The Amber Sword

Chapter 82 鈥?Legacy

There was an indescribable feeling deep inside Odum鈥檚 heart. The knowledge he had about the sword was a certain prophecy. Perhaps the reason why he stayed here for so long without giving up was that the place called out to him.

He stared at Brendel鈥檚 sword again, hesitating.

[If I tell the human that the Rune Dwarves are required to acknowledge the wielder of Halran Gaia as our king and that the wielder would lead us to rebuild the kingdom, will he even believe it? But this is a damned human and a stranger at that, and I鈥檓 supposed to acknowledge you as my king? My poor old bones!]

鈥淎 legend?鈥?Brendel said.

Odum gritted his teeth. He decided to weave a story and take his chances instead. He coughed loudly and continued: 鈥淚鈥檓 afraid that the legend is only for the ears of the Rune Dwarves. But it seems that you are interested in leaving this place, based on the earlier discussion?鈥?/p>

鈥淒o you have a solution?鈥?/p>

鈥淵es, my lord,鈥?the old dwarf initially thought of using 鈥榤y liege鈥?or 鈥榶our majesty鈥?when he realized the youth carried Halran Gaia, but he felt the words were unacceptable to him, and probably everyone in this place would be shocked out of their wits, 鈥渢he solution is actually very simple鈥斺€?/p>

He paused and carefully pointed at the sword: 鈥淚f you lend me the sword for just a while, I might be able to let everyone leave easily.鈥?/p>

鈥淲hat?鈥?/p>

Brendel was surprised. His puzzled eyes went to Medissa who looked back just as confused.

鈥淥dum, what the hell are you trying to do. Let me tell you that this boy is even more skilled in the sword than I am. If you try to pull off any strange tricks, be careful that your head gets cut off from your body.鈥?/p>

The old dwarf immediately thundered after he understood what Kodan was saying: 鈥淓verything I said is the truth, you damned鈥斺€?/p>

He suddenly realized that the guard commander was still someone powerful. Even though he was a stubborn person, he was at least not a fool: 鈥淭his sacred place was constructed by us Rune Dwarves solely for the purpose of putting this sword here. Since Lord Brendel has already taken the sword, it shouldn鈥檛 be a problem to leave here!鈥?/p>

鈥淭here鈥檚 such a rule?鈥?Brendel asked.

He had never heard of such a function in the game.

鈥淥f course. My lord, the Legacy items of the Silver Lineage are meant for their descendants. However, you can be recognized as a person worthy of receiving the Legacy even if you鈥檙e from a different race,鈥?The dwarf鈥檚 tone was once again different towards Brendel: 鈥渢hough, as a Rune Dwarf, I should be able to open this space if I wield that sword鈥斺€?/p>

Brendel glanced at Kodan, but the latter looked just as surprised as anyone else. Even though the old guard commander had worked with Odum, his understanding of the dwarf was merely the knowledge of how stubborn he was.

[There isn鈥檛 really a choice here. Even if this dwarf tries to pull off any tricks, the coliseum will deal with it. Probably.]

There was also a worming suspicion in his mind about Cohen, the appearance of the dwarf, and the gamers who completed the quest in the game.

It was only a short moment before he tossed the sword to the dwarf.

鈥淕o ahead and try it,鈥?he said, looking back at Cohen.

[It will be good if this works out for everyone.]

鈥淚s there something you wish to say, my lord?鈥?Cohen noticed his gaze and asked.

鈥淚t seems like you have a chance to leave your own name behind in songs and books.鈥?div class="novel-ins2" id="scriptList4">

鈥淲hy are you so certain that he鈥檚 capable of releasing us?鈥?/p>

Cohen watched everyone leave the dueling grounds except for the dwarf who walked to the center, and he asked puzzledly.

鈥淚t鈥檚 just that I believe in history,鈥?Brendel said.

鈥淗istory?鈥?Cohen repeated the word, not understanding.

But Brendel did not answer and merely watched the stage closely. The dwarf raised his sword and waited.

鈥淢ortal, do you wish to challenge your destiny?鈥?/p>

鈥淵es!鈥?Odum said in a thunderous voice.

But the gates were not raised and the coliseum was instead filled with silence. After a moment, the announcer鈥檚 voice came again: 鈥淚 sense a familiar blood in you. Are you our descendant?鈥?/p>

鈥淵es, I鈥檓 a proud citizen of the mountains and boulders, the child of steel and fire, revered ancestors. For hundreds and thousands of years, we have experienced difficulty in the wilderness, but we finally managed to overcome all obstacles and come here to allow our souls to enjoy our deserved respite鈥斺€?/p>

鈥淭his is our homeland, and where we started from.鈥?/p>

蟻伪螤d伪s螡慰vel.c慰m

The coliseum was momentarily silent, but the announcer鈥檚 voice bellowed:

鈥淩espite? No, that moment has not yet arrived!鈥?The voice echoed repeatedly, as though it was furious to hear the dwarf鈥檚 answer, while the place shook and made everyone unsteady on their feet: 鈥淒escendants of the Rune Dwarves! You have to continue to struggle against the Chaos and rebuild what we have lost with your Champion, only till then will your souls be welcomed back to this sacred place!鈥?/p>

鈥淎nd that moment has arrived, revered ancestors.鈥?/p>

鈥溾€︹€?Is that so?鈥?div class="novel-ins2" id="scriptList5">

The dwarf suddenly glanced back at Brendel with some hesitation and a little disbelief, but he raised the longsword in his hand.

