Chapter 39
Gideon woke to sunlight seemingly streaming through a window that he was fairly sure was not connected to the outside world. Groggily rousing from the unbelievably comfortable bed, he found a set of fresh clean clothes set on top of the blue chest, they were a plain light blue leather trousers and what seemed to be a darker blue cotton shirt. There was even a dark blue robe with white patterns of snowflakes and icicles emblazoned across it folded beside the clothes, though the material wasn't anything he had ever seen nor felt before, just gliding it through his fingers had him wanting to spend some of their gold just to get a few sheets of the stuff.
There was even a separate room with an ornate toilet and a beautifully ice blue bathtub, the room's floors were somehow heated as were the walls and the ceiling, giving the room a comfortable warmth. Take a quick soak and cleaning himself off from the month's worth of dirt and grim, he felt absolutely wonderful slipping into fresh clean clothes.
He knew they had a training session with Pavel at dawn, Gideon left the room to find Rhordan opening her door, dressed in a similar set of clothes. The door was fairly easy to work out with their magical sense and after James had shown them the night before, a rune engraved in the wall activated a set of spells that moved the impossibly heavy door, one that Gideon even tried to punch slightly to test its strength and found his knuckles bruised instantly.
They followed the same route James had led them through back to the main hall, unwilling to stray and get themselves lost in this labyrinth of a mansion. Returning to the main hall, they found Pavel speaking animatedly with Jorgan as they stood near the front door, neither of them seemed happy about the conversation they were having.
"What does that mean?!" Pavel shouted loud enough for the pair to hear, they opted to avoid eavesdropping on their conversation for the simple reason of the scowl on Jorgan's face. The Ice Master seemed almost irate, as if he could strike someone down just for being near him. Pavel shook his head and his gaze somehow landed upon the brothers watching them. "Gideon, Rhordan, good some rational people at last!"
Pavel stalked over to them, clearly ignoring the growl that Jorgan emitted before following him. Gideon and Rhordan stood rigidly, unsure what they were about to be drawn into whatever unsavoury topic the two Frostmares had been discussing.
"Get this! Senile over here thinks I'll just drop out of the tournament willingly!" Pavel jokingly stated, momentarily passing a glare at Jorgan before continuing. "I slaved away to get strong enough to pass the trial to become one of the ten combatants to the tournament, and now I have to hand it to some mysterious adventurer named Xanforess?!"
"Wait… is this concerning the matter with Paylor?" Gideon was excited to hear that Xan made it to Larravass safely, though why he needed a fast pass to a tournament by bumping off one who had earned their spot spoke of the hidden plot. Pavel just looked incredulously at him, shifting his gaze between the pair and Jorgan. He threw his hands up in the air, pacing back and forth agitatedly for a few seconds before waiting for Jorgan's answer.
"Unfortunately…" Jorgan sighed, he had just spoken to the leaders of Heaven's Mountain about substituting in Xan for one of ten, and their response was less than desirable. He only managed to persuade them after agreeing to two conditions that he couldn't avoid. "It's not up for debate Pavel, you can still join in next year's tournament."
"Oh, sure great, like that's going to look good on my record…" Pavel grumbled, he shook his head in disbelief. He passed a curious glance towards the brothers, before shifting it back to Jorgan. "They know about what's going on and I don't?"
"Pavel, its dangerous knowing what we know, in truth… its far better being ignorant." Gideon intercepted Jorgan, he could see the irritated glare intensify greatly at Pavel's accusation. He didn't trust Jorgan, nor did he want to get in between him and his family drama, but from what he could see, Pavel was as stubborn as Jorgan, if not even more so.
"Great, so some secret plot that involves grouchy and grumpy, and you two know about. BUT! Its too dangerous for me to know…" Pavel looked at them as if they were insane, daring them to try and explain why they knew and he didn't, especially since they were far weaker than him. "Well! I better go tell the officials I ain't participating in the tournament, maybe they'll believe that I lost my mind and need to bow out because I'm babbling about secret plots… wait a minute… you said there were two conditions to get this Xanforess into my place in the tournament?"
"That's why I am here… in order for Xanforess to enter the tournament without participating in the trial…" Jorgan was stalling, his scowl deepened greatly as he pinched the bridge of his nose. Heaving a deep sigh, he spoke with a grave sombre tone. "I have to relinquish my position as a leader of Heaven's Mountain."
"WHAT!" Pavel practically yelled, he stared incredulously at Jorgan in wonder if his ears had suddenly chosen that moment to play tricks on him. His screech caused the brothers to flinch violently, shifting their eyes uncomfortably between Pavel and Jorgan, worried about the implications it meant for the Frostmare family to lose this place. "Please tell me you laughed them off the mountain?"
"I'm afraid not… it seems that the leaders have been considering this action for awhile now…" Jorgan growled viciously, he glared angrily at the floor for a second before calming himself. "My visit to Bardia two months ago caused a stir that reached someone's ear…"
The Ice Master left his sentenced unfinished, the meaning behind them known by the brothers as they sighed in sympathy for Jorgan's plight. Pavel looked between them, a slight inclination gleamed in his eye as he slowly started to understand the situation.
"Okay… what is going on?" Pavel seemed reluctant to ask the question, though his curious nature won out as he desired to know who could get the Ice Master Jorgan kicked out of the Heaven's Mountain clan. "Whoever you are up against… I want in! The Frostmare family aren't going to be bullied by anyone!"
"Understand that if this plan goes sideways or if it is ever found out that we are aiding those orchestrating it, the Frostmare family could be finished… do you still want to know?" Jorgan warned Pavel, he didn't want to get the boy involved but his stubbornness and honour to defend the family wouldn't let him rest until he either knew, or got himself killed in pursuit of the truth. Pavel nodded resolutely, a slight shuddered ran down his spine at Jorgan's words, but he didn't shy away from facing whatever the threat may be. "We are trying to stop the king of Averia from reshaping the land of Altharia to his whim, if we fail then Averia will control all three kingdoms and Larravass."
"Oh! So, nothing too serious then…" Pavel jokingly tried to assimilate information while hiding the glint of fear entering his eyes. Gideon and Rhordan passed a look between them, they knew they had no choice but to be involved, but Pavel had the option of returning to their family home and none of them would blame him. "Wait… how does the king of Averia have enough sway with the leaders of Heaven's Mountain?"
"He doesn't… I don't know what's going on, but they made direct mention to Bardia and Examination in one sentence." Jorgan grunted, irked that they managed to reveal that they knew something regarding the conspiracy but not who could have influenced them into forcing him out of the clan. Jorgan's scowl hide a note of strain in it, one that confused Gideon immensely when he heard it as he could have sworn that the Ice Master forced that expression rather than it being natural, he dismissed it as his mind playing tricks but a part of him held a note of doubt.
"Is it possible that they knew the truth and are trying to avoid getting involved, but they are willing to give you some face?" Gideon enquired, he didn't like the idea that there was someone more powerful hiding behind the king. They had enough trouble dealing with one delusional madman vying for power, and now they had the potential prospect of a hidden mastermind looming over them.
"Doubtful, if they knew the truth, they wouldn't be hiding at all." Rhordan countered, she had the same thought as Gideon, but she waved off the idea that they knew about Alex. From what she has heard about the six original clans, the clan leaders would sell their own souls to be the ones to bring the lost heir home. "I think someone told them enough to back off, either that or there is a third party involved."
