pull out the rest materials for creating the Seer Stone," Rya explained.

Rya went to the wooden cabinet on the side of the counter and pulled out the ingredients and tools needed to create the stone. She had stored the seven other materials she needed in a bag.

"Okay, let's get everything organized first," Rya said as she carried the bag over to a square oak table in the middle of the room.

The table wasn't anything special. It was made of simple wood and was about 3 feet wide by 4 feet long.

"Hey, Dalia... 2E... can you clear off this table, please?" Rya asked.

"Yup!" Dalia replied as she jumped up.

2E followed and cleared the surface of the table as well.

"... Perfect," Rya said as she placed the bag on the table.

She then pulled out the Demonic Tome and opened it while flipping through a few pages until she found the page she was looking for which had the list of all the materials needed to create The Seer Stone.

She then pulled out the seven materials from the bag and laid them down on the table next to the Demonic Tome.

"Okay, now we need to start by making a salt circle," Rya explained as she pulled out a tool that looked like a Chak-pur that Budai Monks would use to make sand mandalas.

"Hey 2E, can you make a perfect salt circle on the table? Just a two-foot radius, please," Rya requested.

2E nodded and did so slowly. While she was doing that Rya pulled out the next item which was pieces of the dungeon core from the Tomb of the Horde.

"Oookay... So now we need to crush the dungeon core fragments into a powder," Rya said as she dug her fingers into the bag that contained the Dungeon Core Fragments.

"Oh! I can crush things good, Alpha! Can I please!" Dalia asked eagerly.

"Umm... Sure just use the mortar and pestle to break it down evenly okay?" Rya replied.

Dalia nodded and ran over to the mortar and began crushing the chunks of dungeon core.

"Perfect! Now what else do we have?" Rya praised the wolfkin before she went back to the bag to pull five pieces of silver coins, some copper ore, and five gold coins.

Dalia was still working on breaking down the Dungeon Core Fragments when Rya started pulling out items from her bag. She pulled out a small bottle filled with monster blood, a second one filled with a liquid that looked like oil, and finally, the last item was five candles.

"Done! I crushed them up nice and fine, Alpha!" Dalia said proudly.

"Good job!" Rya replied. "Now, Dalia... put the Dungeon Core power into the liquid."

Dalia came over and poured the Dungeon Core powder into the vial of Monster Blood causing it to turn purple in color.

She then added the liquid from the second vial into the first and then mixed it until there was a thick sticky substance left in the container.

"And now we add the copper. And it should liquify..." Rya said as she took the copper ore in hand and dropped it into the mix.

"Hoooooooly! Gah! This stuff stinks! It hurts my noise!" Dalia exclaimed as she watched the copper ore turn into a green liquid.

"Yeah! It's not too pleasant of a smell. But that's what is supposed to happen," Rya said.

"Umm...? Do you need me to do anything, Rya?" Nieren asked as she was still holding the God's Tear crystal.

"No, no. Just hold that crystal until we draw the pentagram first. We don't want to be careless with these," Rya replied.

"Pentagram!? O-Okay... I'll hold this crystal for now," Nieren said nervously.

Rya picked up the container with the thick green liquid.

2E just finished making a perfect salt circle right when Rya was holding the green liquid.

"Alright 2E... I need a pentagram drawn inside the salt circle. Make it so that one of the points of the pentagram is pointing true north," Rya ordered.

2E did as she was told and drew a simple pentagram inside the salt circle with one end of the star pointing north.

"Now we need to put the five gold in the smaller areas of the pentagram while placing the silver in the five larger areas..." Rya explained.

As she was explaining, 2E placed the five gold coins in the five small areas of the pentagram while placing the silver coins in the five larger areas.

"Okay, Nieren. Place the God's Tear in the middle of the circle, please!" Rya said.

"Sure thing, Lady Rya. I'll place it here," Nieren replied.

Nieren placed the blue crystal in the center of the circle. And when it touched the table it started to light up the pentagram with a dazzling array of rainbow colors.

"Whoa! It's lighting up the pentagram!" Nieren exclaimed.

"Yeah!" Rya shouted. "This is what we were looking for! This will allow us to activate the rune when we add our mana to candles..."

"Wow! This is amazing!" Dalia exclaimed.

"So once we've channeled our mana, the runes will start glowing?" Nieren asked.

"Yes... But I want to give you two a heads-up. It says the candles will burn with a black flame when we get things started and don't disturb the salt circle," Rya said.

"What's so important about this measly little salt circle, Alpha?" Dalia asked as she brought her face closer to the salt circle to sniff it.

"Dalia!?" Nieren voiced with a hint of annoyance when she saw the wolfkin was about to do something stupid.

"I'm just curious," Dalia replied.

Nieren was taken aback by her behavior.

"The salt circle keeps all the mana contained inside for the pentagram... So, don't touch it unless you want to get cursed," Rya warned.

Nieren's face became pale, "BACK UP, DOG!!!!"

She yelled in anger.

"Ow! You need to relax Woody. I've done nothing wrong," Dalia replied.

"You alright, Nieren? You look like you're gonna puke." Rya asked.

"I-I'm fine! I just don't want to get cursed because of Dalia," Nieren said.

"I know, I was watching her, Nieren. That's the one thing the tome stresses over and over again. That the circle needs to be perfect... I think that's why no one has tried to make this artifact before," Rya said.

'And no one knows how to read old demonic tongue. That's probably the real reason why there aren't more of these things.' Rya thought to herself.

"Ugh... Can you stop being a baby, Nieren?! We know the risks of getting cursed," Dalia said while wagging her pointer finger at the wood elf.

Nieren sighed in exasperation.

"I wasn't the one that was going to mess up the salt circle you dumb dog!" Nieren muttered under her breath.

"What was that?" asked Dalia as she tilted her head in confusion.

"N-Nothing!" Nieren responded hastily.

"Ahem!!! Now! All we need to do is place the five candles down at the ends of the pentagram and we can start the rune and create our artifact," Rya said with a smile.