Every centimeter of the rings was covered in blue, red, silver, and white runes. A massive pillar of world energy came from below, focused to the point that it was visible to the naked eye without the need for mystical senses.
The power core gorged on the energy, turning it into mana that was sent to the rings to be amplified before being redirected where needed. The Headmaster’s office was both the beating heart and the weak point of the academy.
‘Order and Chaos. That thing holds so much power that if we dared to put a dent in it, the map of the Griffon Kingdom and the Gorgon Empire would be redrawn.’ Vladion said.
‘Who cares about that.’ Lith had Solus take her Eyes form and focus solely on the power core. ‘What are those runes? Blue are the Forgemastering ones any decent mage knows.
‘Red are dimensional runes, probably connected with the internal and external Warp system of the academy. I bet that’s also the way those who are made immortal by the academy are brought back here to rebuild their bodies.
‘What are the silver and the white ones, though?’
‘No clue.’ The Firstborn was tempted to step forward and use Bloodborne, his breathing technique to study such a marvel of magic, but he was afraid that any interaction might give away their presence.
‘Let me see.’ Kalla activated her own Eyes of Menadion, starting the scan as well.
The original Eyes and those of the tower resonated and so did their power cores. Lith and Solus could feel the burden on their minds being lessened as the two artifacts split the workload.
The two Eyes exchanged the information they acquired, avoiding redundant scans and sharing their respective databases to shorten the time that a full scan of such a complex artifact required.
Lith also took out Solus’ Sage staff from their pocket dimension, using its ability to focus and sharpen the mind of its master in order to hasten things even further.
‘Too bad that my Eyes have no correlation to my mind or I could benefit from the Staff as well.’ Kalla sighed in envy.
Her artifact was at the top of its game, but between the lack of a mind link and the outdated runes, it would take her a long time to read the full report. The tower’s Eyes were still incomplete and their use burdened both Lith’s and Solus’ mind.
On the other hand, however, the mind link between the tower and Solus allowed her to convert the data collected into instant knowledge. On top of that, the tower’s Eyes were constantly being upgraded, becoming more powerful as Solus learned more about magic and the tower regained its prowess.
‘Okay. I have no idea what the silver runes are. There is no match for them in the Eyes’ database so we’ll have to wait for the scan to be complete.’ Kalla said. ‘I do know what the white runes are, though.
‘They are made out of perfectly stabilized Decay.’
‘What?’ The other three said in unison.
‘That’s impossible. Cursed elements can’t be stabilized, can’t be used along other Cursed elements, and can’t do anything but destroy.’ Lith said, taking the words out of everyone’s mind.
‘What do you think Forbidden Magic is for?’ Kalla scoffed at their naivety. ‘Arthan was a true genius and this explains everything.’
‘Genius, maybe. Mad, sure. Also, it explains nothing and so do you!’ Vladion said, more annoyed than ever at the Wight.
‘Look, since it’s going to take a while, let’s kick things up another notch.’ Kalla ignored the Vampire’s snarky remark and turned to Lith. ‘Give him a monocle, Scourge. Maybe if we put his brain to use, his mind will shut up and let me finish a sentence.’
‘What the fuck are you talking about?’ Suspense and mystery were giving the Firstborn a hissy fit.
‘Vladion, does the vow you made to Tyris apply to anything that will increase our odds of success?’ Lith asked.
‘Of course.’ The ampule and its golden liquid in his pocket dimension were worth more than anything to him. ‘Even if you use Forbidden Magic, I wouldn’t care. Whatever you do, it will remain between us and I’ll protect your secret with my life.
‘I swear it on my son.’
‘Great, then take this.’ Lith gave the Firstborn Vampire a Monocle, sharing part of the burden with him and further accelerating the scan.
‘Son of a Dragon!’ Vladion cursed as the massive load of information coursed through his brain. ‘That’s why Kalla wanted your presence. That’s why you didn’t barter for the Eyes back when Scarlett entrusted them to you. You already had your own.’
‘Sort of.’ Lith replied. ‘Mine are kind of faulty and still lack a lot of functions of the original. Kalla, how did you know this would happen and what about the Decay runes?’
‘Baba Yaga told me.’ Her words made Vladion curse his own mother next for trusting a semi-Lich more than him. ‘As for the runes, do you really not get it? How do you think the Golden Griffon can rebuild a dying body before its core starts to fade?
‘How do you think it can keep all of its students eternally young? The perfect Decay can not only hasten the regeneration of any kind of wound better than a Lich’s phylactery but it can also amplify the vitality of its target.
‘The light element of living beings gets overcharged to the point that aging simply stops. Their cells stop dying because they get constantly rejuvenated so they have no need to burn life force to live despite the passing of time.’
‘Good gods. Arthan really was a genius.’ Lith said in astonishment. ‘He achieved something that not even a white core like Aylen or any Eldritch could. He perfected Mirror Magic into something useful.
‘Do you think that the same could be done for the other Cursed Elements?’
‘Sure, if you are willing to sacrifice countless lives for your experiments until you get it right and then more for a cursed artifact like this.’ Kalla’s voice shared none of his enthusiasm.
‘I believe that the Mad King was no less brilliant than the late Manohar. Yet he was also even less scrupulous and unlike your friend, Arthan was terrified of death. Genius and no morals make the perfect recipe for a disaster.’
Lith was about to argue, but Solus glared at him in a way that could have borne a hole through his skull. So, he shut up and just offered the other end of the Sage Staff to Vladion.
‘Yggdrasill wood and the Eyes? Kid, I swear to the gods, if it wasn’t for my oath, I would kill you.’ The Firstborn said and his words didn’t sound like a joke.
‘Remember that everything that happens inside the Golden Griffon, stays inside the Golden Griffon. You swore on your son’s life.’ Lith pointed out just to be sure, making Vladion curse again.
‘Don’t worry. I remember it well and I’m already regretting it.’ The Firstborn replied with a snarl.
‘Why so jealous? I find it hard to think that after having lived for as long as you, someone might not have a single piece of the World Tree.’
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