"A third party? If that was case, then the king is getting the short end of the stick, and I doubt someone like him is willing to go to this length take only a meagre cut from the end result." Gideon shook his head, scratching the back of his neck as he thought about how someone like the king could cause fear in a place that he didn't have the ability to influence. Though his niggling doubt resurfaced once again when he caught a strange glint in Jorgan's eye, dismissing it once again he pressed onwards with his discussion with Rhordan. "I doubt he is an unwilling participant either, from what we know, this has been going on for a while now. If someone else was pulling the strings, they would have acted by now."
"What if he was offered something… remember Terra?" Rhordan winced at bring up that name, but she needed to have a secret conversation with Gideon without revealing anything to the hawk eyes of Jorgan. Gideon shuddered at the memory, though he knew where she was going with his.
"Possible, but it would have to be something substantial, and we would have to figure out the third party's motive." Gideon had managed to get over Terra, though that didn't mean he didn't feel sorry for her or worry about her current condition as one would a friend.
"Destabilisation? Domination? Ruination?" Rhordan ran through the list of motives that someone would have by giving the king the power of an original clan. By gaining absolute power over all others, it often fell into three categories of what to expect. The fall of society as whole to introduce a new one, the complete submission and overruling control over all beneath them, and the destruction of all life for a cause or belief. All three happen at some point, even if the person with the absolute power desired for peace or prosperity, at some point everything will fall apart.
"Depends on the third party, though if the Holy Order is involved then its most likely destabilisation." Gideon remembered the arrogance of Jane Butch, as well as her reputation among the Holy Order. "If not, then it can't be domination, not with the king involved as he would want that as his sole purpose and he wouldn't willingly comply if it was anything else. Which leaves ruination, though it does beg the question of who could offer the king something he wants while not revealing that they plan to end all life?"
"Why do I have the feeling that I'm just waiting for a condescending tone to explain how I walked into a trap…" Rhordan griped, shuddering at the thought of running into Slade in this new world, though he would be a damn sight better than Red Eyes.
"You aren't alone… though if that is the case, then are we looking for big red?" Gideon didn't want to directly say Trigon's name, he knew that Rhordan still had issues with big red though she was great at hiding it from the others. Gideon could tell that whenever big red was mentioned, Rhordan would start to look over her shoulder before remembering that he was gone, he felt that even though she knew she dealt with big red, that some of his influence still plagued her mind.
"Not sure, and I don't want to jump to conclusions either." Rhordan dismissed Gideon's claim, not out of her fear that big red could rise from the ashes or at least someone similar to him, but because they had no reason or evidence that other races exist in this new world. Even though this world was purely magic based, they still didn't have any reason to believe it could be a demon at play, although that could explain red eyes in some way.
"Huh, and here I thought you were supposed to be the smart one around here, old man." Pavel interrupted Gideon and Rhordan's evaluation of the facts before them, he and Jorgan had watched the two talk with growing eyebrows. They couldn't exactly disagree with their assessment since it would require them to actually understand what they were saying.
"You two are a mystery wrapped in an enigma inside a labyrinth that exists and doesn't at the same time…" Jorgan just shook his head, he knew the two were lying about their past, and now he had proof as they broke character from countryside bumpkins to high class academics. Whoever they were, they had to be running from something big, and Jorgan found himself doubting that the king of Averia's little scheme could come close to it. "Anyway, it doesn't matter, Xanforess is in the tournament. And by the end of it, Frostmare Mansion is no more, so I will be scouring Larravass for temporary accommodation and storage until the main family can send appropriate transportation."
"Not to sound selfish given the whole 'you being kicked off the mountain' and all, but…" Pavel seemed hesitant to ask his question, shifting uncomfortably from one foot to another. "Do I still have my status of Outer Disciple with Heaven's Mountain?"
"Yes, since you have proven yourself capable of making it into the top ten of the outer disciples." Jorgan eased Pavel's worry, the young master of the Frostmare family sighed in relief. "You'll have to stay within standard outer disciple dorms, and you won't have access to the upper-level training zones either."
"Great… any worth in returning to the family and finding a new clan?" Pavel seemed disheartened, though he hid it well with sarcasm. Jorgan levelled a glare at Pavel, daring him to complain any further. "I'll shut up and knuckle down."
"Hmph! As the next heir of the Frostmare family, you should lead by example and not leech off of the charity of others." Jorgan reprimanded Pavel, shaking his head somewhat before spinning on his heel to head out the front door before he paused for a second. "For now, continue on as normal. As for you two, here, study these."
Jorgan held out two large books, one a dark green with an emblem of a large tree on the front of it, the other a deep purple with a lightning bolt blaze across it. Gingerly accepting the books, Rhordan scanned over the contents of the lightning element book opening page, eager to start learning what she could. Once Jorgan left the mansion, Pavel groaned audibly as he ran his hands over his face.
"Just great! And here was me hoping to join the Cube Run next year…" Pavel grumbled aloud, he noticed the confused expressions on the brothers faces and grinned maniacally, decidedly taking the open invitation to explain something to the two supposedly smart people while disregarding his current irritation at his current predicament. "There exists a weird cube like dungeon to the north east of Larravass, every ten years it opens and allows anyone under the age of eighteen and anyone at or below the apprentice rank to enter. Hence the tournament that's held every year here in Larravass is used as a decider when the Cube opens."
"I take it that only a set number of people can enter the dungeon?" Gideon enquired, Pavel's explanation didn't reveal much, but a dungeon that only opens once every ten years had to have items of value buried within. It might be worth their while to gain entry to the dungeon, who knows what they might find.
"Nope! Doors open every ten years, and closes when a full year passes, then it waits another ten years. During that year, anyone can enter." Pavel explained excitedly, he started walking towards another secret door near the sets at the far end of the main hall, motioning for the brothers to follow him. "The problem is that it's a dungeon, full of traps and magical beasts… or rules. Killing a disciple from another clan inside the dungeon can't be prosecuted nor punished for it, meaning actively killing others is encouraged."
"Oh… and here I thought the beasts and traps were enough…" Rhordan groaned, magical beasts were already an issue when they first challenged the Bardia dungeon, combine that with traps that will most likely be of the fatal kind and you had a recipe for a mass grave that people would willingly walk into, especially if priceless treasure was on offer.
"Ha! Thousands, if not tens of thousands, try their hand at the dungeon just for the chance at acquiring anything from it." Pavel opened the secret door and strode through a series of corridors, heading towards the backyard of the mansion. "One magical item of the lowest grade is worth at the very least a single gold piece which makes it very lucrative to the poor people, especially as a decent item could secure their future easily. Though they have to survive the dungeon's traps and beasts as well as the leeches that supposedly crowd inside the dungeon's entrance waiting for a foolish idiot to waltz by."
"That… sounds like fun…" Gideon agreed with Rhordan, though the dungeon could be a wealth of magical items, it was a sea of death and sorrow just waiting to drown any unsuspecting prey. "I take it that the tournament supposedly gives an advantage to the winners?"
"You would be correct." Pavel had led them into an open yard behind the mansion, flat white stone extended to the walls surrounding the property, several structures that resembled training equipment were evenly spaced out. The most notable piece of equipment was a red ring engraved into the white stone, a rack of wooden training weapons lined a stand close it. "The top ten winners receive a special token that allows them to bypass the first stage of the dungeon, avoiding most of the deadly traps and the stampede of people trying to storm their way into the dungeon. Also, there are only two hundred of tokens available, one hundred of which remains with the six original clans."
