Chapter 372: 372. The Unexpected Guardian

ZOOLOGY skills obtained.

You now have the ability to learn the complete anatomy of a creature, as well as its habits, behavior, and means of communication.

Dallion stared at the green rectangle. Any other day, this would have been magnificent news, bordering on euphoria. Now, he felt disappointment and a deep sense of fear.

“I doubt it’s the Star,” Vihrogon’s echo said. “He wouldn’t have stopped at one skill.”

“Who would?” Dallion would understand someone getting here before him. That was always an option. He could find any logic for someone who would go through all that trouble only for one skill. “Are there any restrictions keeping a person from taking more than one?”

“Not that I can think of. It’s possible that the person was interrupted in the process. He could have claimed the skill, then gotten killed before claiming the second.”

The explanation sounded plausible, but didn’t feel right. It was far too convenient. Then again, all the other explanations Dallion could think of were just as worse. Nil would have been quite useful around now. Sadly, that wasn’t an option for the moment.

Dallion put down the twi-crown. Without the gems it looked rather hollow, yet it remained an important symbol for dryads.

“It could have been taken ages ago, during the wars of this realm,” the echo said. “Herbology would have been of a far greater benefit in this realm than the remaining skill. Especially for warfare.”

“Yeah. Probably.”

If there was someone with the forgotten skill of zoology, life in the real world had just become considerably more dangerous.

“What do you want to do now?” The echo asked.

“We go on,” Dallion replied. “At least we know that the Star won’t be getting this.”

That was a minor consolation, but there was nothing anyone could do on the matter. Zoology wouldn’t provide much of an advantage when fighting the Star, but it might be useful when dealing with the cultists. The important thing was not to give up.

Reality shifted, replacing the wooden room with the one in the Icepicker guildhall. Dallion’s final exploration had come to an end. Now the difficult part began. Dallion turned around to leave the room, when from the corner of his eye, he saw someone combat split. At this point, there was no longer any need speculating whether he would be caught.

“I thought you might come here,” Vend said, standing at the door. “Only you would do something so recklessly stupid after being warned not to.”

“Sorry, Vend.” Dallion turned around. “There’s too much at stake.”

“And you don’t think the overseer could do her job?”

Half a dozen knives were visible on Vend’s belt. The elite had clearly prepared himself for battle. When he had said that he expected to find Dallion there, he must have also prepared for what followed.

Dallion relaxed his breathing. This was the worst possible time for a fight. It had been too soon after an exploration, not to mention that his head was still pounding from the intense focus concentration had had while fighting the final guardian’s echo.

“Are you sure you want to fight here?” Dallion asked, infusing each word with doubt and hesitation. And just to be on the safe side, he slowly pulled off the blocking ring he was wearing. “I might lose, but it won’t be pretty.”

Under normal circumstances, Dallion would have no chance of success. Thanks to his Gleam whip blade, he stood a chance.

“You think you can win?” There was a note of pride in Vend’s question.

“Maybe not. But I know that you won’t leave the city to be harmed because of your actions. Even if there’s a one in a million chance that I might save Nerosal, it’s better than me just sitting here.” Dallion concentrated. In this battle, he was going to have to use his focus for as long as possible.

“You think you can make a difference? You can’t even win the tournament. Today’s victory was the last one you’d get and even it was due more to chance than actual skill. Yet, you think you can stand up to a cultist? Or the Star itself?”

Nil, any advice would be appreciated right now, Dallion thought.

Unfortunately, dear boy, at this point there’s nothing left but to let this play out.

“I know you don’t want the city destroyed,” Dallion persisted.

“The city isn’t the source of joy you think it is. You’ve had your dealings with the mirror pool, you know about the rot hidden beneath the surface. Who’s to say that a massive shaking up isn’t what the city needs?”

Dallion could feel the bitterness. No doubt the city hadn’t been kind to Vend. The elite had been a trouble in his youth. In a way, he reminded Dallion of Arthurows—not the Star, but the vessel that had allowed himself to become its vessel. He too had spent his entire life in poverty and misery, living in a part of the city that even non-awakened wouldn’t venture through without cause. Desperation had made him believe that the only solution was to make a deal with the Star, if only to have the city pay. What if Vend had gone through the same?

“I know you don’t really believe that,” Dallion said.

Vend arched a brow.

“Music skills,” Dallion added. “But even without them, I could see you’re not a cultist. With your skills and abilities, you could have easily found a job in the provincial capital. Instead, you chose to stay here.”

The elite narrowed his eyes.

“I don’t think you’re only here to pay off your debt to March or anyone else who helped you. You love this city, despite everything broken in it. You won’t let anyone destroy it.”

You’re pushing it, dear boy. At least maintain a certain level of realism.

Dallion didn’t respond. He needed as many words as possible to have a better chance of his music skills having an effect, but that wasn’t all. Dallion hoped he’d be able to change Vend’s mind. Something told him that there was more to the man. There had to be something in the city that had a strong significance for him. Something or someone.

“Tell me I’m wrong,” Dallion said.

Go for the whip blade, the voice in his head said. Instances aren’t efficient in tight spaces. The shardfly will be able to defeat him.

Up till now, the voice had always provided Dallion with good advice, saving him in quite a few tight spots. This time, though, Dallion decided to ignore it.

“What if I’m a cultist?” Vend asked.

“I’d have known.”

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“Not all cultists have chainlings inside. A lot of them spend years helping the Star until they are given the honor of transforming into something with power.”

“I still would have known.”

