Depths of the Dungeon.

“Eullina! It’s not funny! Stop messing around!” Airen arced his head back and shouted above him. A rope tied around his midsection was the only thing stopping him from plummeting down the pitfall trap to his demise, and on the other end was Eullina, who was more irritated then usual to reasons unknown to Airen.

“Slow down or I’m going to have another hole in my body. Hey!!” Airen cursed once more as the rope slackened and then went taut, causing him to bounce like a yoyo in midair.

“Come on, even Rureya managed to scale the wall easily, Aren’t you embarrassed to need a girl to help you out?” Eullina’s mocking voice called out and the pace of her releasing the silk rope did not lessen at all. “Are you sure that you didn’t store some of my stuff in that vault of yours by accident?”

“I don’t even know what you’re talking about! Do you have a grudge at me or something!?” Airen hollered back as the metal skewers beneath him seemed to grow larger and larger. Airen could even make out the film of red dust on the spike tips- the remnants of the blood of past victims, as well as bones littered on the sides of the spikes.

“Is this the part where I laugh and say ‘long live the king?!” Eullina cackled at her own morbid sense of humor, but her grip tightened on the rope, causing Airen’s descent to slow and let him enter the passage near the bottom of the pitfall unharmed. Truly this sort of hidden passage was easy to miss, especially in the pitch darkness of the dungeon where the only source of illumination was by torches or magic.

“Really, Airen? You really need to train your body.” Eullina chuckled as she scaled down the wall of the pit, nimbly landing next to him without breaking a sweat.. Compared to Airen’s lumbering movements, hers was as graceful as a leopards and without any needless actions.

“As much as I dislike that man who resembles a middle-aged Loys, I am going to tell him to train you when we get back.”

“Please don’t. I prefer to train alone.” Airen quickly interjected.

“Oh? And here I thought you enjoyed training with him, having formed some sort of manly bond over the course of last month. Isn’t that how boys grow into men?”

“As if! Who wants to stare at a naked man while he is lifting weights!?”

“N-naked?” Rureya looked away. “So Airen’s been doing such indecent things for a month now? Ah….”

“Please don’t misunderstand. Orshan at least has the decency to wears briefs!”

“... “ Silence reigned at his words. In the end he had just made it worse.

“Please don’t look at me with those eyes, Eullina. I have already pitied myself enough.” Airen covered his face with his hands.

“We’d best get a move on...” Eullina did not meet Airen’s eyes and instead took the Winf branch from Rureya. She started carefully venturing down the passageway searching for any hidden traps ahead of them.

“You have it rough. Airen.” Rureya said consolingly but her words only aggravated Airen. She turned and followed Eullina down the passage with nary another word as Airen let out a low groan.

Besides Airen, Fieluri was slamming her fist against the sides of the narrow passage in laughter.

Yes, yes! That’s good face! Amusing! Fuhahah!

“Fiel. Is it really safe down here?” Airen grumbled, ignoring her mocking laughter.

Didn’t I already tell you? The next ‘floors’ are so small you can’t even call them floors.

“That’s not what I asked...”

Airen, Airen. What I have already told you were merely freebies- the location of the secret entrance and the composition of the next five floors.

And now you want to know if its dangerous? Quite greedy of you.

“Maybe it’s because you don’t actually know...” Airen smirked.

Your attempts to irk and gaud me is useless. Don’t even begin to think that I don’t know about your petty plans to draw the answer out of me. You’re several lifetimes too young. Fieluri smacked Airen on the head, and even though she was in her fairy-sized form, Airen felt as if he had been lightly smacked with a giant tome.

“ As expected as my mentor. Too smart for her own good.” Airen quickly apologized and paid a self-serving compliment to remedy the mood.

As long as you understand me, my faithful servant. Fieluri smirked, nonplussed at his words of praise.

“Airen!” Eullina’s voice sent echoes through the passage. “Stop wallowing in self pity and hurry up!”

“I’m coming!” Airen shouted back and sprinted to catch up to the others. As usual, Fieluri made herself comfortable above his shoulder, somehow conjuring an armchair to seat herself in.. Airen tried to be a bit rebellious and tried to jostle her off him, but it was futile as the chair levitated in midair and was unaffected by his movements.

They walked for merely five minutes before reaching a tiny door, barely wide enough for an adult man to fit through if they were to angle their body sideways.

“...” Eullina pressed her ear against the door, trying to discern any sounds on the other side. After confirmed that there was no movement on the inside, she glanced over at Eullina and Airen.

“I’m opening it.”

Eullina reached for the handle of the stone door, but frowned when it wouldn’t turn. After struggling for a while, she gripped the knob and pulled, causing the stone latch to to move upwards, and stop with a click.

“As I said… I’m opening it now.” Eullina coughed and repeated herself, pushing against stone door. With a creak unheard for gods know how long in that forgotten passage, the stone door shifted aside while scraping along the dust covered dungeon floor.

The three tensed up as they entered the darkness, holding the torch high above them to try to get a sense of their surroundings.

“This is...” Airen murmured in quiet shock. They were in the ruins of a grand amphitheater. In a circular pattern, stone seats surrounded a large square platform on the far side room, raised high above the ground. A spiraling set of worn stone steps circled around the towering platform, leading to the stage above.

I see. Fieluri’s murmuring broken Airen out of his trance. He waited for her to say something that may offer insight to their situation, but nothing came forth. Rather, Fieluri seemed bored, as if she had already figured everything out. Instead of jotting down notes and sketching the architecture like she usually did, she had already pulled out a green book and no longer paid heed to their surroundings.

“In any case, it doesn’t seem like there are any monsters here...” Rureya’s words broke the silence. “But to think such a place is in a dungeon...”

“Perhaps people lived here once.” Eullina said quietly, recalling how in Teldora she and Airen had resided in an underground chamber to survive the desert heat and freezing nights.

Airen had doubts. Somewhere within his gut, he had felt a familiar feeling when he first gazed eyes upon the raised platform.

“It seems that there’s a door at the other end of the stairs...” Rureya pointed out. “Are we going?”

“Let’s look around a bit, check under the seats and such and see if we can find anything of use. Then let’s have a quick break.” Airen affirmed. They had only recently managed to defeat two Reanimated after all and Airen did not want to progress without caution. In terms of food and supplies, he had enough for the three of them to survive luxuriously for a month, and three months if they rationed.

Eullina nodded and started going around the stone benches that appeared to be where the audience would sit, checking underneath the seats and prying apart stone chairs to check the gaps in between. Rureya on the other hand, moved with Airen to the top of the platform and helped unravel the bedrolls and light a fire using wood that Airen provided. Afterward she calmed her beast blood, causing her fur, claws, ears, and other feline properties to vanish.