"Of course, they have that privilege…" Gideon scanned over the training weapons, there was every weapon one could think of hanging there, the other side of the stand held the exact same set, offering a double to each weapon. There was one that took his interest, though he dismissed it as he had an irritating question bugging his mind. "Why would everyone rush into the dungeon when they had a year to enter, and if the traps and beasts are that dangerous then why not wait until things die down?"
"Because every person only has one chance to enter, once they leave, they cannot enter again." Pavel took a training glaive from the stand, twirling it through a few moves before walking into the ring and staring at them. "That and, the dungeon constantly changes, every month a new region opens up and closes when the next region opens. Puzzles change every week and corridors daily. Loot is the one thing that doesn't change, if you aren't in on the first day, then you lose out on any of the early loot."
"And the dungeon increases in difficulty, so if you aren't in the first wave, then you leave with nothing once you hit your limit." Gideon surmised the rest of the dungeon's quirks, though there was one thing that left him puzzled. "If the dungeon has a limit on age and power rank, does that mean there is a limit to how high the danger is inside?"
"I wish! There was one case of someone running into a prince rank magical beast, though not exactly sure if its true or overstated conjecture." Pavel shook his head, waving the glaive through a set of high octane moves, slashing the fake blade with intense ferocity. Rhordan had taken a seat in the shade and started to work her way through the lightning element book, keeping her ear to the conversation. "From what I know, time is distorted inside the dungeon, no one knows how long they spend inside the dungeon."
"What happens if you stay inside beyond the year limit?" Gideon returned to the stand, passing a glance towards the weapon that caught his eye, though he forced himself to pick up the two short swords. Twirling them through his hands, finding them somewhat clunky but still useable. "And what about the end? Is there a final boss or something?"
"Unknown on all accounts, no record or statements from anyone proving otherwise." Pavel shrugged, he wasn't nearly as concerned about what lies at the end of the dungeon than Gideon. "Although, there was a rumour that there is something at the end, that if you managed to navigate through it then you could get something beyond measure. But, no one has ever gotten close, or know how to do it since the highest rank you can enter is apprentice."
"Do the clans regulate the entry way to the dungeon? Or can anyone enter it?" Gideon's words caused Rhordan to snap her head up in shock, staring incredulously at him.
"Nope, since the six original clans take half of the tokens, they provide protection for the event." Pavel explained, he motioned for Gideon to enter the ring. The two stood at either end, sizing the other up as they spoke. "They ensure no one is prevented from accessing the dungeon, and they ensure anyone leaving isn't harassed or attacked for whatever they acquired."
"Fair trade…" Gideon settled himself into an attack stance, readying himself for the training battle. "Do people stay within the dungeon for the full year? Or do they leave once they have enough magical items?"
"Ha! They wish they could stay longer!" Pavel broke into laughter, settling his glaive's butt end onto the ground as he laughed. "The dungeon has some sort of effect on people, not only does it distort time to make being in the dungeon far longer, it causes pressure upon the person that increases as time goes on. Supposedly, the longest a person reportedly stayed within the dungeon is three months, staying beyond your own limit and the pressure supposedly can damage the person's body or magical core badly."
"So, after three months the dungeon is effectively useless…" Gideon started say before Pavel smacked him on the head with the wooden glaive, drawing his attention back to him. Gideon batted the glaive away with his short sword, glaring irritatingly at him before letting him speak.
"No, the pressure only starts the moment a person enters the dungeon, so anyone can enter at any point and having the timer of at least three months though it differs from person to person. Although the time limit is estimated at three months, those who enter first pick clean a lot of the loot so anyone coming in after has to take greater risks just to score something." Pavel chillingly explained, his words carrying a sombre tone of how many people died trying to attempt the dungeon. "Anyway, you two shouldn't be thinking about the dungeon, being anything less than apprentice rank is pure suicide. That and you need a few gold pieces to buy a single necklace that protects against the pressure and increases your time from one months to three."
"Good to know, shall we?" Gideon motioned towards the ring, readying his short swords as he watched Pavel level his glaive. The two then rushed towards one another, Pavel using his weapon's range to swipe at the legs before arcing it upwards towards the head as a bluff blow that forces the opponent to either step back or leap into the air and leaving them vulnerable. Except, he wasn't expecting Gideon to charge straight through his attack, thrusting his leading short sword at Pavel's stomach.
Pavel's glaive was high in the air and his chest was exposed, with little other option, he wrenched the glaive's staff bottom half up to block the incoming attack. He wanted to twist out of the attack and use the butt of the glaive to strike Gideon in the stomach after blocking his attack, though that was the plan until Gideon twisted himself out of his attack to Pavel's side and used the second wooden training sword to slam it into the back of his legs. Sent to the ground, Gideon dropped his lead short sword and grabbed Pavel by the neck and flipped him over his own shoulder and onto his back.
With the wind knocked out of him, Pavel just aimlessly stared at the skin above him. Replaying the fight in his mind, he realised that had he not been as cocky to assume that Gideon wouldn't go for the lethal approach when he himself was at far higher physical rank than Gideon. Pavel wasn't going to admit that he had Jorgan get him a repressor to lower his physical strength so it wouldn't be an unfair fight, now he wasn't so sure about giving them the advantage.
"Thought the old man was joking when he said I didn't need the repressor…" Pavel wheezed, he took the proffered hand from Gideon and got to his feet. Dusting himself off, he removed the simple silver ring and shoved it into his pocket, flexing his muscles and joints as his power was returned to him.
"Sorry Pavel, didn't mean to go all out but you were swinging that glaive a bit too much." Gideon chuckled awkwardly, scratching the back of his neck nervously as he remembered the confident look in Pavel's eyes. He didn't want to defeat Pavel that quickly, but he wanted show that he wasn't to be looked down upon, especially as he noticed the silver ring matching Conrad's on his finger at the start of the fight.
"Ha." Pavel glowered at Gideon, rolling his neck and rubbing the back of his knees. "You have skill, but it ain't with blades, hand to hand combat?"
"Yeah, didn't have much to train with growing up, so me and Rho sparred when we had a free minute." Gideon partially lied, it was true he didn't have anything to train with growing up, and that he and Rhordan sparred on occasion, yet putting those two truths together made them a lie.
"Not bad." Pavel nodded approvingly, sparing a glance towards Rhordan who had returned her full attention to her reading. "I take it you're the brawn and he's the brain?"
"Pretty much, I would be next to useless without him." Gideon praised Rhordan, only missing the slight blush on her face as she buried her face deeper into the book. "Brawn is only as good as the brain that stands at their side."
"Well said." Pavel patted Gideon on the shoulder, collecting his glaive from the ground, he rested it against the stand before turning back to Gideon. "Anyway, though those short swords suit your style, you forgo their purpose of quick decisive strikes in favour of blunt force attacks that focus on vital points. If you want to go down that route, then I would suggest either daggers or tonfas."
"Agreed, the short swords do play to my style, but they never felt right in my hands." Gideon admitted, he had been struggling with the short swords for a while now. Fighting with the intention of killing the opponent had changed his style over time, forcing him to alter attack paths and compensate for the extended reach of the short swords. "Daggers are good, but I don't like the way that I have to hold them, feels too uncomfortable and unbalanced to strike with."
"Claws, they're an old fashion weapon that attaches blades to the back of the hand, though getting your hands on a descent set of them is fairly difficult." Pavel thought over the issue, he only remembered the old age weapon from Jorgan's fascination with myths and legends. Pavel had liked the idea of being a beast, but they were considered unconventional and required a specific style of fighting that, until he went toe to toe with Gideon, thought was purely exaggeration. "Claws have a similar style to daggers but with your close quarter hand to hand style it would suit you well."
