This… I remember this... Mat thought. Right.

He vaguely remembered one of his dreams.

“Huh? Did we arrive…?” Roundy had just woken up.

“Yeah, ugh…” TRX replied.

“Heal us first,” Mathias said, covered in several gruesome wounds.

“Y-yeah…”

Roundy proceeded to heal them and then healed himself.

“So... I’m going to take the orb,” Mat said.

TRX and Roundy just watched as Mathias walked toward the pedestal. He grabbed the orb.

Then, the ground started to shake. The space that could be seen from the platform began to distort, and suddenly, a humanoid figure appeared on the platform.

Everyone was startled by this. Mat walked back to the group. He didn’t feel any malice or anything from the being, it was as if it wasn’t even there.

“Oh, that’s an 'angel',” TRX said.

“Is it? But the other one looked different…” Mat replied.

“That’s because they change forms.”

“I see.”

“But this one is stronger,” she added.

“H-hey, Trixxie…” Roundy said.

“What is it?”

“That… Isn’t that a 'Power' or something?” Roundy asked.

“Huh?” Mathias was confused.

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“I suppose…” TRX responded.

As they talked, the humanoid figure slowly approached without making any noise. In the end, it stopped two meters from the group. It looked human, like a girl. Really. If it weren’t for the white robes it wore, one could mistake it for an ordinary person. It had dusky skin and long black hair.

“Now, Mathias Donovan, you must face me,” it said.

“Eh, what? But… Ummm… Before anything, could you answer a few things? First, why do I need to be ‘tested’? And second, what exactly are you?”

“To answer your first question, these trials were created specifically for you, and only for you. However... there was someone before who completed a trial that was meant for you.”

Right, Martin has it... Mat thought.

“Ah, here, take it,” Mat said, handing the orb to TRX.

“Okay.”

The divine creature continued to speak:

“Additionally, as you’ve already seen, not just anyone can reach this place without a sacred artifact, nor can they touch it, even though anyone can reach the entrance. And as for you, these trials were designed so that you, and anyone accompanying you, would become more resistant to challenges like the ones you just faced. Also, the artifact you obtained, although useful, is weakened. But by using it against a divine creature like me, you can restore its former power. That way, if you create the Luminous Sword, it will be at its full potential. So, you have to use the sacred artifacts. Moreover, to do so, you need to use the Medallion that was given to you, as it acts as a receptor in this case, by harming something divine. This way, you’ll be able to recover its old potential.”

TRX nodded as Mat turned to look at her. It seemed they already knew this. Then, Mat realized something.

“Huh? But as far as I remember, the previous Hero didn’t do all this,” Mat said. “He told me he didn’t need them…”

“And that’s true. You see, he had the ability to imbue things with the essence of others. Therefore, he could have the abilities of sacred artifacts, or relics as they are also called, in his sword. He created that ability for himself.”

“I see… Wait, what?”

“?” TRX and Roundy.

“What?” TRX asked.

“You’ll learn about that someday,” the figure said. “And well, the fact that the relics or artifacts are scattered in places that are different every time you enter... Well, their form is decided when someone enters for the first time. Finding them on your own is part of the test. Additionally, these places take the shape of locations that existed, exist, or will exist. And you must go through them because you are mortal. If you were like us, beings that are not part of this space and time—”

“What?” Mat was confused by the last part.

“You would just have to walk through the door, and that’s it. But since you’re not, you have to go through those zones.”

“But I don’t understand, why? Why do we have to do all this? And why can only you…?”

“I didn’t make the rules, and the fact that you can’t reach here that way is due to the limits of your bodies. You wouldn’t survive.”

“I see. Oh, and the second question—”

“I already said I’m a divine creature, there’s nothing more to say,” it replied.

“I see…”

“But before we begin, there are two more things I want to tell you.”

“What things?”

“In the fight, I will hold back a bit so I don’t destroy you. Even so, don’t expect an easy battle. I don’t want to be harmed, but there’s no other way, so I chose to fight you to restore the artifact’s power, based on its nature.”

“I see…”

Does that mean the others will make me restore their energy in different ways? he thought.

“So the other artifacts may or may not be weapons, and they will be recharged differently, right?”

“Exactly,” it replied.

“Interesting,” TRX said.

Roundy didn’t say anything.

“Oh, I understand. So... What was the other thing you were going to tell me?” Mat asked.

“It’s been a long time since we last saw each other, Mat. It’s good to see you again.”

After saying those words, she smiled and... briefly changed into a form with a golden mask and... disappeared.

“Huh? What? Ah!”

“Ugh!” The other two reacted.

There was another strong tremor throughout the area, and the space distorted again, but now...

“Groaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaargh!”

“What the hell is that!?” Mathias exclaimed.

From the depths of the space, something strange began to emerge. A huge creature. It was a skull. An enormous human skull with several tentacles, which looked more like interconnected cylinders, coming out from the cheek area. A rotating golden ring with multiple eyes was behind the skull, and it was connected to a sort of... stone, which had roots. From its mouth also emerged a kind of tree with eyes. It had a claw similar to this, and also a hand, with a tip similar to the tentacles.