Across the banquet hall only one sight could be seen, that of rubble and a once standing line of statues now draped in the filthy architecture of ruin. A place no different to every other, it too was bound to fail the test of time, eventually. Perhaps it would have lasted longer without disturbance, perhaps it could've served the people after and given them the joy of its existence. But what was done done was done, it could not be reversed, and so it was pointless asking such questions.
Though, it was nice thinking about these outcomes, what could've been, what was, why it was, and what would then become of it. Without these thoughts, why bother even building such a grandiose hall? Why would anyone bother creating the paintings and statues or even the silky covers for the tables?
If all were to eventually fall down to time, why even bother?
In truth, what transpired in the room was now lost to the world and its children, and perhaps its creator also. But despite all that, what still remained... was nothing more than the memory of it all. What transpired here, the destruction caused, the history erased, it will all live in the memory of the victor, and no one else. All to serve as the cornerstone of an ancient craft finally falling down to ruin, never to be seen or enjoyed for the rest of time, only to be remmembered.
Crimson lined the floor, a huge pool of blood gushed out from beneath a body, one hidden underneath the sparking dust which refused to clear away.
But alas, something so unique and unmistakable pushed past, something that no doubt signaled a victor. On the left side stood a shadow slightly hunched, but on the right side... the flames of victory encroached across a beast.
"Huff, Huff, did I... did I win?"
The cloud of smoke settled down, revealing the beastly shadow that stood on the left, the victor of it all was... Leo!
Cryptic writings flew far and wide around the hall, prompting him forward as he recollected his thoughts.
[Slay the beast]
But there was nothing left to slay. The controlling worm at the top was squirming in agony as the flames enveloped the defeated body. Throughout the body of its avatar a incredible cross slash mark was left, uneven and impossible by sword – it looked like energy just burst right through its skin in random places, leaving connected and jagged lines all throughout its ruptured body, a sight similar to that of the ground after an earthquake.
Any further hits would be no different than attacking the dead, but then again, who was Leo to refuse its order. Looking down at himself like he hadn't just beat that monstrosity, he took a deep breath full of dust and trotted forward with a sluggish hint in his step.
It had all been destroyed, all of it! The statues, the food, the painting had been tarnished long before he even had time to appreciate it. Only his experience remained, the memory of joy, fear and battle. What difference did it make if he slayed this beast or let it rot to the flame of purity?
'It makes no difference...'
Leo repositioned his sword as if wielding a cleaver and just as a butcher would he swung down the middle of the worm, severing its connection to the poor werewolf. Immediately after, the flames intensified through the Worms body and not only a moment later the werewolves body ignited into flames as well.
The little white bonfire didn't burn with the same hate his sword did, rather, it was calm and soothing. It felt like if he reached out to it... it could somehow heal him, not literally. Ashen sparks went up into the air and out of the ventilation holes that riddled the walls, some of it escaping through the broken door infront, some of it settling inside of Leo's lungs.
The beast left nothing of real importance behind, well, except for a tiny little ball of fluorescent energy that beamed everywhere in the mask of moonlight that ran throughout the room. It was something fascinating, a tiny piece of the worms past, something so rare and sought after it was a miracle he stumbled upon one.
"That's... a memory!"
The tiny little ball he saw infront of him was none other than the one ingredient used to make talismans! Only this one lacked something to latch onto, hence why it was accurate to say it was in its purest form. Leo wasn't quite sure how these memories worked, or why only certain things or people had them, but what he did know was how sought after they were. Memories were the most powerful thing about a talisman, giving them the mystical powers similar to that of an architecture. Not only did they allow you to bypass the trial requirement by right of first ownership, but if you were powerful enough you could mix and blend different memories into one powerful talisman!
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That tiny detail was extremely important, because to his knowledge, talismans were exclusive to humans. Each architecture held only five slots inside the body for a talisman, each corresponding to one of the five vital organs. Combining memories allowed the use of multiple effects for the same five slots, however, that's where a person's own prowess came in. Usually mitigated by powerful magic, a host had to be able to whistand the power and control the magic of these talismans with near perfect precision, because if one failed to meet this criteria, well then... there wasn't much that could be done to save the person, their respective organ would burst instantly, often killing them in a timely fashion.
There were some cases of survival for those with subpar wealth, but those are considered myths nowadays, and the people involved were nothing short of demi gods anyway. Only powerful wizards knowledgeable in medicine could fix something like that, even low tier nobles struggled to afford such a treatment because of how complex architectures made the cure. It wasn't anything close to the Architects Smoke though, this doesn't even hold a candle to it.