"I'll bear that in mind, although I had been thinking about adopting a second fighting style, one that gives me a better range while keeping me close to the enemy." Gideon found that certain magical beasts left him useless as he couldn't get close enough to attack, he wanted a range weapon like Rhordan, though being far from the front line had him worried that the opponent would go after Rhordan instead of focusing on him. "I don't want a ranged weapon, nor something like a pole arm…"
"So that was why you were eyeing the katana." Pavel had noticed Gideon eyeing the training sword shaped in the style of a katana, he knew it was an odd weapon for someone that used short blades but the look in Gideon's eyes spoke of a desire to wield. "I can give you some lessons, only the basic forms, but it would be enough for you to decide if it's a weapon you want to learn."
"Thanks, I tried my hand at a standard sword, felt way too cumbersome in my hands." Gideon explained his decision for the katana, yet he needed to know if he could use a second weapon other than the one that felt almost natural in his hands. Pavel nodded at his words, agreeing with Gideon's statement. "The katana is a lighter and faster blade, with its extended reach I can still be nimble but avoid attacks. That and I don't have to force myself to aim for the weak points with every attack, short swords don't have the necessary weight to carry through or the length to strike at anything vital without repeated hits to the same spot."
"Good assessment, though there are many styles of combat for using a katana, it would take awhile until you find one that suits you." Pavel disappeared around the other side of the stand, returning quickly he threw the second katana training sword to Gideon while grabbing the first. "I take it that Rhordan isn't going to be joining us?"
"Doubtful, unless you like losing a limb." Gideon passed a glance over to Rhordan, her nose was buried deep into the book. He shuddered at a memory of the time he foolishly tried to steal a book from her, one that she was heavily invested in reading, and he spent the next week trying to escape from the Antarctic. "It's best to leave him be, he's been extremely useful with the bow so far. Though I would feel much better knowing he could use a melee weapon as well."
"Understandable, only highly trained bow users are fine with melee fighters in close quarters." Pavel started to run threw a few basic moves with the katana he had learned from Jorgan, demonstrating for Gideon while they spoke. "Best weapon for bow users would be a dagger, but it would be far better to have him trained professionally… I have an idea…"
Pavel trailed off as he spoke, he left Gideon to practice the moves he demonstrated and disappeared into the mansion. He left with a light blooming in his eyes, dropping the training blade as he left. Gideon was somewhat confused, but he decided to work on the flow of the blade, balance it in his hands and swing with intent.
The first move Pavel showed was just simple overhead strike, but running through it he could see why it was the go to first move to learn as he needed a decent grip and a firm resolve to swing the katana to the point he needed it to reach without going further. It taught him that he needed to be properly adjusted to the weight and size of the katana, training his muscles how to act and what force was needed to swing it. The second was basic slash to the throat using the moment from spinning around, it was basic but had the same issues as the first.
The training weapons had been designed to mimic actual weapons, magically enhanced to be the same weight and density as iron though without the actual metal or the edge to them. Gideon found the same rather cumbersome form to the katana that the sword had, except the handle felt far better in his grip than the sword as well as the far shorter guard. He believed with training and time, he could adjust to the weight and work with the weapon.
"You're still thinking about the dungeon, aren't you?" Rhordan's voice picked up after she managed to forcefully put the book down, she had learned a lot of useful information regarding the lightning element, though none that was entirely unknown to her. The book broke down the element to its basic form, explaining how it works and what to look for. It had broadly outlined the how to use mana to influence the lightning element in her core into casting spells, it also explained how dangerous it was to use elemental magic untrained.
Mana can course through a person's body as its akin to their own blood, however elemental energy is, at the beginning, something that tints the mana to the element reflected in the person's core. If that element isn't properly controlled, it can tear through the person's mana channels and cause unimaginable damage to the person's body. It was a miracle that she and Gideon hadn't ruptured parts of their bodies with their use of elemental magic.
The book did explain how absorbing mana into the body worked. Mana is essentially a pure essence of power, a baseless form of energy that can be influenced by outside forces, like water before one adds orange squash or coffee. The magical core itself has two layers to it, the magic core type is engraved on one layer which also houses the mana storage, and the layer coating that is tinted with the person's element. The tinted layer acts as a filter for elemental energy, allowing the person to absorb one type but not another.
As for absorbing elemental energy, it works the same as turning water into orange squash, though instead of bring the squash to the water they would have to find an actual source of elemental energy to absorb from. Converting the mana in one's own core into the elemental energy, and over time the mana becomes a pure source of power that allows the user to forgo needing an elemental amplifier or having such strict control over the elemental energy itself as it courses through their body. So, to progress through the ranks, one would have to increase the elemental energy within one's own core to the point that they can strengthen and deepen the colour on the outer layer as well as alter the colour of their internal mana pool. The book wasn't very specific on how this is done, rather it states that the person would know when they have increased their own rank.
"Sorry… I know after everything we have been through that we should avoid going anywhere that spells instant death…" Gideon started to apologise but Rhordan shook her head, a slight glare in her eyes daring him to try and make up some lame excuse to justify his thinking. "Fine, the dungeon only opens every ten years, something like that in the gamer world is a gold mine. You are either a fool to avoid it, or someone that doesn't care enough in the game to spend the effort in getting stronger."
"I know we are trying to get stronger, but this dungeon isn't just magical beasts and traps, we will be fighting against actual living humans." Rhordan sighed, she could understand his thought process despite the gamer terminology, but there was one glaring hole he forgot to take into account. "We may have to kill another human, like actually kill a living human…"
"Rhordan…" Gideon flinched, scrunching up his eyes for a second before sighing in defeat. "It is only going to be a matter of time before we have to kill another living human, whether that is now or in a year's time."
"You want to control the environment in which we have to kill." Rhordan wanted to glare at him, yet all she could do was stare at the ground in front of her. "If we're expecting it, then it will be much less of a blow than when our hand is forced in a situation beyond our control."
"More or less, in truth I want to avoid it at all costs, but…" Gideon was glad that she understood the foundation of his plan, though that wasn't the entire reason for his decision to go to the dungeon. "We will have an advantage that no one else will have in the dungeon, if you recall out recent adventure to a certain abyss."
"Oh…" Rhordan had temporarily forgotten about her ability to use runes, she had thought it was weird that Jorgan was stunned about their survival in the abyss, that he should have guessed that runes saved them even after she stated it herself. If she could create a rune set that could alleviate the pressure, then their time inside the dungeon could be extended greatly, in fact they could stay in there the entire year while others are forced from it early if she could make a strong enough rune.
"Three months can only get a person so far, but twelve…" Gideon hinted at his plan, though he didn't like the idea of staying within an extremely dangerous location for that long, but the supposed loot they could acquire from there would greatly enhance them.
"How are we supposed to reach apprentice rank in either magical or physical power within a year?" Rhordan shook her head, she had no idea where to begin in making a rune set that protects them from the pressure of the dungeon. "Someone like Pavel had to have been training since he was kid, if he isn't at the apprentice rank by now then how are we supposed to make it in a year?"
"Fourteen, that's the age that someone can fully use their core and actually train with it." Pavel called out as he left the mansion, he held in his hand three weird dark stone slates in his hand, they had strange gold engravings and were connected together by an old thread. "Any younger and a person risks stunting their core's growth."
"Why fourteen?" Rhordan asked inquisitively, surely a magical item grown at the centre of a person could be useable throughout their entire growth, though she was more baffled at the idea of the magic core being dangerous to use while growing up. "If the core is a part of the body as an organ, then surely it should be useable from way earlier?"