“Truly a convenient ability.” Rureya commented as she watched Airen take out pots, bowls, a hunk of fresh meat still dripping with bits of blood, a bundle of assorted vegetables from the Lasat Gardens, and a large bucket of fresh water. “Back when I was a maid, if I had that sort of ability, I’m afraid that I would have grown lax.”

“If you had this sort of ability, then you’d have to deal with unpleasantries.” Airen smiled dryly. “For example, you can’t use elemental magic, so you’re pretty much useless against undead or magical automations like golems.”

“That’s not true, your spear skill was the main reason we could stop the Reanimated. You managed to slow its movements.”

“Well, that’s all I could do.” Airen replied. Fieluri snorted at his response.

Do you ever use your brain, Airen? Or did that man, Orshan, turn you into a muscle head? There were nearly a hundred additional scenarios which would have been better then ‘I’ll just cut them in half.’

Airen’s mouth twitched. He had thought what he did was actually pretty efficient, but apparently not in Fieluri’s eyes. However, he decided to be an adult and refrained from lashing back, feeling that Fieluri’s mood had soured ever since they entered the area.

“Ruri. I’ll handle the cooking, so why don’t you go help, Eullina? I doubt that a room as large as this has nothing we can take, and your eyes are better in the dark.”

Rureya nodded and started making her way over to where Eullina was.

“Fu~” Airen let out his breath, finally having the opportunity to talk to Fiel. “What’s with you getting grumpy all of a sudden?” As he spoke quietly, he worked to dice the meat and veggies and take out a pan and a pot.

Tch. Fieluri clicked her tongue. We’re finally at the point where things have started to get interesting, and even the great I decided to come out to watch you, and now you decide to ‘make camp.’ If you’re tired, go into the Archive for a few minutes and you’ll be back in tip-top condition.

“But then the two of them would still be tired.” Airen pointed out, pouring water into the pot and leaving it to boil. Airen planned to use the bones from the meat and some of the veggies to make a light broth, while baking the rest with a bit of monster fat.

Then just take them with you into your Vault.

“Wait, I can do that?” Airen said incredulously.

You mean you never figured it out? Fieluri shook her head in disappointment. I properly said ‘this vault belongs to you, and you can do as you wish’ and even Lizabel resides in part of your Vault, no?

“Then what was that thing about not letting anyone know about the- “ Fieluri raised a finger and no more sound came out of Airen’s mouth.

I pray for your sake that you were not about to say ‘Archive’. But like I said, you can keep people in your Vault if you wish, but if they ever leave your vault and enter into my Archive… Fieluri made a gesture of lopping someone’s head off.

Airen tried to speak back, but no voice came out. Fieluri’s tone was cold and lacked any sort of emotion, and whenever she spoke in such a way, he knew better then to argue.

Now take the two of them into your Vault, and within an hour and you’ll be refreshed enough to continue. Fieluri made a gesture and Airen felt a breeze through his mouth.

“Eh, I think we should camp here. Constant battle tends to wear down one’s mind...”

Or make it stronger. Fieluri rolled her eyes.

“Or make it stronger.” Airen agreed. “But everything is set up already, so we may as well.”

Tch. Boring. Without a word Fieluri’s figure disappeared into a rift, clearly annoyed and no longer interested in Airen. Airen, you’re in for some trouble, but you deserved it.

“What’s with her.” Airen grumbled to himself

“What’s with who?” Rureya’s voice called out. Airen turned to see Rureya and Eullina staring at him. “Airen, you’re not bad mouthing us behind our backs are you? Who was it that you were talking to?”

“Ah I was just talking to myself.” Airen quickly recovered, turning back and hiding his face. He tried to occupy himself by cooking. “It’s almost ready, so why don’t the two of you wash up?”

“Eh? Here?” Eullina asked, shocked.

“Of course?” Airen was not quite following her train of thought. “It’s better to wash your hands before eating, no?”

“Oh, so that’s what you meant.” Eullina smiled awkwardly. “But now that you mention it… Rureya, can you heat this water up?”

“I can, but why?” She tilted her head in a confused expression.

“Come over here.” Airen heard a strange sound, and when he turned around he saw Eullina taking a cloth and wiping Rureya through her clothes. He quickly turned back.

I am a void of emptiness. Airen mumbled to himself like a monk repeating a mantra as he stirred the broth. I am the soup, and the soup is me.

“Ah, there’s no need to go do-”

“Come on now. None of us here can use water magic so we’ll have to manage with Airen’s ability to store things. It is a good thing you can use fire magic to warm it up.”

“I-I can do it myself!”

Did the soup come first, and did I? Are all liquids considered soup? At this moment, Airen’s mantra grew another level as he ignored the chatter of the two behind him. This was something he had grown accustomed to doing whenever Orshan decided to take him ‘training.’ This continued for nearly five minutes as Airen mindlessly stared at the steam floating above the pot, contemplating on the intricacies of what constituted as soup.

“Airen. We’re done. The water is still warm, do you want to wipe yourself down as well?” Eullina’s face suddenly popped up next to him.

“I will pass.” The magical rune on Airen’s body had several miscellaneous effects, and one seemed to clean off his sweat. Airen thought it was just like Fieluri to mix in things with her spells, especially after the incident where she took over his voice when he posed as Neäir.

It bothered him that he didn’t know what other sort of things Fieluri had done to his body. Was it to control him or protect him? Airen sighed and pushed the thought out of his mind,since there was no point worry about things that’s already been done.

“Food’s done.” Airen stated as he separated the broth into three portions and tossing some meal grains into them, letting them soak up the liquids and puff up. He sliced up the skewered meats and deposited them into the bowls as well, causing bits of oil to pool to the surface of the broth.

“Ah. This is refreshing.” Eullina nodded in approval as she spooned the soup inter her mouth. “Honestly Airen, that ability of yours makes adventuring with you feel like cheating.”

“It’s not exactly a cheat.” Airen sighed. When he had said the same thing to Fieluri, she had stared at him like a piece of dog excrement, yelling profanities about how he thought he was some sort of novel character when he was weaker than all of the heroes in the Archive. “I can’t store liquids by themselves, and I can only store things that belong to me, and within a certain size.”

The size of the rift I can open. Airen left the rest unsaid. His current limit was a measly oval the size of a tiny door, one that Airen could barely fit through if he bent his knees and tilted his body sideways. It was the same size as when he had first obtained the ability, and had only grown in slight centimeters since then, just enough to accommodate his growing body.