鈥淒azzmoteshremm!鈥?The dwarf yelled.

Brendel did not understand what it meant, but Medissa explained to him with a frown.

鈥淚t鈥檚 ancient word of making an Oath. I think it鈥檚 part of the Holy Alliance鈥檚 Contract during the Era of Chaos.鈥?/p>

[That contract from the Era of Chaos? That鈥檚 even older than the Era of Darkness鈥檚.]

The lore in the game stated that every sentient creature in this world signed an alliance with Mother Marsha as the witness to fight against the Twilight Dragon, and a Law bound the alliance together. This was the era when the Gods still lived.

It was considered 鈥榤eaningless background details鈥?by Brendel since the supposed Gods did not have any impact on the game.

There was another Holy Alliance鈥檚 Contract where the majority of the various civilizations fought against the Dragon of Darkness after the Twilight Dragon, but it was much weaker compared to the original copy.

Brendel did not know what the details of both contracts were, only that they were both divine artifacts.

Soon after Odum said the word, the entire coliseum suddenly shook and everyone was blinded by light. They felt like a seal was lifting, and knew that the dwarf was telling the truth.

However, Brendel saw something different in that rumbling space. It was as though he was hallucinating鈥?/p>

A strange painting appeared before him.

A black moon atop of a black lake, and in the center of the lake was a tall tower鈥︹€?/p>

The painting changed and turned into numerous black-clothed men walking on an endless wasteland鈥︹€?div class="novel-ins2" id="scriptList6">

Black words appeared in his eyes:

鈥?XVI: The Tower

鈥?The Fallen 鈥楳oon鈥?has stolen the light.

[This looks like the image I saw during Fortress Riedon鈥檚 escape鈥?.!]

鈥?XX: Judgement

鈥?The light has been lost.

Words continued to be written in his eyes.

鈥?XVII: The Star

鈥?The Silver Lineage is lost on the grand earth, advancing (seeking) on the thorny path in the darkness amidst ignorance.

Then the words vanished and he found himself back in the silver mines. He shook his head to clear his mind and saw Medissa looking at him with concern. He nodded to indicate he was fine.

When he glanced about, he saw Romaine approaching carefully bit by bit, as though she wanted to ask if he was out of concern, but was also afraid that she would be caught by him. He found Romaine鈥檚 cat-like walk to be funny.

鈥淵ou know, we really need to thank someone.鈥?He said to Medissa.

鈥淵es?鈥?Medissa looked back in slight surprise.

鈥淲e need to thank Romaine for bringing us good luck,鈥?the youth turned around with a solemn face and his both hands pinched her cheeks with lightning speed: 鈥渞ight, little Romaine?鈥?/p>

鈥淥w! Ouch, hurts, it hurts, Brendel鈥︹€?I-I won鈥檛 do it again鈥︹€︹€?Romaine鈥檚 face did not escape his grasp, and she narrowed her eyes from the pain as tears nearly spilled out. She quickly admitted her fault: 鈥淚-I鈥檓 sorry, really鈥︹€︹€?/p>

Her eyebrows were almost bunched together. She wanted to retreat, but was afraid to pull back because of the pain, and remained stuck in that position.

Brendel glanced at the dwarf before he looked at Romaine again: 鈥淒o you dare to run about again?鈥?/p>

鈥淚, I won鈥檛鈥︹€︹€?The girl鈥檚 eyes went to the left and right when she said that.

Brendel sighed inwardly. She was definitely not going to change. But he decided to bring her along everywhere as long as they were traveling together. He was not going to be able to handle it if this situation had to happen again.

He let go of his hands.

The light disappeared and they found themselves back in the darkness.

鈥淲hy is it dark again?鈥?Romaine鈥檚 voice immediately rang out.

鈥淚t鈥檚 because we鈥檙e back in the silver mines,鈥?Brendel replied simply.

[I have much to reflect on鈥︹€?Earth鈥檚 languages, the fact that I chose not to save the youths, that the system is affected by the Laws of this world, and the strange images when I left that place鈥擼

Brendel鈥檚 thoughts suddenly went to Halran Gaia. Now that he and his companions were out of danger, he could not help but get excited about having a new sword.

[But, well, I guess I can start thinking about the loot I gotten from that place first鈥︹€?Let鈥檚 see, upgrading the portable Nest: Tamar can make the Black Mana Crystals with a Black Crystal and Mana Fragments. A Sage Slate can be bought at Ampere Seale, though the battles at Chablis really makes me want to stay away from it. However, the Amber Gemstones are directly controlled by the kingdom, and a Rock Key is even harder to obtain鈥擼