Maya raised an eyebrow in response to Munin's bold claim. "You don't look like a god to me."

Munin let out an untroubled laugh. "I do look rather pathetic, don't I?"

"Is a god supposed to admit they're weak?"

"Honesty is a good thing, no?

"I... guess," Maya replied. She cautiously slid her dagger back into her cloak, still alert but no longer openly confrontational. "You don't seem bad, at least."

"Good and evil are relative, but yes, I'm not here to harm you." Munin said.

"Are... you really the God of Change?"

"Hard to believe, isn't it?"

"So, what are you doing here?"

Before Munin could answer, she suddenly vanished into thin air. Just then, Maya heard Sophia's voice calling out to her from behind. "You okay there?"

Startled by Sophia's sudden appearance, Maya jolted. She quickly composed herself and turned to face the Paladin. "I-I'm fine."

Sophia looked at her friend with a hint of skepticism, "You sure? Sounded like you were talking to yourself."

Maya nodded and forced a smile. "I'm fine, really."

Sophia turned to continue her exploration. "Alright, I'm going that way to look again, but just yell if you need me."

Maya bidded farewell to Sophia and made her way to a further corner of the room. Her eyes scanned the area, searching for any sign of the God of Change.

As she examined the room, Munin's voice suddenly speaks up from behind her, "I'm here."

Startled, Maya gasped and turned around. "Stop doing that, please."

Munin laughed lightly. "Apologies, I couldn't help myself."

Maya rolled her eyes. "Right…"

"Regardless, I did come here to speak with you."

"I'm listening."

Munin raised her manacled hands slightly. "As you can see, I'm not exactly in the best state at the moment."

"I…can see that."

"Not only that, something of mine was stolen not too long ago."

"And that is?"

"You."

Maya pointed at herself, confused. "Me?"

"Well, not you exactly, but your Relic Class."

"My Relic Class is actually yours?"

"Precisely. The King in Red took it from me in a moment of weakness, it's rather tragic honestly."

"You don't sound…very mad about it."

Munin chuckled. "I was livid at first…until I realized that the Administrator gave me a golden ticket to finally restore my true power."

"Let me guess, it involves me somehow." Maya said.

"Correct."

"What, are you going to possess or something?"

Munin doesn't reply and falls silent.

Maya drew her dagger again and stepped back. "Okay, that answers that."

"Relax, Shapestealer, it's not what you think."

"You can talk, but I'm still holding my dagger." Maya said, keeping her gaze straight towards Munin.

"That's fine." Munin said. "To put it simply, I need to possess a vessel in order to actually do things."

"You're going to have to explain that a bit more," Maya said, her grip on the dagger not loosening.

"See for yourself," Munin replied. She then proceeded to walk through several statues, her body phasing through them as if she were a ghost.

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Maya's eyes widened at the sight. "Are you just an illusion then?"

Munin turned back to face Maya, "I'm a mirage of sorts, yes. Currently, I'm only capable of playing tricks on the mind and little else."

"So, what? You want to take over my body?"

"Not permanently, and I can't do it right now anyway."

"Explain," Maya demanded, her eyes narrowing.

"You're not ready yet; all I want for now is to help you climb the Tower. I believe you'll find my assistance quite beneficial."

"How exactly will you help me?" Maya asked.

Munin smirked "When the time is right". In an instant, she vanishes, leaving no trace of her presence.

Maya looked around the room frantically. But then, Sophia came up from behind and gently tapped her on the shoulder. "Are you sure you're okay?"

"Y-yeah, I'm fine."

"Are you really-"

"Anyway, did you find anything useful?"

"Right…follow me."

Sophia surveyed the room, her eyes eventually settling on a peculiar feature. She pointed towards a statue at the end of the room that stood out due to its missing head. "Let's check that one out."

Together, they approached the statue. As the two drew closer, they noticed a plaque at the base of the statue.

Sophia knelt down to read the inscription on the plaque. The words were written in a formal, archaic style, paying homage to the deity the temple was dedicated to. She read aloud, "In this temple, we dedicate ourselves to Namu: the First God. He is troeca, rogitenopa, irdhapes owr."

Maya read the inscriptions too and realized something surprising. "I can actually understand the words on this plaque," she said, her tone indicating a mix of surprise and curiosity. "Except for the last three to four words."