“Still, it’s useful.” Eullina shrugged. “Without it, we would have to give up a lot of the monster materials we obtained before. And nobody can steal them from us. Compared to normal adventurers, we’re living like kings!”

“This is actually very nice.” Rureya added. “Fresh food that isn’t monster meat, that is.”

The three of them finished the meal and Airen cleaned them off with sand and water.

“So, Airen, how do you want to proceed forward from here?” Rureya asked.

“Eh?”

“You’re the one that knew about the secret entrance.” Eullina pointed out.

“I didn’t exactly know about it… I just thought that a dungeon having twenty floors is rather odd.” Airen lied. And before they could respond, he quickly continued. “Since this is a locked room, I doubt there’s any living monsters in here. Did you find anything, Eullina?”

Eullina smiled cheekily and pulled out a small bag. She slowly undid the string and poured its contents onto the ground. Strange carved bits of iron and silver rolled onto the ground, spherical in shape instead of flat like common coins.

“We think it’s some sort of past currency.” Rureya murmured.

“If we can find collectors, we could probably make a large sum, if not… well it’s still iron and silver. We can melt it down and sell it as such. Your friend at the Auction House would probably know someone, right?”

“Probably.” Airen ignored the jab.

“Then here, hold on to these.” Eullina scooped up the tiny spherical coins back into the bag and tossed it over at him. It was heavier then Airen had anticipated and he took a step back after catching the weight.

“Alright. I’ll get them exchanged and split in three ways after we get back.”

“I don’t really need a portion...” Rureya protested.

“Nonsense! Ruri you’ve always been the first to charge into battle. If you ask me, you deserve more then Airen here who is just a walking storage chest!”

“I was the one that found the passage….” Airen grumbled under his breath.

“Fine. An enchanted storage chest with a pair of eyes!”

“This woman...” Airen mumbled.

“Ah? What did you just call me Airen?”

“N-nothing.”

“So you called me 'nothing?' I see how it is...” Eullina cracked her knuckles.

----------------------------------------

In the Archive, after Airen’s turn to sleep came.

“You are correct. These are coins of an ancient race that dwelled underground, more precisely, the coins of a race called the Dulskaar. They were a race that valued power and honor. They treated their enemies the same way, the strong were given fame and status, while the weak will be forced to serve until they became stronger. If my guess is correct, the other dungeons around here are also more of the Dulskaar’s homes. Back in their golden age, they had deep and intricate passages beneath nearly all of the continent. They were raiders, warriors, poets, and I, the great History Eater, can tell you that they are the descendants of a race from another plane.”

“Wait… are you saying you knew this all along?”

“If my suspicions are correct, then all of the other dungeons in the area are also former passageways used by the Dulskaar. However the certain passage you’re in...” Fieluri trailed off.

“Why did you stop?”

“What will you give me for this information Airen?”

‘Thank you for your time, I’ll be going back now.‘ was what Airen wanted to say, however he was sure Fieluri won’t let him leave until she got what she wanted.

“...What do you want?”

“Food.” Fieluri’s words made Airen sigh in relief. “If I remembered correctly, you did not leave a portion for me, your great master, in your last meal.”

“But you weren’t even there!”

“It’s the thought that matters. Now make me something.”

“Urgh.” Airen could only clench his teeth and did as bid. After an immeasurable amount of time passed, not immeasurable because it was long, but because time flows differently in the Archive, Airen returned with a feast consisting of eight dishes.

“Oh. Here it is.” Fieluri sat down and started to stuff herself, never taking an eye away from the book she was reading.

“I’m surprised your books never get dirty, with that habit of yours.”

“Magic can *gulp* do great things. If only you had some talent for magic, I could teach you to be like the spectacular me.”

“Who’s fault is it that I can’t use magic?” Airen’s frown chilled the air around him, but Fieluri simply ignored it.

“That’s your fault. You haven’t given me anything of note, so of course I won’t teach you anything. You should be glad that you can exchange information for food!”

“Every time you ask for a meal, I grow poorer.”

“All bad chef make up for quality with quantity.” Fieluri shrugged, frowning at the mushroom and meat stir fry she put in her mouth and spat it out. “This. Taste this.”

“...I forgot to spice it.” Airen realized after he tried it himself.

“Hey, hey. If you forget things while cooking, you may end up one day forgetting to remove the poison from a snake before cooking it.”

“Well, if it’s you, then any poison can’t match up to that serpent’s tongue of yours.”

Crash.

Airen felt his face slam into the floor as a giant spectral hand seemed to crush him into the ground. It was just painful, but compared to the times he was cleaved in half by a hero listed in the Archive, this was more than bearable. He stood back up with a smile.

“Are you a masochist, Airen?” Fieluri stared at him. It would be a rather intense stare if not for the fact that a levitating spoon was feeding her a porridge like substance. It was one of the few things Airen discovered that Fieluri did not comment on, so he thought she liked it. “Who smiles like that after being knocked to the floor?”

“I don’t quite like pain, but I believe this is a form of my ‘master’s’ love. It would do me no good if I were to frown after receiving it.”

“Stop.” Fieluri held up a hand in disgust. “ Now you’re making me out to be some sort of sadist.”

“In that case, are you a masochist? Well for someone as strong as you to be locked up for centuries, you must indeed be a masochist.” Airen shrugged.

Bam.

Airen slammed into the ground again, except this time, the ground had turned into quicksand, and his lower body was submerged and unable to move.

“Tch, you were such a cute naive boy back then. When did you go down such a dark path? Your friend Eullina would be disappointed in you.” Fieluri sat on his shoulder like a chair, leaning her book against his head.

“I only learn from the best.” Airen nodded. “Thank you for all the guidance for all these years, master.”

“If only you had as much talent in learning magic and swordcraft as you have in exchanging verbal spars.” Fieluri stood up and snapped her fingers. Airen’s body shook, and he shot out of the ground like a geyser of water.

“I’ll give you the information I was holding back since it’s nothing big anyway. The place you’re in is a location the Dulskaar used to figure out who the strongest were out of all the prisoners of war they captured. Naturally they pitted themselves against each other, and at the very end, the strong is rewarded with freedom. There should be some sort of trial in the end.”

“Now get out of my sight, I can’t eat in peace when you have that smug grin on your face.”

“But Fiel, you’re-”

A portal quickly opened and swallowed him whole before he could finish.

“Oi. Airen. Wake up.”

Airen’s eyes quickly shot open and his body tensed up for combat. He relaxed only after seeing Eullina and Rureya staring at him.

“The Winf branch burnt out, it’s been two hours.”

“Ah.. “ Airen nodded and pretended to yawn. It would be too strange if he didn’t at least pretend he had gotten some semblance of rest.