"You would be correct, except that if the core is left alone to develop then it produces the best results." Pavel explained, he returned to the ring and was still holding the slates. "Through various experiments, they found that fourteen was the average age that someone inherits not only all the elements available to them but their magic core type, and a chance to acquire a secondary core."
"So, it really it like an organ…" Rhordan muttered aloud, working over in her mind how the layers would be grown over time, wondering if there was a possible third or fourth layer if the person didn't use their core for another decade. "Wait, how do we tell what our magic core types are?"
"Surely that's a joke?" Pavel chuckled at them for a second, only stopping when he noticed they weren't being funny. "You're kidding right? Haven't you wondered how you have been so proficient with your current weapons?"
Gideon and Rhordan stared at one another, they hadn't really focused on small matters like that, more on trying to survive and avoid being hunted down and killed for something they had nothing to do with. Rhordan's apparent aptitude with the bow did draw Gideon's eye, but he counted it up to Robin's extensive training with all of them, encouraging them to learn to use a weapon just encase.
"Gideon, you prefer fast attacks and mobility, common to the rogue type core." Pavel surmised, Gideon nodded at his assessment, he had guessed he was either the warrior type or rogue type as he preferred the front line rather than the rear. He knew the caster core was out though he wasn't exactly sure if that was the case, and cleric and archer were also out for obvious reasons if Pavel's explanation was anything to go by. "Rhordan is the archer core, hence his ability to use the bow without prior training. The same goes to you as well Gideon, your core gives you the basic knowledge needed to effectively use the weapon of choice for it."
"And you are the warrior type, you have no limit on weapons." Gideon had figured that Pavel's eccentrics towards weapons of every type was indicative of the warrior type core. Pavel nodded, puffing out his chest in pride. "Then, doesn't that mean by learning the weapons for that core type would upgrade it?"
"Err… its bit more complicated than that." Pavel's chest deflated, downtrodden at the question asked. "Its more of an understanding, if you can learn what it means to be what your core is, then you upgrade it. Don't ask me how that works, cause I have no clue."
"Would that be Jorgan's answer to my question?" Gideon rhetorically asked, getting his answer in the form of Pavel flinching. "Should have known that he wouldn't give a straight answer."
"Yep, the old man loves his riddles, tells me that there aren't no short cuts in progress." Pavel grumbled, earning an understanding nod from Gideon and Rhordan though they weren't agreeing with Pavel's annoyance, rather they wouldn't have been titans had they taken the easy route. "Anyway, these are tomes. Old style words of power that the ancient's used as learning material or records for… whatever really. Truth is, few of these have ever been deciphered, let alone known the full purpose or intent of."
Pavel displayed the slates he had brought from inside the mansion, the writing on them seemed archaic and powerful as the gold engravings shone slightly with the movement. Rhordan immediately picked up at the words of old age writing, staring somewhat greedily at the tome's golden writing.
"Supposedly, tomes aren't meant to be read, rather they have conditions that have to be met before it mentally transfers the information to the mind of the person." Pavel explained, his words confirmed Rhordan's suspicions as she could see the writing had eerily familiar traits to runes. She figured that someone a long time ago had figured out a way to store information in runes and transfer it when the conditions are met, a set of runes that she was heavily interested in learning from now. "This one was found in several parts inside the Cube… the dungeon we spoke of earlier… its incomplete but… I think it might be perfect for you Gideon."
Taking the tome from Pavel, Gideon held it in his hands, scanning over the gold inlay writing with interest. He felt a weird connection to the slates, a feeling he had when he was connected to the forest and the garden he had walked by on the way into the mansion. The nature element inside the tomes resonated with his own, except something was restraining it, withholding it from reaching out to Gideon.
"Jorgan found it himself, collected three pieces before he was forced from the dungeon back when he was seventeen." Pavel admired the tomes for a second, recalling the days when the Ice Master was his own age. "It's a shame it isn't of the ice element… Supposedly, it's called Nature's Fury, a dual wielding single edge sword style of combat restricted to the nature element… but Jorgan never allowed anyone outside the family to access it, and I think he wouldn't mind since if you have a crack at it since no one has ever managed to learn from it."
Gideon scanned the tomes once again, searching for a way to bypass the block that was holding it back. He wanted to know why this tome was reaching out to him, but whatever was holding it back didn't make sense to him, it felt as if there was a part of himself that wasn't complete yet.
"Nature's Fury… from ancient records… is allegedly a unique hybrid fighting style that focuses on high intensity speed type attacks while granting the user access to insane defensive and evasive skills." Pavel strained his words, emphasising the point that he didn't believe what he was saying. "Anyway, if the myths are even half right, then this could be useful for someone in your case. Works with the rogue type's physical attribute and can help you protect Rhordan in a fight."
"Rogue type's physical attribute?" Gideon enquired, curious as to why he phrased it differently than just the simple physical power.
"Each core type has a specific attribute that it imparts into the physical aspect of the person. Warrior's attribute is strength, Archer's attribute is dexterity, Caster's attribute is resilience, Cleric's attribute is endurance, and the Rogue's attribute is speed." Pavel explained, deliberately leaving rogue to last, emphasising the point on each attribute. "Though all factors of a person's body are increased with each rank increase, the core's attribute would take precedence and intensify far beyond any other."
Gideon continuous stare at the tome worried Rhordan, he seemed almost intent on smashing it with the scrunched-up face he was making. She wondered if the tome had some magical power that he was trying to delve into, his natural curiosity always pushing him to investigate, even if the results are less than favourable.
"You said that there are conditions for this tome to impart its information to me." Gideon finally asked after staring unflinchingly at the tome for some time, Pavel had at one point started waving his hand in front of his face to no avail. "I can sense the nature element inside it, speaking to me… but it's holding back, refusing to give me the information."
"Means you met more than enough conditions to hear it, but don't met them all." Pavel lamented, shaking his head somewhat in dismay. "Shame, I hoped that you could inherit it, but if it doesn't respond to you then there isn't much you can do about it."
"You wouldn't mind if I can hold onto it for now?" Gideon asked, pondering if Pavel's words were true and he couldn't access the tome's knowledge, but a part of him spoke of something else being at play. Something that he couldn't quite understand. "Only for as long as we are here at the mansion… I just want to work a few things out."
"Argh! Fine, but don't let Jorgan see you with it." Pavel groaned, revealing the fact that he was lying a few moments ago. He noticed the glares he received from the brothers, and realised that he exposed his little secret. "Okay! So, maybe I might have stolen it from the vault, and Jorgan would mind greatly if its in anyone else's hands."
"Good to know." Gideon took the tome over to Rhordan, handing it to her while leaning over carefully to not rouse suspicion that he was passing her a secret message. "If these are what I think they are, then learn what you can, I'll keep weapon nut over there busy."
Rhordan gracefully accepted the tome, trying not to express her thanks to Gideon for giving her the opportunity to read it herself. She watched him return to the ring and lead Pavel around it somewhat so that his back was to her, giving her the freedom to read the tome while they practiced his training.
Examining the runes on the tome, she found that they held a weird power that she hadn't seen before, a slight pinkish yellow hue that resembled the spirit element and something else. Another element that she had seen before, except in the green core they found in the dungeon… and another core. Rhordan remembered that Gideon's core had a trace of the pink element, though she was more concerned with saving his life rather than admiring the bloody orb she had held in her hand.