This was the moment of truth. Every instinct told Dallion that he was correct in his assessment. Then again, he had thought the same of Arthurows. The tension in the air was so thick one could cut it with a knife. Both kept their eyes fixed on the other, ready to engage in battle if necessary.

Get ready, Gleam, Dllion said. I might need you on this.

Vend’s hand moved to one of the daggers, then suddenly stopped.

“You’re right.” Vend glanced at the door. “There are a few things that I don’t want destroyed. I wasn’t joking when I said you won’t make it.”

“You’re going to help me?”

“Every little bit helps. Besides, there’s an advantage to having an otherworlder. Limits don’t apply to you.”

That was rather fortunate, Nil commented. I must admit, I didn’t see this one. Although, given his history, I should have guessed.

“What’s the plan?”

“The vermillion tears,” Dallion said. “They need them to get the chainling here. If we find those, they won’t be able to open the lock. We don’t have to face the Star.”

“What did you need to enter the sword for?”

“There was a Vermillion ring in the realm,” Dallion said. That was true and plausible just enough for Vend not to suspect anything. Dallion felt slightly bad about it, but he wanted to reveal as little as possible about his empathy attribute and corresponding skills. “I have it now.”

Dallion could feel the emotions within Vend change. Displeasure and annoyance emerged, then faded away, replaced by a sense of compromise and understanding.

“Let’s find the rest,” the man said.

Finding a single ring the size of a city was an impossible task by any standard. Thankfully, the general—being the duplicitous schemer that he was—had “marked” the item he had sold them, letting him know its whereabouts within the city. There was only one setback—marking was by no means a sophisticated method. While it allowed the general to know that it was functional and within the city, it only narrowed down the search to a block or two. In this case, the item was somewhere in the vicinity of the Performer’s Plaza. Clearly, it was no coincidence that the chainling that Dallion had discovered was there. At the time, he thought it to be an accident; more likely the Star had already set his plan in motion.

There really isn’t anything of interest there, Nil insisted, while he and Gen tried to figure out how to find the lock that the key was supposed to open. The performance isn’t bad, and some of the shops have rather interesting items for sale, but there’s nothing remotely historic about the place.

Nothing underground? Dallion asked. Maybe some tunnel or buried ruins?

Dear boy, if there was anything remotely interesting, the Lord Mayor would have obtained it already. Not to mention that the city guardian would have sensed them. No, whatever is there had been brought later.

So, it could be an item, Dallion sighed. That would put them back to square one.

Rather, I suspect it’s a structure. Or part of one. It wouldn’t be the first case of someone building a house to have his descendants discover that one of the stones came from a set of ancient ruins and had access to a hidden domain from ages past. In fact, the guild used to get search jobs, mostly by the newly rich. After spending a fortune on an old structure within the city, the new occupants would often spend slightly more on the off chance that they would find something valuable. They rarely do, of course, but it didn’t stop them from trying. That was until artifacts flooded the streets.

“Nil says we’re supposed to find a building,” Dallion whispered to Vend. “Or part of a building.”

“Vague as usual.” Vend didn’t hide his annoyance. “This might take a while.”

With the tournament in full force, the number of people was far less than usual, even before the festival started. However, that only made Dallion notice how many buildings there were. Since they were located around the plaza itself, Dallion had been left with the impression that there were a few dozen at most. Looking closely, there were quite a lot, not to mention everything inside. Still, there was one big advantage.

“Maybe not.” Dallion eagerly went to the nearest pub.

Have any of you seen a Vermillion? Dallion asked.

Initially, there was silence. Then a single voice responded.

I have, a deep female voice said. This was the first time that Dallion actually spoke to a building guardian. The funny bit was that she sounded like an opera diva. Ghastly thing. I would have much rather preferred the guardian had remained the original sophisticated creature, rather than the current reject.

The ring changed guardians?

A common occurrence for sphere items, sadly. Once they fulfill their destiny they shove out their old guardians, leaving room for new.

That was strange. Dallion wasn’t aware that a building guardian would be so well informed. Then again, the Well back in Dherma was the one who had kept the chainling safe until Dallion could claim it, so there was more to area guardians than one might think.

Aren’t you the sweetest thing? the tavern responded. There’s no reason to be surprised. A lot of things happen within my walls. I’m not usually one to talk, but it’s been an eternity since I’ve spoken to anyone other than awakened who’d come to repair me. I’ve seen a lot of dealings take place. The Vermillion was a rather interesting case. Usually, people don’t return once an item changes owner. In the case of the Vermillion ring, he returned three times at least, not to mention all the visits to other buildings in the plaza.

Where is he now? Dallion asked eagerly.

Why, he’s buried beneath the plaza. Not the most dignified place to be, but as long as he doesn’t bother anyone else, who am I to complain?

He’s buried? Dallion’s glance swept through the plaza. Where?

All the way on the other side of the plaza. He’s being quiet, but I saw when they put him there, shortly after that scene in the open. I must say you were quite brave, facing off a chainling. Those creatures give me the shivers.

This sounded bad.

How many more have you seen? Dallion asked the obvious question, even if he didn’t want to.

Five or six. There used to be one always around until your fight. The sneaky things would leave just before the city guard arrived to inspect. It was rather annoying. Quite a lot of us were happy when you made that one show its true colors. For a while, none of them dared set foot here.

Dallion didn’t like the sound of that either.

Why for a while? He asked. Have they returned?

Didn’t I just tell you that they buried one on the other side of the plaza? The guardian asked in an annoyed manner. The chainling is the key’s new guardian.

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