“I’ll get breakfast ready.”

----------------------------------------

They ascended to the next room. As they left the stairs behind up, Rureya moved forward, holding a hand up to signal them to stop.

“What is it?” Eullina asked quietly.

“The smell… it smells like dried blood.” Rureya frowned and gestured for Airen to lower the torch to the ground. As he did so he realized that the entire ground was a dull reddish brown tint. He had thought it was a trick of the fire light at first, Rureya had confirmed it.

“What is this place? Some sort of ritual chamber?” Eullina frowned as they moved forward. The room was entirely empty, which made them uneasy. After a few minutes of hesitation, Airen pulled out two Winf Tree branches and gave one to Rureya. With two additional torches, they glanced around them.

The narrative has been illicitly obtained; should you discover it on Amazon, report the violation.

“Even the ceiling and walls are covered in blood… what is this?” Eullina mumbled.

“Over there.” Airen pointed to the far distance, where some stairs were. However what he wanted to point out was the wall that made up the wall. It was made entirely out of bones! Here and there, a yellowing skull would appear, seemingly staring and mocking those that had disturb their centuries of rest.

“What the fu-” Eullina started to curse, but she realized that her two younger companions would be more affected and turned towards them. In her eyes, Airen appeared to be unshaken, but that was just like him to hide things. Rureya on the other hand, was averting her eyes, not daring to look at the monstrous wall of death.

“We should go.” Airen did not like the empty sockets of the skulls, and in the darkness with the light of the torches bouncing off them, the shadows seemed to form eyes that were staring at him. “Let’s move forward.”

“Forward?” Eullina frowned. They had to walk toward that abominable monstrosity and into the stairs that led between them?

“Unless you want to retreat, that’s an option too.” Airen shrugged. “It’s not like you’re scared of a bunch of skulls despite the fact you’ve killed a couple of Shambling Bones and even Reanimated.”

“Who’s scared, you little runt!” Eullina tried to act brave and grab Airen, but instead he ducked and moved towards the stairs. After a brief moment, Eullina grabbed Rureya’s hand and followed him while yelling obscenities at him.

Ascending the stairs of bones.

“I’m actually surprised we haven’t run into anything yet.” Eullina mumbled. “With all those bones, I had expected a few undead creatures to come our way.”

“These floors have likely been sealed for a long time.” Airen shrugged. “Without any magical beasts to take residence in, it is unlikely for monsters to form here. Well, now that we’ve opened it, perhaps in a few years that will change…”

“...If that wall of bone were to become a monster, that’s nothing to joke about.” Eullina’s eyes had a dark glint. “...Should we go back and burn it down?”

Airen shook his head. “There is no point in doing so, ah-”

The stairs had come to an end. The three of them took stock of the new floor, although this one seemed to be a hallway of sorts compared to the large rooms from below.

“This is a mural?” Rureya held up her torch against the wall, where strange images were painted as if telling a picture story. Each imaged was annotated with words on the bottom, but neither of the three could make out the ancient runes.

Of course it’s a mural. The Dulskaar were poets and storytellers. Airen turned to his shoulder and as he expected, Fieluri was seated there, diligently recording the images. I expected this but… well, something like this is fine every once in a while.

“This picture seems to be an introduction to the story…” Eullina pointed out a carving of a bunch of human figures wielding weapons colliding with another group of humans, except this group was unarmed and in chains.

“Prisoners of war?” Airen frowned. Fieluri tittered next to him.

“...Slaves” Rureya pointed to the captured people’s arms and hands, where a brand was visible.

From there, the next picture continued into winding passageways, and the slaves forced to march down into.

“Isn’t this the twenty floors we walked?” Eullina pointed out, and Airen nodded in response. The first twenty floors of the Valrock Ruins were indeed just long passageways, with the occasional room, which according to the mural, were places where the slaves were fed what appeared to be meat from monsters.

The next picture was rather grotesque. The slaves were marched into the room with the hidden passage and pushed into the pitfall trap. Many were killed, but some were able to escape into the hidden passage, some through luck, some through skill, and some who stood atop the bodies of others. The river of blood and gore was then used to feed the magical beasts that resided in the floors.

Nobody made a comment as they moved forwards onto the next scripture, where various grey-skinned humanoids laughed and clapped as the survivors marched up the spiral stairs and onto the platform of the amphitheater. It was a scene of dark twisted enjoyment, with the Dulskaar patrons selecting a slave and betting an amount of spherical orbs.

The next picture was of the room they had just left. Thousands upon thousands of slaves were forced against each others throats in a scene of carnage and destruction. Blood poured on the ground, mixed with bits of flesh, bone and organs, and limbs. It became transparently obvious why the room was stained red-brown, and where the bones for the wall had come from. On the other side of the wall of skulls and bones, observers watched in glee and jeered through the sockets of the skulls.

“What a sick and cruel method of entertainment.” Eullina shook her head. “Even the slave arenas in the Red Slate Republic has rules.”

Actually, compared to other things I’ve seen. This is quite lax. Fieluri clicked her tongue.

Airen could not stop his frown. This sport of gladiator-like tempering and slaughter was considered lax?

Fieluri noticed Airen’s frown and smiled darkly. If don’t believe me, I can show it to you. Airen shook his head. Here was merely a few pictures, and even they made his stomach twist and churn. What other sort of depravities from the hearts of monsters has Fieluri witnessed?

There was no next picture, instead all sorts of symbols were written on the walls. Fieluri pointed out that they were the names of those that passed all the trials, but Eullina and Rureya simply moved on, driven by a sort of morbid curiosity how this all ended.

Finally they stopped in front of a large grand door. Airen could not help but feel anxious at this point after knowing the origin of this place. What exactly waited for them on the other side?

He glanced at Lina and Ruri next to him, who also seemed to share his anxiety. He slowly pushed the door open, causing dust to fall from above. Perhaps it was his imagination, but he felt a similar feeling back at the wall of skulls, as if something was watching them.

Suddenly a powerful gust blew behind them, knocking all three of them into the room. The door slammed behind them, and merged with the rock bed, sealing them within.

“Wha-” The three of them watched in shock as the pitch black room suddenly lit up, revealing a large chamber with twelve pedestals, three along each wall and unnatural white flames rising above them. They stood atop of a small platform, with stairs descending below them. At the very far end was a set of doors made out of a strange pitch black metal.

Oh? So that is how it is. Fieluri was the only one that was not shocked by what had happened.

Like fine mist, the black metal seemed to shimmer and pitch black smoke started leaking out of the metal, no- it would be more precise to say that the metal was emitting the smoke itself. The dark smog swirled around in front of the door, before dispersing and revealing a haunting figure.