Sophia stood up after examining the plaque. "It's the same for me," she admitted. "But I don't quite understand what these words mean."

Intrigued, the Shapestealer knelt down to take a closer look at the statue. As she extended her finger to touch one of the letters on the plaque, it suddenly glowed with a soft light.

"What did you just do?" Sophia asked.

Maya shook her head. "I'm not sure."

As she touched the glowing letter, she found that she could move it, rearranging its position on the plaque. "We probably have to arrange these words in a specific order."

Sophia nodded in agreement. "Maybe just like the library,"

"Do you have any guesses as to how these words should be rearranged?"

"The words probably relate to traits associated with Namu."

"Like being the First God?" Maya asked.

"Hmm, you gave me an idea. Try to rearrange the first word into 'creator'," Sophia proposed.

Taking the Paladin's suggestion, Maya carefully rearranged the letters of the first word to form "creator." As she completed the word, it began to glow more intensely, and a subtle rumbling echoed through the chamber.

"That sounded like it did something," Sophia observed, the rumble had been faint but noticeable.

"Let's keep going then," Maya agreed.

"Right, the next word."

"The next word probably starts with 'pro'," Maya guessed, trying to piece together the puzzle in line with Namu's attributes.

Sophia nodded and suggested, "Try spelling 'progenitor'."

Maya began rearranging the letters once again, this time to spell out "progenitor."

As she successfully rearranged the words, it glowed vibrantly, and the chamber shook more intensely than before, the rumble louder and more pronounced.

Despite their progress, the Paladin expressed uncertainty about the next step. "I'm not sure what the last word is supposed to be."

Maya shrugged and began to rearrange one of the words into "world."

To their relief, the word "world" glowed and locked into place once Maya finished arranging it.

"Not bad, but world what?" Sophia asked aloud.

Maya studied the words for a while, contemplating the possible combinations. After a moment of thought, she began rearranging the letters to spell out "shaper."

As Maya placed the last letter in "shaper," the word glowed, and the chamber rumbled again, even more vigorously than before.

Suddenly, the Paladin yelled out, "Look!" She pointed towards a wall that was now splitting open, revealing a long corridor that had been hidden until now.

Standing up from her examination of the statue, Maya looked towards the newly revealed corridor. "Any guesses as to what we'll find?"

Sophia chuckled. "Nothing good, I'm sure."

Together, Maya and Sophia walked through the corridor. Though the passage was barely lit, the two still managed to pass through without much issue by keeping to the walls.

Eventually, they came upon a set of stairs leading downwards. As they descended, they found themselves in a room where the floor was covered with knee-deep water.

The two cautiously waded into the waters, finding it cool to the touch.

"I was expecting more water, given all the fish people we've seen," Maya commented, looking around the room.

Sophia waded through the waters with careful steps. "Too much water and you'll have to leave me behind."

Maya chuckled. "Let's hope the water stays this high then."

Maya and Sophia continued to wade through the waters, moving cautiously. The sound of their movement echoed softly in the otherwise silent room.

After a few moments, Maya spoke. "There's nothing here."

Sophia stopped and scanned the area. "I can't see anything either."

As they progressed, Maya noticed what appeared to be a rock protruding from the water. Wanting a bit of rest, she pointed it out to Sophia. "Hold on, I'm going to sit there for a bit."

"Are you sure about that?"

"It's just a rock; I'll be fine."

Nothing happened as Maya sat down. The rock remained inert, and the water around them was still. Despite this, the Paladin glanced around the room, checking for any changes or reactions.

Feeling justified in her decision, Maya said, "See, it's fine."

However, Sophia's instincts suddenly kicked in. She reached out, grabbed Maya, and swiftly pulled her away from the "rock," dragging her several feet away.

The Shapestealer protested at first, "Hey, what's the-" but Sophia cut her off, pointing behind her. "Look!"

Maya turned just in time to see the "rock" she had been sitting on disappeared instantly. In its place, an eerie presence took shape.

A fish-like hydra manifested from thin air. It had multiple serpentine necks, each topped with a head resembling that of a grotesque fish, complete with bulging eyes and gaping mouths filled with sharp teeth. The creature's movements were eerily fluid, each head swaying independently as if testing the air.