The runes themselves didn't suit the style she had learned from the dryads, they held a strange complexity that reminded her of the runes she wrote in the air. Examining them with her magic sense, she followed the interconnected lines of magic connecting the runes together, hoping to find the reason it wouldn't relent to Gideon's control.
As the day wore on, she found there was nothing she could do to yield any answers from the tome, though she did learn that the runes used were a more advance version than the dryads. Studying what she could, she adapted parts of her own runes with the older rune style and found them working far more efficiently than before. She could also influx a higher amount of elemental energy into her runes than before as well as increase their effects without losing their integrity or using more mana.
She took a break from her research, turning her attention to the two practicing with the katana. Gideon was learning quickly, matching Pavel's demonstration almost perfectly within the first few attempts. Flowing through a few advance move sets before stopping to compare notes, they stood talking about the relative strengths and weaknesses of the katana over other weapons.
"I can agree with the swiftness of the katana, though I think I'll need far more practice with the blade before I use it in combat." Gideon swung the fake katana through a few of the moves he learned from Pavel, finding it somewhat agreeable to his taste of weapon that he specified. Although, he wasn't ever going to admit that the true reason behind his desire to train with the blade was because he wanted to become a samurai, wielding a katana like those in the movies.
"Your learning capability is astonishing, I have never met someone that can adsorb physical combat styles better than you." Pavel praised Gideon, he had thought he would be spending the entire day correcting mistakes in stance and swing but he was surprised that Gideon only needed minor adjustments to his forms. If he hadn't sparred with him earlier, he would be wondering if he was a plant sent by Jorgan to test his battle skill. A melee fighter reveals a lot of their skill in the first few moments of fighting, Gideon choose to get closer in an instant rather than stay back and evaluate, meaning he valued close combat rather than the range of a sword or other weapon.
"Mimicry." Gideon stated curtly, dismissing Pavel's praise quickly. "I can copy another easily, so if my style sucks, then I know who to blame."
Pavel laughed boisterously, enjoying the camaraderie of his newfound friend. Gideon grinned at his joke, though he wasn't exactly kidding, if Pavel's knowledge on the blade was flawed then so was his. Although mimicking another works excellently in acquiring new skills and tricks, it has the issue that if the person's skill he copied is flawed or broken then so was his, it meant that he could have a glaring hole that he could easily overlook.
"Anyway, my mimicry isn't perfect, just because I can copy a move doesn't mean I can make it my own." Gideon further explained, Pavel listened in intently, eager to know the pros and cons of Gideon's ability. Even Rhordan was interested in Gideon's ability, she was interested in learning what she could about him. "I have to practice and train my body in order to assimilate the moves. So, it works in the short term for tricking opponents, but long-term use requires effort and patience."
"Nifty ability." Pavel commended Gideon, turning on his heel, he headed over to Rhordan. "There isn't much I can do for you in training with the bow, but the best I can offer is setting up a target range."
"That would be appreciated." Rhordan thanked Pavel, she was somewhat dismayed that she couldn't receive proper training with the bow, but a target range should at least give her something to work with.
"Alright, I should have it set up tomorrow." Pavel walked towards the mansion, stopping just short of the door to speak to them. "I won't be back until tomorrow morning since I have classes and I need to look into outer disciple dormitories, as for Jorgan I have no idea."
Pavel left them in the backyard, disappearing into the mansion before either of the brothers could say anything. They had to assume that as a student, he had to make constant appearances at classes or events to show that they were still attending, that or he was actually interested in learning from the Heaven's Mountain rather than Jorgan the Ice Master.
"Do you want me to read the nature book?" Rhordan offered Gideon as he swung through a few more move sets, changing the style slightly to fit his preference. He stopped to think over her words, he knew that she would interpret the book far better than he would, but he couldn't keep relying on her to solve his inadequacy in reading.
"I should read it, I know enough of the basics but if there is something I don't know then you wouldn't mind if I ask you?" Gideon enquired, setting the katana back on the stand, shifting over and sitting beside her. Rhordan nodded to him, she was happy that he was trying though she didn't mind reading it for him. "Thanks."
Gideon and Rhordan swapped places, one reading through the nature element book, the other practicing with her bow. Rhordan focused on using the training dummies on the far side to train positions and aim, continuously using the same arrow over again as she didn't want to blunt all of her arrows when they pinged off the metal dummy.
The nature element book followed most of the same principles that the lightning element book, except its definition of nature differed from Gideon's own assessment. Nature, by the books words, is a healing and support element focusing on providing allies with the boons of the forest while calling upon the powers of nature to heal. This definition strayed far from both Nature's Fury and his own opinion on the nature element.
Out of all the elements, nature is weird. In the foundation tier, Earth, Wind, Water, Fire, Metal, and Blood, are all basic elements that exist around the world and share a common theme of being absolute forces of power with singular purposes for each of them. Yet, Nature relies in the combination tier, the second stage of elements above the foundation.
Combination elements includes; Lightning, Ice, Lava, and Nature. The book doesn't specifically state that Spirit is a combination element, which worried Gideon as he knew that Rhordan had that element. With no express mention of the spirit element meant that there would be an exceedingly low amount of training manuals or books she could use to learn from. There exists a tier higher than the combination tier, but the book doesn't go into detail about them, other than to mention that it contains the holy element, a fact that Gideon thought was the book makers way of being condescending to anyone who doesn't have it.
As for elements in the combination tier, they all have their unique traits and purposes, though it largely depends on the user's will. Nature on the other hand, it differs from the other second tier elements in that instead of bending to the will of the user, it conforms around the user's magical core. Depending on the type of core, decides the purpose of the nature element.
Warriors are steadfast and resolute combatants that provide support to their allies while luring the enemy into attacking them. Casters are full support types, healing and providing boons to allies while altering the terrain to shift the playing field. Archers are a mixture of the warrior and caster, providing long range support while being able to shift the playing field to their advantage. Clerics aren't included as they are primarily of the holy element.
As for Gideon's own core type, that was where things got difficult. Rogues of the nature element weren't written about nor even noted as part of the list of core types, supposedly the chance of a rogue gaining the nature element was so low that the last time one was seen, it was thousands of years ago according to the book. Gideon was surprised that Pavel hadn't made mention to the fact that he was a nature rogue, especially after he tried to give him Nature's Fury, a style specifically tailored to the rogue type.
"Hey Rho." Gideon called out, drawing her from her practicing against the dummies. "Keep an eye on Pavel, he just glazed over the fact that I am a rogue with the nature element, something that this book mentions hasn't been seen in a millennium."
"Paranoid much?" Rhordan chuckled, though she made a mental note to watch Pavel. She didn't believe Gideon's reason for his suspicion, but if it wasn't for him and his distrust, they would still be held hostage under Baltharn's thumb, or far worse.
"Probably…" Gideon admitted ruefully, his paranoia had been slowly amplifying the moment they arrived in this new world, he was worried that there would come a time that he'd be living in a hovel and crowing at anyone who knocked at the door. "It's just… after finding out the truth of Bob… I don't know."
"He fooled us, but we can't let that dissuade us from making friends." Rhordan rested her bow against the stand, she walked over and laid a hand on Gideon's knee, offering a small smile of comfort. "How about we focus on training and keep our trust in reserve until we are certain about Pavel and Jorgan."
"Thanks Rho." Gideon smiled warmly, resting his hand on top of hers, taking comfort in her touch for a few moments before letting her go. As he returned to his reading, Rhordan opted to forgo training with her bow since she found there wasn't much she could learn from pinging the same arrow off of metal repeatedly.