An Etna Duelist.

Other then his head, all of his body was clad in dark silver armor. Where his right hand should have been was a delicate and refined saber as if it merged with the armor itself. Black smoke filtered out from where his neck would have been, and intelligent blue smoke was where his eye sockets would have been. The grey skull stared at the three of them and saluted with his arm, before his teeth clicked together and a deep rumbling voice called out.

“Lu ski duol shadz cruf, buloss dyto ragna eeils forr yiu kin”

To come this far, you have already passed. Those who defeat me shall have their names carved into glory. Those that cannot will be sent back to the surface with your freedom. Fieluri translated to Airen.

“Migo de loren. corz yiu sa kin.”

Choose thy weapon, and may the best duelist win.

The figure waved his hand and Eullina shot forward, tumbling and ending at the bottom of the stairs. She tried to retreat backwards but a wall of smoke prevented her passage.

“Iza. Lor mourr de kai. Yin jol ne”

My name is Mordecai. Now then, let us cross blades.

Mordecai raised his hand and smoke consolidated in in a half moon around Eullina. When this dispersed several types of weapons floated in front of her.

“What is this?” Eullina stared at the undead warrior in front of her, with his saber held across his body in a diagonal stance.

“It’s a trial!” Airen shouted. “If you defeat him, he’s going to let you proceed! If not, then he will send you back to the surface!” Airen and Rureya had tried to pass through the black smoke but it was like trying to move through a metal wall. Rureya had tried a few spells, but the smoke did not even tremble at her flames.

Don’t bother. This magic isn’t part of the Etna Duelist’s ability, but is part of the room. Fieluri informed him. At your levels, none of you could break it.

“Lor Iza. Yin jol ne.”

Mordecai stared at Eullina with eyes of blue smog. He gestured for her to select a weapon again.

“I...” Eullina glanced over at Airen, who was yelling at her past the smoke.

“It’s a battle of skill! I don’t think he’s going to take your life!” Airen relayed more of the information he obtained from Fieluri’s musings. “Just fight with all you’ve got!”

Eullina gritted her teeth at Airen’s words. Suspicions crept into her heart as she wondered how did he know such things. Nevertheless, she picked up two of the spectral daggers and saluted the undead duelist in front of her.

Like her mentor taught her, when the time for battle has come, there was no place of idle thoughts!

“My name is Eullina Ludurva! Let us battle!”

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Two minutes later, Eullina’s pair of daggers was skillfully disarmed from her hands, and Mordecai’s saber was at her throat. Eullina had faith in her speed and ability to attack from blind spots, but Mordecai was an undying duelist who has been bound here for many centuries, and fought numerous battles. Even though the test forced him to use a fraction of his powers, there was still a large difference in skill.

“Azin jin jes.”

You are not worthy. Fieluri translated as a ring of light surrounded Eullina’s feet. Before she could even say a word, she vanished.

“Eullina?!” Rureya cried out. Mordecai turned to them and a creepy smile was plastered along his skull.

“Di eusl ca vin. Faa duol ska re?”

She has been returned to the entrance of this place. Which one of you is next? Fieluri snapped her fingers and Rureya was pushed forward with a strange force. Mordecai seemed a bit confused at first why Rureya had tumbled forward, but his expression did not falter.

“Fiel, what the hell are you doing!?” Airen whispered angrily.

Getting rid of the nuisances so you can go all out. Fieluri shrugged, as the array of dark, spectral weapons appeared in front of Rureya.

“Lor Iza. Yin jol ne.” Mordecai saluted and waited for her to select her weapon. In the eyes of everyone except Fieluri, this being called Mordecai was an extremely strange existence. Despite his death-like visage he was honorable and restrained his attacks, perhaps the very reason he was called an ‘Eternal Duelist.’and was well respected by adventurers even though they were powerful undead monsters.

Three minutes later.

“Azin jin jes.”

Mordecai retracted his saber from under Rureya’s neck and again a circle of light surrounded her. Airen could catch a brief glimpse of the Valrock Ruins entrance as she too, vanished after giving him a meaningful look.

So then Airen. Go on. Fieluri urged him. Something like an Etna Duelist should be the ideal sparring partner for you, who excel not in magic or strength, but skill of the blade.

“You have to be kidding me. Were you expecting this to happen all along?” Airen grumbled and descended the stairs. Although he did not like Fieluri forcing Eullina and Rureya to go first and be teleported away, Airen was intrigued with the undead warrior in front of him. There was no sense of fear, but rather a sense of challenge.

In a way, he is like you. Fieluri replied. Except your opponents are always greater than you, while his opponents are usually weaker than him. This would be an interesting battle to watch.

Airen carefully looked at the weapons floating in front of him, they all seemed to be made from the same dark silver metal that made up Mordecai’s armor. Airen glanced over at him, whose burning sockets stared back emotionlessly, before picking two weapons, a sabre and a scimitar.

Oh, an interesting choice. Fieluri scribbled away in her book as if she was recording momentous events happening, but Airen ignored her and turned to the Etna Duelist, Mordecai.

“Iza. Yin jol ne.” Mordecai announced his challenge and saluted Airen.

“La’vi jol duth ska!” Airen felt his voice call back and he glanced over to Fieluri who had a finger raised with purple light emitting from it. That witch, can’t she at least give him a warning before using his mouth to speak?

Mordecai seemed a bit amused by his words, let off a raspy laugh that only the undead can give off. Instead of waiting for Airen to approach like he did for the two girls, he raised his sabre and slowly walked towards Airen.

As soon as Airen lifted his blade, Mordecai’s form fluttered and dissipated into mist, and reappearing in front of him with his saber high in the air in a powerful downward strike.

A sense of deja vu filled Airen as the saber descended rapidly, as if time stopped for a moment. He quickly snapped to his senses and stepped to the side ass the saber blade smashed into the ground and buried into the stone. Airen’s face was level with Mordecai’s now, and he could only gulp as the undying warrior slowly turned his face towards him, his glowing blue eyes meeting with his.

Airen sensed movement, and he took a step back as the saber changed direction slashed out at where his hand was a moment ago. It was neither speed or perception that allowed him to predict Mordecai’s movements, but thousands of battle in the Archive.

Airen cursed Fieluri under his breath. Mordecai’s actions were vastly different from when he had sparred with Eullina and Rureya, they were deadly, sharper, and faster. Even the pattern of his attacks had changed. What the hell did Fieluri tell the dead man?