'Those people only burst the easiest organs too... has there ever been anyone that survived a brain talisman?'
A shiver went down Leo's spine as he thought about it more. Each of the five had a direct order of strength, the brain being the strongest and kidneys the weakest. The brain would provide the greatest effect of the talismans memories, for example, if a talisman granted someone the ability to sprint 30% faster when intertwined with the kidney system, then if moved up to the brain it could jump up to be as much as 300%!
But of course, if the brain exploded then not even the strongest person on the planet could avoid the grip of death. That's also why often times it was labeled as the 'Four Talisman' limit, nobody was daring enough to intertwine their brain with one, one slip up and it was over!
Leo looked it up and down as it spun on the floor where the wolf was now combusting.
'How can I store it...'
He had no plans of using it, he had no real interest, but memories could fetch a hefty price especially since only powerful and rich warriors would buy them. Memories were too expensive to buy for simply one talisman, not to mention that they were incredibly random if you didn't know their real origin or if you bought it off of some shady vendor like Leo. Their only real audience were the wealthy nobles who could whistand their prowess, and the price they were willing to pay was nothing short of amazing. Though, just like his earlier thought of selling off the sword, he'd have to hold that off for a while, or he might just be robbed blind in the middle of the streets.
Storing it on the other hand... was not something Leo knew how to do, though the runes probably did. Regardless, the battle was now over, and its victor had been set in stone. But something was weird here, and it started bugging Leo.
'What? Wait... why didn't the wolf burn with the worm?'
Despite having multiple fresh holes through its body, evidently done by the argentine sword while Leo was unconscious, its body didn't burn during the battle – only after the worm had been taken care of.
'Is that got something to do with them being two different creatures? That would make sense... the wolf was dead but it was being controlled, so really the monster here was the worm.'
His inner workings were cut short as the runes made a swift appearance from seemingly nowhere. Their constitution changed drastically, looking more like a manuscript now rather than the dishevelled writings that's been plaguing him for a while.
[Letter of Sucession]
[Dear Leo,
This is my final message to you before you set out to fulfil your duty filled adventures.
Firstly, I must remind you of the contract signed, in exchange for the absolute safety of your sister and the absolute knowledge of a cure, you must first execute all the monarchs plaguing the fifteen continents. In order to compensate for your lacking base, your deadline will be much longer. It will be set at a humble fifteen years from now, should you meet this deadline, you will be rewarded all the promised goods of the agreement and in addition get to keep everything bestowed upon you by the contract, including the architecture and your authority over Glacialis. However, should you fail, not only will the contract become null, but a great consequence waits towards the end.]
Leo paused in reading the whole thing, quite shocked at the revelation.
'Consequence? They never said anything about that!'
Leo looked further down in hopes of finding more soothing information.
[Secondly, you must learn how to train your body and magic. You're far too lacking at the moment which will pose several problems in your journey. By any means necessary you must rise up the ranks within at least the next five years, as per my recommendation, the remaining ten should be spent becoming a powerful 'individual' and hunting the reigning monarchs to the edge of the world. Of course none of this is mandatory, feel absolutely free to deviate on your own path, so long as you fulfill your duty none else matters.
Lastly! I will not be able to communicate with you outside of these ruins, again because of your weakness. This means no more assistance! No more fighting for you! And so I ask you to choose your battles wisely as the most dangerous part of any warriors career is the start. —]
Leo started at it blankly, stuck on that sentence before moving on to the rest of the letter.
[Fret not though, even if I cannot intervene, I will leave you the power of the runic language embedded in your body. The dial embedded deep within your hand, that tool is special. It is a conductor of the runes, just as the sword you hold. But it is different, to make up for the restrictions – I leave only this marking on you. It will serve you well as a measuring tool, not only will it measure your enemies prowess given the opponent isn't too strong, it can also analyse the danger level of an attack.
The tool should come in very handy, and before I end this letter, I must let you know that despite its intended use, the runic language will let you do much more than just measuring.
Also, I've embedded several spells in your soul, such as the protections needed to secure your sister. You need do nothing in this case, all will be revealed to you in due time. Do not forget your duty, do not forget the contract, as soon as you stray away from it, your fate will be sealed.
Yours sincerely,
~~~~~~
]
The message ended there, to say the least, Leo was left dumbfounded and wide mouthed after what he'd just read. Just as he finished it, all the runes in the room disappeared immediately, the letter, his sword, even the ones wrapped around his body. They all dissipated into thin air.
"...what the hell did I just sign."