Instead, Rhordan withdrew the steel rod from the void ring, intent on examining it for a few minutes before returning to the lightning element book. Scanning it with her magical sense, she could feel it was attuned to the lightning element, the reason that Gideon had picked it for her.
She didn't have access to her element she had first inspected it, now however, she could feel the construction of the steel rod had an intricate interior design to it. One that she couldn't see before without the lightning element, one that had a series of runes embedded inside the central core.
Whatever the core was made out of alluded her, but the runes written on it were of a slightly higher grade than the dungeon in Bardia, but they were no were near the tome's level. She couldn't work out what the majority of them were, mostly due to her lack of skill in using her magical sense to examine runes inside of an object, and partly due to her lack of knowledge of the lightning element itself. The one rune she did know was for mana drain, specifically it had been modified to only accept lightning energy, however it was the activator for the magical item.
Referring to the book's method of channelling lightning energy, she took it slowly and ensured she had full control over her mana. Pouring it into the steel rod gradually, she found that she needed to flood more lightning energy into it just to get it to spark. Ceasing her actions before she activated the device, she studied the steel rod again, trying to examine where the energy went to inside the circuit of the core.
She found the energy residing inside a gem like core, the mysterious item storing the energy held it to be used to power the magical item, however a set of runes triggered when she imparted some of her magical power into it. Those runes now held a trace of her magic, something she believed was akin to a fingerprint recognition. Focusing on those runes, she committed them to memory before focusing on the core.
It seemed the magical device converted the lightning energy into a concentrated power source for it to use, yet the large amount of mana she had poured into it barely made a scratch in what the core could hold. If her assessment was correct, then she would have to be at a higher magical power rank just to fill the core with enough energy to use it.
"Why don't you just use pure mana?" Gideon had taken a break from reading, his head aching from trying to translate the writing in his mind. He watched Rhordan stand there staring at the steel rod fixedly, using his magic sense showed her channelling a lighter purple energy into the steel rod, one that seemed diluted and chaotic rather than her usual deep purple that flowed with grace and power.
Startled by Gideon's sudden involvement in her inspection, she followed his suggestion and allowed her mana to flow through into the core, finding that it was far denser than the thin lightning energy she was channelling earlier. She filled the core with what she felt was more than half of her remaining mana, bring the total energy in core to just less than ten percent from the measly fraction of a fraction of energy she filled it earlier. This magical device's core showed just how inadequate her mana pool currently was, if she wanted to use this weapon in combat, then she had to increase her mana pool significantly, or increase her lightning element as she watched the conversion set of runes expending quite a bit of mana to change pure mana into lightning energy.
Triggering the weapon's activation rune with a spark of lighting energy, she watched in awe as purple lightning exploded from either side of the flat ends of the steel rod, arcing into a curved shape with the steel rod at the middle. The lightning stopped and a thinner lightning bolt connected the two ends of the curved parts together, forming a perfect bow out of lightning.
Marvelling at the bow, she found she could pull the string with little effort by coating her fingers with lightning energy. As she drew the bow, a second lighting bolt took shape at the centre like an arrow, one that increased in power as she held the string without any input from her. Rhordan was so engrossed with gaping at the bow that she forgot something important, how to shut the bow off.
"Umm… Gideon!" Rhordan called in fear, finding Gideon practically leaping off of the ground and to her side in an instant. Looking over her arms and the bow itself, he shook his head as a grim smile graced his face.
"Best just let it loose, the power is climbing by the second, any further and I think it will start taking from you." Gideon had followed the trail of power, finding the weapon's internal glow dimming gradually. Rhordan nodded, aiming the bow at the training dummies, drawing the string to its fullest before letting the bolt fly towards the dummies.
The lightning bolt rocketed from the bow, screaming across the backyard and slamming into the metal constructions within a moment. The bolt exploded upon impact in such a ferocity that it sent a shockwave of lightning energy, throwing both of them flying backwards. Gideon managed to hold onto Rhordan and take the brunt of the hit against the mansion's wall, the force sending both of them through it and into what they assumed was the dining room as it was a smaller version of the main hall with seats around a luxury ornate table.
Gideon didn't know what hurt more, his back that had been thrown through the wall, or his chest that had been landed upon by Rhordan. Though the latter wasn't one he was ever going to complain about, he was glad that she was safe and unharmed, and he did enjoy holding her in his arms. He coughed harshly as dust settled around them, wondering if part of his rib cage was broken, and if not then it was definitely bruised.
"You alright?" Gideon croaked, worried about Rhordan's condition despite his pained breath. Rhordan groaned, shifting herself off of Gideon and letting him breathe. The wind had been knocked out of her and parts of her hands felt singed, but otherwise she was fine.
"I'm fine… more worried about you?" Rhordan coughed, turning around to find Gideon leaning back against the rubble unmoving. He had a layer of dust and rubble coating him, though there was no physical wound she could see. A warmth of gratitude welled in her for him coming to her aid when he did, but it was tinted with guilt that he had gotten himself injured because of her.
"Don't blame yourself… you had about as much warning as I did…" Gideon wheezed, trying to lean up in vain as his back raged violently at the motion. Laying back down, he calmed his breathing and focused on collecting his mana, passing it through his core before coating his wounds in the nature energy. He felt a familiar warmth of laying in lush grass surround the parts that he centred on, the pain ebbing away and relief flooding through him. "Glad I have the nature element, always did wonder what it was like have healing powers."
Gideon leaned up and found Rhordan staring at her hands, they had been partially burnt and were blistering red. Taking her hands in his, he let his nature energy surround them, easing the pain and slowly knitting the burned flesh back together. Gideon wasn't exactly sure how he was healing with a power he barely understood, he made a mental note to scour the book once they were done.
"How much trouble do you think we are?" Rhordan had shifted her attention to the hole they had blown through the mansion's walls, the dust coated most of her vision from seeing outside. She was grateful for Gideon healing her wounds, she now understood how the others felt when she was healing them.
"A lot." Jorgan stood there staring at them, a violent twitch in his eye as he tried to not to pinch the bridge of his noise. Gideon and Rhordan passed a look between them, worried that they had crossed a line they shouldn't have.
"Hey old man! I didn't know we had a crater in our backyard." Pavel's voice sounded out from outside, he sounded seconds away from either fainting or laughing like a madman. Jorgan sighed heavily, pinching the bridge of his nose before storming past them and out into the backyard. There, where the training dummies were supposed to be, was a crater two metres deep and five metres wide. Rubble casted everywhere and dirt showered the white stone ground. "You know, I always did want a pool."
"Err… Sorry?" Gideon and Rhordan followed them out, staring crazily at the crater in bewilderment. Rhordan sheepishly tried to apologise, worried that she might have gone too far with this one.
"What do you have to be sorry about?" Pavel chuckled, loving the eyebrows dancing on Jorgan's face as he stared at the crater, his jaw seemingly trying not to fall from his face. "This place is supposed to be enhanced with magic to prevent things like this happening… or it should have been…"
Jorgan closed his eyes, breathing repeatedly as he tried not to lose his temper. When he finally opened his eyes, he saw an object laying on the ground, a steel rod. Picking it up and scanning it, his eyes widened in shock as he realised what he was holding.
"This is the Thunder Form Bow!" Jorgan exclaimed, Pavel immediately leapt several feet in the air as the old man's words reached him. He spun around and dashed towards Jorgan with eyes just as wide as Jorgan's. He scrutinised the steel rod carefully, admiring each and every detail. "Where did you get this?"