Before Airen could scream at Fieluri who was busy writing things into her book in the corner of the room, Mordecai stood up and shot towards him, his saber ripping forth in a crescent moon shaped slash.

“Damn!” Airen ducked under the blow and returned with a jab of the sabre. With lightning speed, Mordecai had slipped to the side, but Airen had anticipated this and attacked with the scimitar right after his stab.

The sound of steel echoed in the chamber and light sparks splashed as Mordecai’s silvery sabre met with Airen’s black scimitar, blocking the attack. Airen quickly realized that Mordecai’s blade was like an immovable statue and he was unable to cause it to move the slightest bit. In the end, he withdrew his weapon and retreated backwards to put some distance between them.

It was a good thing they’re not here. Airen thought. I don’t know what sort of excuse to say if they see me fighting this thing. Both of them were indeed moving at speeds unexpected of them.

Mordecai suddenly vanished into darkness again, and Airen quickly brought both weapons to the side to receive his flanking strike, directing the weapon towards the ground and pinning it with the scimitar. Airen raised to swing with his saber, but Mordecai skillfully retrieved his weapon with a delicate twist of the weapon hilt and blocked his slash.

The two of them back off once again. Airen was actually momentarily surprised as he caught his breath. Where was the famed strength which undead creatures had that caused mortals to fear them?

In the next exchange, Airen had attacked first. He feinted to the right, causing Mordecai to adjust his weapon out of position, and then made to slashed towards his legs with the saber. However, Mordecai’s unnatural reflexes allowed him to take a step back, avoiding the saber and raising his own silver black saber to block Airen’s follow up blow with the scimitar. But to Mordecai’s surprise, Airen’s saber followed up with a thrust!

Airen grinned, this was his implementation of the Flash Stance Keri had thought him. In the end, the stance was about never giving your enemy a change to retaliate!

Mordecai was forced backward under the seemingly endless barrage of slashes and jabs, blocking some, but ultimately being forced to back up against a wall. His eye sockets full of blue name flashed as yet another stab flew towards his chest!

Blue flames suddenly burst forth from Mordecai’s body, knocking Airen back into the air. In Mordecai’s other hand was yet another saber, although this one was a silver-blue color.

“Sor duvi ka es un iza, fo jin nas ne” Mordecai’s voice rumbled.

He says it has been a long time since someone made him draw his second sword. Fieluri translated diligently, but Airen could only grip his weapons and stare at Mordecai as silver-blue flames poured out of his armor. In his stance with one saber pointed diagonally across his body, and the flaming blue one held at a horizontal level by his torso. He was a very striking figure.

Airen’s palms were sweaty. His endless amount of battles in the Archive and accumulated experience told him that he was no match for this person at this point.

Before he try and retreat, Mordecai was upon him. A heat wave surged at him as Airen bitterly raised both weapons to block the cleaving attack backed with Mordecai’s undead strength. Airen’s hands gripping the weapons started to blister and bleed as he resisted the urge to dodge. The blue flames started to wrap against Airen’s body, but the magic tattoo given to him started to shimmer and appear over his skin, absorbing the brunt of the magical energy.

Mordecai stepped back in shock at this sort of magic which he had never seen before. At this moment he saw his chance, and Airen threw away his saber. He grasped his scimitar with both hands and swing down with seven-consecutive Blooming strikes.

The sound of armor shattering echoed through the chamber, and another wave of blue flame burst forth from Mordecai’s body causing Airen to be knocked back yet again, slamming into the wall behind him while feeling something crack in his body. Airen felt a presence in front of him, and he turned up to see Mordecai towering over him.

His proud silver armor’s shoulder guards had been shattered to bits, but Airen gaped as the pieces of armor on the ground around him slowly drew towards Mordecai and merge back into one piece. The undead warrior’s flaming weapon faded away, and he offered Airen a gauntlet.

Etna Duelists don’t die, Airen. Fieluri explained as Airen grasped the chilly gauntlet and stood up from the ground. Nobody can beat them in a duel for that very reason. But this is just a trial, and it seems this Mordecai has acknowledged you.

“Su vo orki. Jin du valia coor esu.” Airen’s weapons faded back to shadow and merged with Mordecai, and then he turned and pointed to the double doors.

“Izqa. Wen mei cyt tuus.” Airen felt his mouth move against his will and spoke back.

Airen turned to Fieluri, who shrugged her shoulders and declined to translate. Instead she urged him towards the doors, obviously eager to find out what was on the other side. When Airen turned back, Mordecai raised his saber in the air in a salute, before his form turned back to smoke and merged back into the door.

A resounding creaking echoed through the chamber as the doors opened, and Mordecai the Duelist had vanished, perhaps returning to his slumber waiting for his next challenger.

----------------------------------------

Well, perhaps this trip wasn’t wasted at all. Fieluri admired the chamber Airen found himself in after the doors slammed shut. Four torches stood in the center of the room, and below it was a ring of light, similar to the ones which teleported Airen’s companions away. However, what truly caught Fieluri’s eyes was the walls of the room, which was all covered in runes and words Airen could not understand.

“Fiel, what is this?” Airen walked over to and brushed his hand along the stone. The chisel work was masterful enough to last all these years underground was something Airen could not help but notice.

“A small cookie of history that even I may enjoy.” Fieluri replied, darting around the room in a speed that eluded even Airen’s eyes.

“...” Airen was not quite sure how to respond at Fieluri’s monologue. Instead he sat down and rubbed his aching arm and numb shoulders before retrieving a bottle of ointment for his blistered hands. Receiving Mordecai’s attack was not easy, but it was something Airen could barely survive with a bit of luck. He pulled up his shirt to see several dark bruises where a few of his ribs had cracked.

Airen bit his lip as he rubbed the ointment onto the injuries, before wrapping his blistering and bleeding right hand with his Liskun Scarf. Truly, the fabric that never got dirty had all sorts of uses, from being a bandage to a handkerchief.

Fieluri clapped her hands, causing Airen to look up as she opened the Blank Book. He tensed up as he felt a strange sensation around him, and light seemed to fill and scan the entire room. Translucent and illusionary words seemed to pour out from the runes like water, and was absorbed into Fieluri’s book like liquid running through a sieve.

“It is done. You should go Airen. No doubt your friends are anxiously waiting for you at the surface.” The Blank Book slowly drifted shut as Fieluri grabbed Airen’s attention. “It’s a shame that there no treasure of any sort in here, for you at least. But fear not, I am a benevolent liege, and I shall heed my promise to reward you for any tidbits of history you bring me. Come see me when you are ready.”

