[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: BEGIN ====]
Day 2 of First Trial: Time Remaining – 5 Days, 17 Hours
Objective: Retrieve Map Fragment 2
Hint: Vault secured with Runes of Warding.
Recommended Skill: "Runic Disruption" (Locked)
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: END ====]
Cael awoke to the stench of mold and Mira humming a bawdy merchant tune while roasting something unidentifiable over a broken lantern flame.
"Morning, sunshine," she said, flashing a grin. "You snore like a swamp bear."
Cael groaned, stretching his bruised limbs. "Do I? Never met one."
"Trust me," she said, flipping the mystery meat. "You'd be cousins."
He forced a smirk and checked the system interface. His health bar still pulsed in a dull orange. The ribs hadn't mended, but he was functional. And today, he needed to be more than that.
"The second map fragment," he said, brushing off dust. "Where?"
Mira tossed him a charred skewer. "Vault beneath the Mapkeeper's Guildhouse. We'll need to crawl through the Trade Tunnels to reach it. Problem is, the entrance is sealed with warding runes. Not your usual knock-and-enter."
"I can handle that," Cael muttered, more to himself than to her.
The truth was, he had no idea how. But the system wouldn't throw challenges it didn't expect him to overcome.
Hopefully.
---
The Trade Tunnels beneath the old Merchant Quarter were a labyrinth of collapsed arches and decaying tracks. Once used to shuttle carts of goods from the noble tiers down to the common sectors, they were now a rat kingdom, their walls lined with ancient graffiti and forgotten gods.
Mira led the way with quiet confidence, her crooked staff tapping rhythmically as they slipped through narrow stone corridors. They passed mummified corpses, remnants of past explorers who weren't lucky or clever enough. Cael kept his eyes forward. Dwelling on the dead wouldn't serve him.
Eventually, they reached a sealed archway carved with three glowing runes. The symbols pulsed red, their magic still active despite centuries of decay.
Mira stepped back. "Here it is. Vault 17-B. Mapkeeper stash should be inside."
Cael approached the runes. The air around them shimmered like heat haze. One wrong move and he'd be reduced to ash or worse.
He reached for the system with intent.
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: BEGIN ====]
Skill Unlocked: "Runic Disruption (Basic)"
Effect: Identify and weaken basic magical wards.
Cooldown: 1 Hour
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: END ====]
A warm thrum entered his fingertips. He raised a hand, tracing the outer edge of the ward. The symbols flickered under his touch, resisting at first… but then they trembled, dimming just slightly.
"Not bad," Mira said. "Not exploding earns you points."
Cael chuckled dryly, sweat beading down his temple. The final rune pulsed erratically, then shattered like glass, vanishing into the gloom. The archway groaned open.
Inside lay darkness—and silence.
---
They descended into the vault, their footsteps muffled by a thick carpet of dust. Golden plaques hung crookedly on stone walls. Bookshelves lined the perimeter, half-rotted and filled with moldy tomes. At the center sat a pedestal—bare, save for a single sealed scroll bound in green leather.
Cael approached cautiously.
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: BEGIN ====]
Item Detected: Map Fragment 2/5 – Vault Copy
Warning: Security Spirit Active
Initiating Combat Trial…
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: END ====]
A gust of icy air swept the chamber.
From the darkness, a shadow peeled off the far wall—a humanoid form, its face blank, its hands alight with spectral fire.
Mira swore. "Spirit guardian. Great."
Cael's system flared again:
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: BEGIN ====]
Combat Initiated:
Foe: Vault Spirit – Tier I
HP: 240
Weakness: Elemental Disruption
Suggestion: Use terrain to disable its core
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: END ====]
The specter lunged, flinging a bolt of ethereal fire. Cael ducked behind a fallen pillar, the heat searing past his cheek. He scanned the room. A cluster of copper rods jutted from the ceiling near the scroll pedestal—part of the vault's original arcane containment system.
He had an idea.
"Mira!" he shouted. "Lure it beneath those rods!"
She didn't hesitate. "Come on, glow-worm!" she yelled, dashing across the floor and whacking the spirit's shin with her staff.
The spirit screeched and chased her. Cael sprinted for the base of the rods, activating the Runic Disruption again. His hand trembled as he forced magic into the containment array.
The rods surged with energy and fired downward—white lightning crashing onto the spirit's back.
The specter howled, its form flickering like candlelight, then crumbled into nothing.
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: BEGIN ====]
Enemy Defeated: Vault Spirit
XP Gained: 40
Map Fragment Retrieved
Bonus Trait Acquired: "Instinctive Strategist (Minor)"
Effect: +5% battle efficiency when using environmental tactics
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: END ====]
Cael breathed deep, his hands still tingling from the spell.
He stepped toward the pedestal and claimed the scroll.
---
Back in Mira's hideout, the two of them laid the second map piece beside the first. The puzzle was beginning to take shape: routes beneath the noble sectors, an escape tunnel labeled "Vex Gate," and a symbol that resembled the broken crown of the old regime.
Mira leaned over the parchment. "Next piece is gonna be harder, isn't it?"
Cael didn't answer immediately. The system flared one final time.
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: BEGIN ====]
Progress: 40%
Next Objective: Retrieve Fragment 3 – Noble Quarter
Risk Level: High
Estimated Guard Presence: Extreme
Special Condition: Hidden Blood Sigil Required
[==== SYSTEM NOTICE: END ====]
Cael met her gaze. "Yes. Much harder."
Mira sighed. "Good thing I like a challenge."
He gave her a tired grin, but inside, something had shifted. Every step he took unlocked fragments of a self he didn't yet understand—one who knew war, strategy, and death. The Broken God stirred beneath his skin like an ember fanned by wind.
And he had a throne to reclaim.