"Umm… well…" Gideon flinched violently, he could already tell how badly this situation was going to be. He knew he had to tell Jorgan the truth since Rhordan had taken a chunk out of their property, though he wondered how they would react to where he got it. "I got it in a deal… from Paylor…"
Jorgan and Pavel exchanged glances with one another, before falling to the ground howling with laughter. Even Jorgan wasn't able to contain himself as bent double from his laughter with tears streaming down his eyes, it was a sight that stuck the brothers dumb as they stared at the pair. It took several minutes before the pair calmed down enough to right themselves, they still chuckled as they stood there shaking their heads.
"Paylor's gonna go berserk, I would love to see his face when he learns of what he lost." Pavel laughed, holding his chest as he tried to regain his lost breath. Turning to Gideon, he grinned like a madman. "How did you get that hoarder to part with the Thunder Form Bow?!"
"I got it in the unidentified pile he had, the trade was for a Steel Lion beast core." Gideon explained, leaving out the actual deal of the sword that still resided on his back being the object of Paylor's fascination. "He didn't seem to know what it was, just said it was a weak powered magical item that wasn't worth much."
"My old friend may just die from shock if he knew…" Jorgan chuckled happily, unable to wipe the grin growing on his face. Paylor was an expert blacksmith, but in the realms of magical items attained from dungeons, he lacked the necessity to keep himself informed of each find. Otherwise, he would have not missed the master crafted weapon in his possession.
"What is the Thunder Form Bow?" Rhordan enquired, staring worriedly at the steel rod in Jorgan's hands. The power displayed by the bow was beyond anything she had seem before, and although it would take awhile before she could use it in combat, it was something she was interested in keeping.
"What do you know about magical items?" Pavel asked, the grin permanently etched into his face as he walked over to the brothers. When Gideon and Rhordan shook their heads, he sighed somewhat. "Alright, the beginning it is. Magical items are objects of power based on either one element or possibly many, they come in three forms; Passive, Cast, and Powered. Passive types are items that apply their effects constantly after they are activated, though they require to constantly drain mana from a person. Cast types are self-explanatory, and Powered types are the same as passives except they have their own power source and can store vast amounts of mana within themselves."
"The third type is the rarest type, only items of the third-tier rarity or higher have a chance of being a powered type." Jorgan joined in, continuing on Pavel's explanation though seeing the even further confused looks for his mention of the tiers he sighed before explaining. "Magical item's rarity and power ranks are broken into three tiers with three rarities and ranks between each tier… there is a possible fourth tier, but it has never been confirmed. Anyway, the first tier has Beginner, Novice and Apprentice for the power ranks, and Crude, Basic and Common for rarity, the first tier is the weakest tier and is the basis for almost all items."
"The second tier, Knight, Baron, and Lord for the power ranks and Uncommon, Rare, and Exotic for rarity. These are considered the best tiers, and the most common for powerful magical items." Pavel continued, almost working in tandem with Jorgan in their explanation, though there was a feeling that Pavel had been on receiving end of this lecture recently. "The second tier is the ideal place for anyone to reach, to make it even to the knight rank can secure a lot of people a high paying job, and if they could get their hands on an uncommon rarity item then their options greatly increase."
"The gap between the first and second tier is beyond measure, in order for someone to breakthrough from apprentice rank to knight rank either requires a massive source of elemental source, or a powerful magical item or potion to aid in their advancement." Jorgan explained the gap between first and second tier. Gideon and Rhordan had wondered why the second rank was an ideal area to aim for, if the border between them was that difficult then it was only reasonable that someone would aim for something that could be just beyond their reach. "And finally, the third tier, the supposed final tier though there has been speculation that that isn't the case."
"Hmph! Yeah, supposedly there is a fourth tier that puts the third and second tiers to shame." Pavel chuckled, ever since he learned of the fourth tier, he had been lording it over Jorgan's head. Enjoying the fact that the Ice Master had managed the impossible only to find out that he was no where close to the highest rank there is.
"The third tier is the highest tier…" Jorgan stressed, glaring at Pavel, daring him to try and make another joke again. "It encompasses the power ranks of Prince, King and Emperor, and the rarity levels of Master, Legendary and Mythical. To break into the third tier is immeasurably difficult, I barely managed it with the help of several magical items and potions which nearly broke our family's resources."
"Making it to Prince rank is a feat beyond most are capable of." Pavel chimed in, trying to earn back what little respect he had left with Jorgan after his little joke. "In fact, only the six original clans have a couple Prince rank people and the kingdoms each have at least one… or they try to anyway. Only five people ever made it to King rank, the Paladin of the Holy Order, The Night Queen, Quicksilver, Kinslayer, and The World Sage."
"Moving on, magical items and potions of the third tier are beyond rare and each rank in it is vastly more powerful the previous one, in fact there are only a limited number of them that are even known, all of which could be listed down on a single page of paper. The Frostmare's Talon being one of them." Jorgan ignored Pavel's attempt at flattery, passing a glare to him to quiet him down about the fourth tier. "The Thunder Form Bow is another, a Master rank item that focuses lightning elemental energy into a single source of destruction capable of… well…"
Jorgan turned around to gesture towards the crater in the ground, a grimace lining his old features as he turned back to them. Shaking his head as he examined the bow in his hands, turning and twisting it before sighing. He stepped forward and reluctantly held out the bow to Rhordan, trying to avoid the look of greed entering his eyes as he watched Rhordan gingerly step forward and take it back.
"Be careful with it, and don't reveal it to anyone." Jorgan warned Rhordan, glaring harshly at her though relenting after a few moments. "Master rank items are akin to a clan's heirloom or a kingdom's national treasure. If they find they can get one from people with no background…"
Jorgan didn't have to finish his sentence for Gideon and Rhordan to understand the implications of the item they held within their hands. Now they had two items worth killing them over, a fact that was slowly weighing on their minds.
"Consider this the first heirloom for your family." Pavel grinned cheekily, earning another glare from Jorgan before he reluctantly agreed with his joke. Gideon and Rhordan shared a strange look, though they were extremely grateful to have an item of this magnitude, but they didn't want to stay long enough that they had to hand it down to the next generation. It was a notion that was slowly baring down upon them, that they may never escape as they had no clue where to even start looking. Though they did blush a little at the thought of handing it down to the next generation.
They had believed that they could focus on finding a way home once they were situated and had enough power behind them that they didn't need to worry about survival. It was an unspoken decision shared between them, one that they hated agreeing upon, yet knew it was their only option. However, they were now realising that it would at the very least a decade before they have the power to survive without worry.
"Thanks, you both have been a great help to us." Rhordan thanked them, offering a small smile of gratitude. Gideon nodded alongside, equally grateful to them though he held a minor misgiving towards them, one that prevented him from trusting them until he knew their true reasons for their charity.
"Well, if you want to repay me…" Jorgan started, ignoring the glare from Pavel who wanted to berate the old man, yet before he could speak Jorgan completed his request. "Can you both learn the word IMPOSSIBLE!"
Author's Note: This was a fun chapter to write, the interaction between Pavel and Jorgan is a weird one, yes Pavel should be respectful towards Jorgan, but from time to time he allows his sarcastic side to flare up and pick a fight with Jorgan. Pavel is in a way like Robin, respecting rules and common curtesy, but he is also like Cyborg in that he enjoys his hobby and loves sharing his opinion regardless of if he was asked. Lastly, he has a bit of Garfield's mischievousness for pranks and in part for bending the rules.