A void opened and Fieluri slipped through, leaving Airen alone in the desolate chamber. Feeling alone and with the adrenaline from the fight fading away, Airen’s legs shook and his sense of pain started coming back in full force. His body as he moved, stinging like cold water being poured on a hot pan, and he couldn’t gather any strength in his arms or shoulder.

Airen was sorely tempted to jump into the Archive where it would dull his pain and heal his wounds, but it would be too suspicious if he had appeared to be entirely uninjured. Taking a glance at the door from whence he had come, he slowly strode towards the circle of light while realizing that even his calves were trembling as the adrenaline faded away. Half an hour had passed when he had entered the final floor, and now he left the Valrock Ruins.

Outside…

“There he is!” A voice assaulted Airen’s ears as he was blinded by the afternoon sun’s rays. The next moment, he felt a force tackle him from the side and the winced in pain.

“I am a wounded warrior here!” Airen grumbled to Eullina as she took stock of his appearance. With trembling legs and her assistance, he sat down on the ground, too tired to move.

“By the gods that all religions worship, Airen, what happened to you?” Eullina bit her tongue as she stared at Airen’s shoulder, where the bruise was starting to turn black. Airen had not appeared after nearly an hour, and she was worried at what might had befallen him. Rureya had said that they should report the additional floors to the League of Adventurer’s and request assistance, but Eullina had a sense from Airen vanishing months at a time that he would be fine.

“Do you really have to ask? I fought that guy… Mordecai.” Airen grumbled. “I thought I was going to die.” Airen bought out several bottles filled with foul smelling poultice and liquids, handing them over to Eullina while uncorking and drinking a dull-pink potion. “Where is Rureya?”

“I had her go back to Stonewall to report to our supervisors that we may not return and request for a few days leave.” Eullina poured the poultice that smelled like mint, raw onions, and fish oil onto his shoulder and started to rub, causing Airen to wince as pain stabbed into him. “I was wondering if you were going to vanish for a few months again.”

Airen grinned regretfully, when was Eullina going to stop mentioning it?

“So did you win against that monster?”

“Eullina, he’s not a monster, just a warrior that likes to fight.” Airen defended. He had great respect in Mordecai, as well as a budding sense of camaraderie for the undead duelist. “He was truly a skilled adversary, and I only managed to win through a lucky blow.”

Eullina didn’t respond as she propped Airen’s body up with her arm and they started making their way towards the main road.

“Hey hey, don’t I get a word of congratulations or something?” Airen complained cheekily.

“Be quiet.” Eullina snapped back. “I said we should have left, but you refused to listen.”

Airen said nothing more and endured Eullina’s fuming rage and scolding words all the way back. But he endured with a smile, after all Eullina was scolding him for his own good as she always did, and Airen let his mind wander to what Fieluri would give him for his services. In his heart, Airen hoped to finally learn some magic.

----------------------------------------

“Fuhaha! As expected of my student!” Orshan clapped Airen on his bandaged shoulder, causing him to wince in pain. “To be able to battle with an undead duelist and live to tell the tale!”

“In that case, both Rureya and Lina also battled with an Etna Duelist and lived to tell the tale.” Eullina’s adviser, Leifaur, pointed out. “Have any of your reported this to the League of Adventurers?”

“I did.” Eullina replied, who was sitting on the side of Airen’s bed. “They said they would sent out an expedition to investigate and we’ll be rewarded after. Oh, and that the three of us should visit the guild to take our proficiency exams when available.”

“Eullina, why do you sound so proud?” Leifaur’s gaze was cold. “Not only did one of your comrades got injured this badly, it sounded like there was a magical trap that propelled the three of you forward which you failed to notice.”

“...It was just one trap.”

“’One’ trap is all you need to miss for an adventuring party to be wiped out.”

“I don’t think it was a trap.” Airen pointed out, the only one in the room that knew it was Fieluri’s meddling. “It was probably Mordeca- the Etna Duelist’s magic or something.”

“...” Leifaur did not reply, but nodded. “That is a possibility. But what is such a powerful undead being doing in such a low-level dungeon?”

“Eh, what’s the point worrying about it?” Orshan laughed to try and dispel the stifling atmosphere. “Anyways Airen, you must be content, having two young ladies waiting for you!”

“You must be joking, Orshan.” Airen quickly caught onto Orshan’s scheme to change the topic. “Last time I checked, I only had one young lady waiting for me, Rureya has been most kind.”

“Hey. Airen. What did you just say?” Eullina pinched Airen’s bandaged hand.

“I spoke only the truth.” Airen tried to keep his face composed as pain surged from his hand. “I’m an injured patient here, can’t you be a bit nicer?”

“In my eyes, you’re not injured enough if your witty mouth can keep yapping.” Eullina held up a roll of sterilized cloth. “Perhaps we should also wrap up your mouth.”

“Poor child, your teacher understands your pain.” Orshan shook his head before nodding his head towards the direction of Leifaur. “I too, thought that way about Leyla here once.”

“I do not recall letting you call me by that name.” Leifaur dug a shoe into Orshan’s left feet . “Please remember that you have to address me as ‘Adviser’ Leifaur, as per the regulations.”

Orshan grinned wryly. “Now, now Leyla. It’s not often that we see each other, so why don’t we play nice in front of our students?”

“This is my ‘playing nice’.”

“Women are scary creatures.” Orshan gave an exaggerated sigh. “It is getting rather late, so why don’t we retire for the night and let Airen rest? Unless, of course, Airen doesn’t mind being kept up all night with all these young ladies...”

“...” Leifaur and Eullina picked themselves up and made to leave. Rureya on the other hand, looked around confusingly, her face the very definition of innocence, causing Eullina to grab her by the arm and be led out. Orshan winked at Airen and he gave him a thumbs up back.

Orshan may be a big buffoon, but he knew how to handle situations really well.

----------------------------------------

In the Archive.

“You want to learn a magic spell for this? Impossible.” Fieluri scowled at Airen’s request.

“...Are you serious or just being whimsical about my request?

“Both.” Fieluri walked down the shelves and Airen scrambled to follow after her. For each step she took, Airen had to run a meter based in the difference in speed. “I can give you a magic spell, but based on the value of the history in that chamber, it’ll be weak and pointless”

“Weak is… not good.” Airen mumbled, coming to a stop in front of a door in the shelves next to Fieluri. “What do you have in mind then?”

“Wait here.” Fieluri ignored him and went through the door.

Ten minutes passed.

Then half an hour.

Then an hour. Or at least it felt like an hour as time in the Archive acted differently.

Just as Airen was starting to think that Fieluri had immersed herself in another book and forgot about him, the door swung open and Fieluri came through with a red box in her arms. She gestured for Airen to follow her with a flick of her finger, and they made their way to Airen’s vault.

