Alia’s words rang like an iron gong in Alaric’s skull. His indifferent expression flashed with fierce coldness for a brief moment before he contained himself. Defeating the demon king was akin to avenging Jared’s death.
While Jared had never asked for such a thing, a life such as his was only worth that much. Alaric and his friends were determined to see this through to the end. Hearing that slaying the Demon King would not be a mere dream as a Keeper of the Tower of Seekers was like handing Alaric a pot of gold.
Why wouldn’t he bite at such an offer? For a moment, he could not think of anything other than accepting this offer.
[ I hear what you’re saying… so let’s think logically for a second ] Alaric responded to the guardian. Enticing as the offer sounded, it would be a shame if he accepted it and became a slave to the Tower.
He was still missing a lot of pieces.
“Is a Keeper bound to the Tower the same way the other members are?”
“In some ways more than others, and yet in other ways, not,” the old man responded curiously.
“I’m confused.”
“Forgive me for using an analogy that’s far too inferior to describe this situation… but being a Keeper is like being the Headmaster of a school. You have the liberty of leaving the school whenever you feel like it should you choose to do so. Of course, there is a percentage of time the Head Keeper must stay at the Tower but that’s beside the point. Every important decision made in the Tower must be run by the Keeper while the Keeper has the liberty to do something for the Tower regardless of the opinion of everyone in it,” the man explained.
Alaric had been listening closely… but was now confused by something, “Something doesn’t make sense to me. Why can the Keeper just leave whenever they want? Doesn’t that defeat the whole purpose of them being more bound to the Tower than the Seekers?”
Elder Gregory furrowed his eyebrows for a moment, then opened his mouth in an ‘o’ and his eyes wide, “Oh dear! I got so lost in the explanation I forgot to mention what makes Keepers so different. Everyone else that’s a part of the Tower’s hierarchy isn’t connected to it quite as intimately as the Keepers.
For instance, should a Keeper choose to return to the Tower, it’s just a matter of willing it and they will immediately be teleported back to the Tower. Keepers hold control over the magic of the Tower as well and have the power to do whatever they please with it.”
“Why would you entrust something that precious to someone you just met?” Alaric stopped the man halfway through.
“I was about to ask the same thing,” Garin asked, even more curious than he had been at first. It seemed this was the first time he was hearing of something like this.
Elder Gregory sank back in his seat and remained quiet for a while, thinking through his answer to their question. It was odd how the old fossil had dropped everything in favour of Alaric. Alaric had experienced similar treatment in Jack’s Fall… but they were guided by spirits… and spirits had a tendency to look at Alaric like the venerable saint he didn’t think himself to be.
A moment later, the man spoke up, “Do you know the most valuable thing in this world, Alaric?”
Alaric mulled over the question for a bit before stating bluntly, “Love.”
“A curious answer… Love is many things but valuable is not one of them,” the man chuckled, “Priceless, yes… but valuable, no.”
Stolen content alert: this content belongs on Royal Road. Report any occurrences.
“How can love be priceless and not valuable at the same time?” Alaric asked.
“You think of the word priceless in terms of it being extremely valuable. I simply mean love has no value and yet it bears the nature of something extremely valuable. It can be freely given and freely accepted but not forcefully taken nor forcefully given. It is irrational, yet rational and is the cause of great happiness and untold suffering. For that, it cannot be the most valuable thing for its value cannot be controlled by anyone,” Elder Gregory spoke, sending Alaric’s mind spinning in circles.
Garin noticed Alaric’s dazed expression and sighed, “Knowledge, young Alaric. The man means ‘knowledge.’ Knowledge is the most valuable thing.”
Alaric looked around. He could tell there was something he was missing. Of course, knowledge was valuable. Books were expensive and since Jared’s death, he’d struggled to get his hands on more books. The way these people said it, however, made it sound like he was missing something very important… “I don’t follow.”
“Knowledge has the power to turn the most dangerous criminal into the most harmless saint and the most harmless saint into the most ruthless murderer, both drunk on the knowledge that drives their motives. It has the power to build and destroy nations… The Tower of Seekers protects that knowledge and most of the time remains perfectly neutral.
It’s not uncommon for the Tower to be paid handsomely for a piece of rare information, however. The consequences of that information determine the price of that information. I don’t tell anyone this but once in a while, I impart knowledge to some ignorant farmers just so they can triple their yield and feed their families better. I’ve done the same with struggling merchants as well… though those usually pay me back,” Elder Gregory explained the last part with a bit of mirth in his voice.
Alaric’s mind was slow to absorb information, not because he was dull, but because he was trying to digest the information he was being given in so many different ways.
‘Knowledge is the most valuable thing… Knowledge is a very wide term though…’ he thought to himself. Already, he’d given an example of farmers and merchants. Did that mean the man was a professional farmer and merchant at the same time? No, he was a Seeker… or rather, a Keeper.
“Something’s bothering me… What kind of knowledge do you keep here in the Tower?” he asked.
“Everything…”
“Pardon…”
“Everything.”
Alaric’s mind was on the verge of popping. ‘Like a library… no, even libraries are limited in the kind of information they can hold. Some things couldn’t be documented… like events happening at present time.’
Even then, Alaric was not grasping the concept of the word ‘Everything.’
“That’s just not… possible. There is so much about the world we don’t know. So many things to explore, plants, technology, magic, alchemy, politics, wars, sports, demons, aether and whatever else there is and you’re simply saying everything…” Alaric rambled.
“Every topic you’ve mentioned is not even a fraction of the things the Tower can reveal to you. The Tower of Seekers can be described as a vast well of information. The most you’ll ever find on the Valerian continent.
I’ll bet you a thousand gold coins if you sign the Keeper’s contract and have passed the trials to make you a Keeper. If you can find one thing the Tower hasn’t mentioned in all of its archives, then you’ll have won,” the man responded with a smirk.
Alaric chuckled but didn’t agree right then and there, despite the constant urge to drool over a thousand gold coins. He knew the competition was only valid if he accepted to sign the Keeper Contract.
It also made him realise the information Master Jack had withheld back in Jack’s Fall now had a high chance of existing within the Tower.
It made him wonder. What if they had the answers to why the spirits of Jack’s Fall treated him with so much respect? It would make sense why he was being granted this contract. In fact, Alaric doubted this contract even existed seeing as there were only three individuals at the Tower affiliated to the title of Keeper.
“If you know everything, then…”
“I’ll stop you right there. I don’t know everything. That would be impossible… There is new information coming into the Tower everyday and promises of even more. The Seekers are tasked with obtaining that information while they continue on their mission to becoming Oracles,” the man continued.
The silence that followed was palpable… but then, it was broken when Alaric locked eyes with the man, his dark hair waving slightly, “That means you know me.”
His words came as more of a question than a statement. It was no mystery now that there was more to Alaric’s power than even he knew. His visit to Jack’s Fall had proven that without a shadow of a doubt… but if the same respect the spirits awarded him in Jack’s Fall had somehow found its way here, then all of this would make sense.
“Yes… yes, I do…” the man responded.