“Here you go. This is something I made a long time ago by dissembling the design of a weapon. Looking at it now, this thing is rather shabby and pales in comparison to the things I can make today. I had thought about throwing it away but I may as well give it to you.” Fieluri explained disdainfully as she pulled out what appeared to be a small metallic bracer from within the chest. It was dark gray in color, with six flat rings of silver that ran along its length.

Airen took the item from Fieluri’s outstretched hand and with her urging, placed his right hand through the metal bracer. It was a tad too large for his arm.

“Tsk.” Fieluri tapped the bracer and the size seemed to shrink until it fit snugly halfway on his forearm and touching his wrist. At the same time, the magical rune on Airen’s body started to glow and Fieluri seemed to grasp something like a green string off Airen’s shoulder and attached it to the bracer. At that moment, Airen felt a tickling sensation as the item was forcefully bound to him.

“Hmm good. Seems like the small enchantments I left on it back then still functions. Or should I say, as expected of me?” Fieluri grinned, but after seeing no response from Airen, shrugged and stood up.

“So what does this do?” Airen asked. It was a bit heavy for a bracer, and would take Airen some time to adjust to it.

“Imagine a shield on your left arm.”

Airen frowned, but did as he ask. To his shock, the six flat rings of silver detached from the center of the bracer and merged together, forming a thin shield covered his hand and forearm like a knight’s gauntlet.

“Oh?” Airen swung his arm, rather surprised at this change. It was a shield that resembled an oversized vambrace, but Airen’s hand doesn’t feel heavier.

“Good, now imagine it to be shaped like a sword.”

Airen did as bid, and the vambrace peeled away like the layers of a tulip, causing the six long strips of silver to reappear for a moment. They then moved towards the front of the bracer, and braided into a thin-needle like blade.

“That’s the gist of it.” Fieluri shrugged. “The original weapon this was based off of was a sword shaped like a large shield. The demonic race that used this weapon would have one on each arm, providing both offense and defense. However, one of those is too good for you, and is not fit for your physique.”

“This is fine.” Airen smiled as he played with his new toy. “What’s it called?”

“Dir Sayf. It may be able to block one or two glancing blows, and it won’t hinder you from wielding a weapon with your left hand, even if the needle is extended. Well, if you find me more tidbits of history, I won’t mind teaching you how to make it better.”

“This is fine.” Airen swung his arm around, trying to get used to the weight. He estimated that it took roughly a second for the Dir Sayf to change forms, but Airen was happy with the bracer. “It’s a good weapon to perform a surprise attack with.”

“Just so you know, your Blooming technique, or Flash of Divine Steel, isn’t going to work with it.” Fieluri cautioned. “Those techniques require you to pour soul power into your weapon, but this thing is connected to you through the magical rune I placed on your body. The rapier like blade would break if you tried.”

Airen’s smile froze for a moment, but quickly returned.

“Stop smiling like an idiot and get out of here.” Fieluri grumbled after seeing Airen skip around, like a child obtaining a new toy. “You have a visitor.”

“...Keri?” Airen called out quietly as his eyes adjusted to the darkness.

“Hello Airen. It has been a while.” Keri Duvot greeted him as she sat by the side of the bed, at the place Eullina had a few hours ago. “I had to wait longer than I thought.”

“You could have just visited me in the Archive.”

“Whenever you visit the Archive of the History Eater, you are always outside your vault and sticking to her. How would I come find you?”

“...Sorry.” Airen bowed his head at the unquestionable logic in Keri’s words. He hardly ever visited his Vault except to check on whatever items he had stored in there. “I do plan on using the Vault soon actually, you might get visitors.”

“Forget it.” Keri waved a hand in rejection. “I actually like it better out here, it’s easier to find scenes to draw. Are you actually injured beneath those bandages?”

“I was, but not anymore.”

“The History Eater’s magic is unfathomable indeed.”

“Didn’t you say you had some business to attend to? How did it go?”

“I have been trying to find out where the ruins of Osperica were for the past month by infiltrating libraries and this country’s records. But I didn’t find anything.”

“Osperica…?” Airen tilted his head. “Why?”

“I made a deal with the History Eater. In exchange for all the paintings I have in my possession, both now and in the future, she divulged me some information.

‘Lizabel was not the only survivor of Osperica’.

“That’s-”

“Of course. I have my doubts. The History Eater may not lie, but I have no faith in beating her in word games.” Keri’s eyes narrowed. “Still, even if she has me running on a wild goose chase, this is something I must do.”

“That’s good news, isn’t it?” Airen was happy to see Keri find some sort of purpose.

“...I don’t even know how much time has passed. Chances are, anyone else that survived is dead, unless… they carry the same bloodline as me.” Keri held out a hand and a pitch black flame burst forth, except this time, the flame was like the darkness of the night sky, and the sparks were like stars.

“In the end, I have no choice but to ask the History Eater for another boon. I wonder what sort of insane request she would have this time. As long as it is a price I can pay, then I will go visit my homeland. Forgive your ‘supposed’ teacher for being selfish.” Keri smiled wryly and apologized. “If there is a chance that one of my sisters is still alive, then I must go find her.”

“Ah please don’t apologize. I don’t blame you.” Airen shook his head side by side. He too had swore to himself to find Yuelei when he finally obtained power, so how could he look down on Keri? “I too, am seeking my lost sister without knowing if she is alive or dead.”

“What is your sister’s name and affinity? The least I can do is keep an eye out for her.”

“Yuelei Casteya. As for affinity… I don’t know. The two of us never got the chance to find out. But if what they say about affinity reflecting one’s personality is true, then I would assume she would either be fire, earth, or light based. Ah! She has a silver-white hairpin with three cyan jewels embedded in it.”

“Understood. If I have news, I will come find you.”

“Thanks.” Airen bowed his head. He still did not know who the enemy was, except for the fact that Jourmind, Yuelei and him were attacked while trying to escape the capital city. Perhaps when the time comes, he’ll appear as his alter ego and return to the Kingdom of Macha to investigate.

“Take care Airen. It seems now that although you may not defeat your enemy, you can at least survive. The importance of battle is never winning, but surviving.” Keri nodded as she held up the keystone given to her. “Luvli doth des coryu selene.”

“Aroo doth ci nott cor harp les.” Airen replied the subsequent response that he learned from Fieluri. And may the night winds takes you to where the moon’s rays falls.

Airen saw Keri’s face blank for a moment, and she had a little smile as she vanished through a rift to see the History Eater. He stared at the void that his other teacher left behind. Their time was short together, but she had expended every effort to train him.